At the 100-day mark of the Trump administration, Jon Fansmith, Sarah Spreitzer, and Mushtaq Gunja review a fast-moving and consequential start: 142 executive orders, declining approval ratings, and significant policy shifts affecting higher education. They discuss new executive orders on accreditation, foreign influence, DEI, immigration, and HBCUs, along with proposed cuts to student aid in the House reconciliation bill. The episode also looks at the confusion surrounding revoked student visas and what early polling signals about public reaction to the administration’s actions.

Send suggestions, links, and questions to @ACEducation on X or Bluesky or email [email protected].

Here are some of the links and references from this week’s episode: 

From ACE

Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education

Letter Opposing the House Budget Reconciliation Bill (the Student Success and Taxpayer Savings Plan) ACE | April 29, 2025

Summary of the Student Success and Taxpayer Savings PlanACE | April 30, 2025

College Cost Reduction Act: By the Numbers

News Articles

Trump Administration Reverses Abrupt Terminations of Foreign Students’ US Visa Registrations Politico | April 25, 2025

Anti-DEI Guidance Letter Put On Hold, for Now Inside Higher Ed | April 24, 2025

Judge Frees Columbia Student Activist Whom Trump Administration Wants to Deport Politico | April 30, 2025

Trump Executive Orders

Higher Education & The Trump Administration ACE Summary

Reforming Accreditation to Strengthen Higher Education (April 23, 2025)

Transparency Regarding Foreign Influence at American Universities (April 23, 2025)

White House Initiative to Promote Excellence and Innovation at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (April 23, 2025)

Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy (April 23, 2025)

Preparing Americans for High-Paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future (April 23, 2025)

Protecting American Communities From Criminal Aliens (April 28, 2025)