Republicans believe that institutions have” colluded to increase education costs.”
Leading Republican lawmakers this week launched an investigation into Ivy League universities ‘ tuition costs, alleging possible antitrust laws were broken.
The investigation, which is led by House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan and Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley, requests from the eight institutions to provide documents “regarding their apparent collaboration to increase education costs,” according to a press release.
We are particularly concerned that Ivy League part corporations appear to be attempting to raise tuition costs while engaging in value bias by providing arbitrary financial aid packages to make the most money,” the politicians wrote.
As The Hill claims,
The Republicans are concerned about reported cooperation and possible antitrust laws being used to keep school prices high. …
The GOP legislators point to instances like the Council of Ivy League Presidents holding conferences about registration methods, a lawsuit accusing the College Board of working with organizations to reduce the availability of financial aid for students, and requiring students to be on campus during their first time and get a meal plan.
These institutions establish the industry standard for tuition pricing, giving colleges and universities the ability to justify higher tuition costs than they might otherwise be able to in a market of choice, the lawmakers wrote.
Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell University, and Yale University are the institutions being looked into.
The College Fix‘s prior investigations have revealed administrative bloat at Ivy League campuses.
For instance, according to a 2024 College Fix analysis, Columbia has more full-time employees than undergraduate students, including an Earth Observatory “diversity, equity, and inclusion” director.
For every four undergraduate students, more than three administrators and support staff are employed by Yale, according to another Fix analysis.
MORE: A Brown University student journalist is being investigated for investigating administrative bloat.
IMAGE CAPTION AND CREDIT: A doorway leads to the Princeton University campus ‘ yard. Jay Yuan/Shutterstock
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