62 colleges hit by cyberattack

With help from Pia Deshpande

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— The Education Department issued a warning about the "active and ongoing exploitation" of a security flaw with a popular technology product used by colleges to manage student information, financial aid and other functions. The department identified 62 colleges or universities hit by the cyberattack.

— Education Secretary Betsy DeVos continues her tour of the Carolinas today with a stop in the Palmetto State, where she will promote her plan for “Education Freedom Scholarships” and tour a pharmaceutical company.

— Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan will testify before the House Oversight and Reform Committee today on the administration's child separation policy and the treatment of immigrants in detention facilities.

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CYBERATTACKS TARGET UNIVERSITIES: Department officials wrote in a "security alert" that they identified 62 colleges or universities that had been "affected" by exploitation of a vulnerability in technology products sold by the company Ellucian.

— The attackers were able to obtain unauthorized access to colleges' admissions or enrollment systems and then created "thousands of fake student accounts," with at least 600 fake accounts generated within a 24-hour period, the department said.

— The vulnerability affects some of Ellucian's "Banner" products, the department said. More than 1,400 colleges and universities use "Banner," according to the company's website.

— An Ellucian spokesperson said the company released a patch on May 14, 2019, that addresses the vulnerability mentioned in the department’s Security Technology Report. “Ellucian is contacting the Department of Education regarding the report,” the statement says. Read more from Michael Stratford.

GOIN’ TO (SOUTH) CAROLINA: DeVos will join South Carolina Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman today at Nephron Pharmaceuticals in West Columbia, S.C., to highlight the company’s participation in the Trump administration’s “Pledge to America’s Workers.” Nephron is among more than 250 companies that have committed to creating nearly 10 million “enhanced career and training opportunities for America’s workforce.”

— DeVos later joins Gov. Henry McMaster and Spearman for a roundtable discussion about her “Education Freedom Scholarships” proposal, which would create a new $5 billion federal tax credit for donations to organizations that could pay for students to attend private schools or expand public education options.

— DeVos promoted the plan on Wednesday in Raleigh, N.C., at a roundtable event with Lt. Gov. Dan Forest. “It’s important to continue to build grass-roots support for the proposal so you’ll continue to see the secretary traveling state to state,” her spokeswoman Liz Hill said.

— DeVos was in North Carolina the same day President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence visited for a “Make America Great Again” rally at East Carolina University in Greenville. Earlier on Wednesday, DeVos announced she approved North Carolina and Georgia to take part in a pilot program designed to encourage local involvement in developing the next generation of assessments for student achievement.

MORE ON THOSE DEVOS EMAILS: A watchdog organization is suing the Department of Education to compel the release of official emails DeVos sent using her personal email account.

— The lawsuit by American Oversight follows the announcement on Monday that House Oversight Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) is expanding his probe into her use of personal email after "disturbing new revelations" released by the Education Department's inspector general in May about her email practices. Cummings told DeVos the new information indicates she withheld from the committee information it was seeking for two years.

— The lawsuit is part of the group's ongoing litigation initiative directed at the Trump administration. “A Trump Cabinet secretary hiding her work in a personal email address isn’t just hypocritical, it thwarts accountability,” Austin Evers, the organization's executive director, said in a statement.

— Hill, the department spokeswoman, said: "This is just a press release masquerading as a lawsuit. The IG did a thorough investigation and there is literally nothing to see here."

— The lawsuit seeks copies of emails sent between select Education Department staff and any personal email accounts used by DeVos, as well as any messages sent to DeVos's official accounts from any personal accounts she maintains. Cummings is investigating senior Trump administration officials' private email use for official purposes.

IN THE HOT SEAT: McAleenan will testify at a House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing today on the Trump administration’s child separation policy and the treatment of immigrants in federal custody.

— McAleenan has pushed back against reports of disease outbreaks and hunger among children at border patrol facilities, saying earlier this month on ABC’s “This Week”: “We have no evidence that children went hungry.” The hearing starts at 10 a.m.

— Education angle: Democratic House members have been expressing concerns about the education of children at shelters in addition to their treatment. Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.), after touring a shelter for migrant children in Homestead, Fla., on Monday, called the education opportunity there “a joke.” Meanwhile, House Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott (D-Va.) is pressing DeVos on states’ responsibility to identify migrant children with disabilities in federal custody and evaluate them for special education services.

WARREN TARGETS HUNGER ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) introduced legislation Thursday that would allow more low-income college students to access the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

— The College Student Hunger Act of 2019 would expand the list of criteria permitting low-income college students to apply for SNAP by allowing Pell Grant-eligible students and independent students — for instance, those who are in foster care, who are veterans, or who are homeless — to apply for benefits, according to her office. The bill also lowers SNAP's 20 hours per week work requirement for college students to 10 hours.

— The bill follows Government Accountability Office findings, released by Warren in January, that showed more than 30 percent of college students may face food insecurity. The report found that almost 2 million at-risk students who are potentially eligible for SNAP did not receive benefits in 2016.

— Warren introduced the legislation with another 2020 contender, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.). Rep. Al Lawson (D-Fla.) is the bill’s lead House sponsor.

CASTRO DETAILS EXPERIENCES WITH RACISM: Rep. Joaquín Castro (D-Texas) shared his experiences enduring racism in school as a young student in San Antonio during a congressional hearing Wednesday, describing individuals who “should not have been teaching.”

— Castro, the brother of Democratic presidential candidate Julian, described how his German class teacher dressed “with a Nazi insignia on his lapel” one Halloween and how a high school instructor “would joke about wetbacks in a school that was 95 percent Mexican-American.”

— The comments came during a House Education and Labor joint subcommittee hearing on how federal policy can better support teachers — and a day after the House voted to condemn President Donald Trump’s “racist” tweets about four minority congresswomen.

— Castro, the son of a public school teacher, discussed the need for diversity in the teaching profession. “For those of us that are supporters of public education, who want public education to be robust for years to come — how do we make sure that teachers like that are either significantly improved or weeded out?" he asked.

— Andrew Daire, dean of Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Education, responded: “We need to have intensive training in terms of implicit bias: understanding racism, understanding culture, understanding poverty, understanding privilege.”

• 10 a.m.

  The House Oversight and Reform Committee holds a hearing on "the Trump Administration’s child separation policy, the treatment of immigrants detained in U.S. government facilities, and related issues." Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Kevin K. McAleenan will testify. 2154 Rayburn House Office Building

• 11 a.m.

  Justice Department; Office of Justice Programs holds a meeting by teleconference of the Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice on policies regarding juvenile justice and delinquency prevention.

— Trump Picked His Perfect Education Secretary in Betsy DeVos: Bloomberg

— White House, Congress getting closer on budget deal: POLITICO Pro

— Trump administration opposes change in GI Bill calculation for colleges pushed by Democrats: POLITICO Pro

— Louisiana's mentorship program for beginning teachers touted at House hearing: POLITICO Pro

— Education advocates cheer manufacturers’ retreat from effort to repeal new Oregon business tax: Oregon Live

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