Richard Cordray Takes the Fall for FAFSA Fiasco
Katherine Knott and Liam Knox
April 28, 2024
The Federal Student Aid chief and debt-relief czar is stepping down after months of criticism over the bungled FAFSA overhaul. But is now the right time for accountability?
Richard Cordray, the chief operating officer of the Office of Federal Student Aid and top student loan official in the Biden administration, is stepping down.
Cordray has faced mounting criticism from Congressional Republicans and the higher education community over his agency’s rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FASFA), which has been beset by a raft of delays and technical errors that have frustrated college financial aid offices and hampered college access for underserved students.
“Mr. Cordray, don’t let the door hit you on the way out,” Representative Virginia Foxx, the North Carolina Republican who chairs the House Education and Workforce Committee, said in a statement.
