College bound students could see certain degree programs eliminated at state universities and colleges, if they fall under a low earnings threshold.
The measure, part of Senate Bill 199, is tied to President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act that links federal student loan eligibility to post-college earnings.
The bill, part of a wide-ranging package, has already passed the Senate and passed out of a House education committee meeting on Feb. 11. It also sets forth regulations on youth using social media.
The bill could be considered for final House passage early in the week.
It calls for the Indiana Commission for Higher Education to scrutinize degree programs in which graduates earn median wages that fall under thresholds from about $24,000 to $35,000.
Rep. Ed Delaney, R-Indianapolis, called the bill insulting to universities, saying they already monitor their degree programs.
“Why don’t we pass something useful?” he asked.
State Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary, a retired education professor at Indiana University Northwest, said the state shouldn’t intrude into college offerings.
“We’re forgetting a thing called job satisfaction, you understand when you won’t make a lot of money. I wanted to be an educator and I knew I wouldn’t… Why are we getting into everybody’s choice?”
Rep. Tonya Pfaff, D-Terre Haute, is a math teacher and she opposed the bill.
“I think we’re going down a dangerous path when we eliminate degree programs because they don’t make enough money.” She said other students also take courses from within those degree programs.
In testimony in support of the bill, Secretary of Education Katie Jenner, who also heads the Commission for Higher Education, said families should understand the monetary outcomes of degree programs as they weigh their kids’ futures.
She used a head-scratching analogy to make her point.
“Let’s say it’s underwater basket weaving that 40 kids in Indiana have signed up for and they’re set to make $12,000 a year, and they’ve paid $20,000 per year and are now, like the average child in Indiana, $30,000 in debt,” she said.
Paying off a federal loan would be difficult, she said.
The U.S. Department of Education issued a preliminary list of programs that could be in jeopardy because the expected earnings fell below government thresholds.
The department said the final list won’t be issued until 2027. Programs wouldn’t be immediately eliminated; they would have to fall under the earnings target for several years before losing loan funding.
According to Indiana Chalkbeat, 16 degree programs at 11 state colleges and universities were identified in the preliminary list. It also named 21 undergraduate certificate fields, including many cosmetology schools.
Locally, bachelor degree programs impacted at IUN and at Purdue University Northwest were English Language and Literature General.
Also on the preliminary list is PNW’s computer software and media applications degree.
At IU-Bloomington, a music degree was on the list and a dance degree was listed at Ball State.
Other undergraduate certificate programs in jeopardy include: Ivy Tech Community College teacher education and professional development specific levels and methods; Tricoci University of Beauty Culture, Highland; Don Roberts School of Hair Design, Schererville; Lil Lou’s Beauty and Barber College, Gary and Hammond, and Paul Mitchell the School, Merrillville.
Last year, lawmakers directed the higher education commission to eliminate or merge degree programs with low enrollment or duplication.
Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter at the Post-Tribune.
