In a reversal of a Trump-era policy over the distribution of federal grants supporting college students during the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday that illegal immigrants and international students will also receive the relief checks. Those students, along with refugees and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) recipients, are now able to tap into the $36 billion Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF), which was allocated by Congress last year as part of the CARES Act.
“With this action, thousands of institutions will be able to provide direct relief to students who need it most, so we can make sure that we not only recover from the pandemic, but also build back even stronger than before,” said Education Secretary Miguel Cardona in a press release. Those students had been blocked from the CARES Act relief money since April 2020, when then-Education Secretary Betsy DeVos issued guidelines on …
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