The Department of Education, led by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, has opened a preliminary investigation into the eight universities named in the landmark college cheating scandal that broke in mid-March, Politico reported Monday. The universities in question—which include Stanford, Georgetown, and Yale—reportedly received a letter Monday demanding a litany of educational materials related to the investigation, which seeks to determine if the schools broke any federal rules. The letters come two weeks after feds unveiled a massive college cheating scheme in which wealthy parents allegedly bribed their children’s way into elite schools by cheating on standardized tests and falsifying athletic credentials. “The allegations made and evidence cited by the Department of Justice raise questions about whether your institution is fully meeting its obligations,” the letter reportedly says. If the schools are found to have violated a rule, Politico notes, they could lose access to Pell grants and federal student loans. There is currently no public evidence suggesting that the schools were aware of the alleged criminal activity.
