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Press Releases

  • New AACRAO Report Examines Impact of Federal Transcript-Hold Regulations on Higher Education

    June 26 2024

    The American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) has published a new report, "Balancing Access and Accountability: Assessing the Implications of the New Federal Transcript-Hold Regulation for Higher Education - Part 1." Authored by Dr. Wendy Kilgore of AACRAO and Dr. James Dean Ward of Ithaka S+R, the report examines the effects of federal regulations limiting transcript holds for unpaid balances. Data from a survey of 326 institutions reveals that while 77% do not plan to use partial-transcript holds, many are eliminating holds and changing policies in response to the new regulations. The report highlights the need for ongoing research and collaboration to understand and adapt to these changes, promoting learner success and institutional stability. The full report is available on the AACRAO website.

  • Launch of the Learning Evaluation and Recognition for the Next Generation (LEARN) Commission

    June 24 2024

    AACRAO and Sova announce the launch of the Learning Evaluation and Recognition for the Next Generation (LEARN) Commission, a new national effort to recognize undergraduate learning and improve credit evaluation policies and practices. The LEARN Commission will evaluate policies and practices for transferring and applying credit between accredited institutions, as well as policies and processes for recognizing credit earned from high school dual enrollment and learning obtained in the workplace and military.

  • National Coalition Launched to Accelerate Adoption of Learning and Employment Records (LERs) in Post-Secondary Education

    April 17 2024

    A coalition of national associations representing stakeholders in higher education has formed the LER Accelerator to address the slow adoption of digital credentials in college campuses. Led by AACRAO, the coalition aims to promote Learning and Employment Records (LERs) as evidence of learners' skills to employers.

  • Financial Aid and College Access Community Urges Colleges to Extend Financial Aid, Enrollment Commitment Deadlines

    January 31 2024

    Due to the continued delays in the availability of FAFSA applicant data, AACRAO, in collaboration with eight other higher education associations, urges colleges and universities to extend institutional enrollment, scholarship, and financial aid deadlines beyond the traditional May 1 date.

ED Updates

AACRAO Executive Director Statement on Transcript Withholding and Partial Transcript Holds | 06/06/2024

AACRAO has developed guidance to help institutions navigate the changing landscape around transcript holds. Our guidance document, "AACRAO Guidance in Response to Federal Regulation Changes on Financial Responsibility and Administrative Capability," builds upon our previous work on this issue and the joint statement we issued with NACUBO in April 2022.

Evolving the Learning and Employment Ecosystem in Higher Education | 11/22/2023

Both the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) and International Business Machines (IBM) are active in pursuing the development of an ecosystem that enables learners to communicate, with trust and confidence, their skills, competencies and learning to support their next career opportunities. The opportunities might present themselves academically via pursuit of a credential from another institution or in the labor market. In either case, the ability to transmit trusted, verifiable credentials to reviewers with enough information embedded for recipients to discern how these skills translate into their specific contexts is, we believe, crucial for both sectors, and for the learner, as we move into a more volatile future. We felt the combined subject matter knowledge of the two organizations might highlight the need for the learning and employment ecosystem, the challenges to adoption and some recommendations for how to proceed.

  • Rick Goldgar
  • Mark McConahay
    • Headshot of Melanie Gottlieb.

    Statement on the Supreme Court Ruling in the SFFA v. Harvard and UNC Cases | 06/29/2023

  • Melanie Gottlieb

    • AACRAO 2023 Hill Day Returns to Capitol Hill | 06/22/2023

    Today, over 20 AACRAO advocates met with nearly 50 Congressional offices to share their practitioner perspective on how policy impacts the work our AACRAO members do on a daily basis.

  • Melanie Gottlieb
    • Headshot of Melanie Gottlieb.

    AACRAO submits amicus brief in support of holistic admissions processes | 08/04/2022

  • Melanie Gottlieb