House Democrats advance gun background checks on eve of Parkland anniversary

— The Harvard affirmative action trial has come to a close. The university and the anti-affirmative-action group suing it squared off during a second round of closing arguments on Wednesday, setting the stage for a decision in the closely watched case.

— The Trump administration is extending for a fourth year an Obama-era pilot program that provides Pell grants to a limited number of prisoners. The Education Department says it needs more time to evaluate the effectiveness of the program as bipartisan support grows to permanently expand Pell grants to incarcerated students.

IT’S THURSDAY, FEB. 14. WELCOME TO MORNING EDUCATION. Drop me a line with your tips and feedback: mstratford@politico.com or @mstratford. Share event listings: educalendar@politicopro.com. And follow us on Twitter: @Morning_Edu and @POLITICOPro.

HOUSE DEMOCRATS ADVANCE EXPANDED GUN BACKGROUND CHECKS: House Democrats took their first steps to passing legislation to tighten federal gun laws, a day before today’s first anniversary of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida.

— The House Judiciary Committee approved a pair of bills that would expand federal background checks for firearm purchases. The legislation, which now heads to the House floor, makes good on Democrats’ promises to address gun violence after taking control of the chamber this year.

— “There is a clear consensus among academics, public health experts, and law enforcement personnel that universal background checks would greatly enhance public safety,” Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler(D-N.Y.) said. “Despite the obvious need to take action, however, Congress, for too long has done virtually nothing.”

— Republicans opposed the legislation. Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), the committee's ranking member, said it would “turn law-abiding citizens into criminals with the stroke of a pen” by requiring, for instance, background checks for the “countless firearms transfers” among friends or family members. Read the full story here.

— Meanwhile, in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis is asking the state’s Supreme Court to enlist a grand jury to review the response to the Parkland shooting last year. Read more from POLITICO Florida’s Andrew Atterbury.

PARKLAND TEENS TO MARK ANNIVERSARY BY GOING OFFLINE:Emma González, a Parkland student who became a well-known gun control activist, said the March for Our Lives group plans to “go dark” from today until Sunday both “online and offline” to note the occasion.

— “Like so many others in our community, I'm going to spend that time giving my attention to friends and family, and remembering those we lost,” González wrote in an email distributed by the group.

HARVARD FENDS OFF CHARGES OF DISCRIMINATION IN FINAL HEARING: The Ivy League university and the anti-affirmative-action group suing it have given their final arguments to a federal judge weighing whether the school discriminates against Asian-American applicants. Now the wait is on for a ruling — which will be hotly anticipated and is likely a long ways off.

— Students for Fair Admissions, the group suing Harvard, claimed in court on Wednesday that racial stereotypes crept into admissions decisions, leading officials there to discriminate against Asian-American applicants. Harvard’s attorneys denied the charges and said, "At the end of the day, the court still has to resolve the question whether Harvard intended to discriminate.”

— That’s a key disagreement. Adam Mortara, SFFA's attorney, argued "motives don’t matter" in the case. "They may quite well have fallen prey to racial stereotyping," he said of Harvard's admissions officials. "It doesn't make them evil, it makes them human." Benjamin Wermund has the full story here.

— The courtroom was packed for the final hearing. Observers stood in the back while others were sent to an overflow room to watch remotely. Many were Harvard students and alumni showing support for the university while wearing and handing out light blue shirts with #DefendDiversity written across the front above a crimson Harvard crest.

— Not present was Michael Park, a member of SFFA's legal team, whom President Donald Trump has tapped for a spot on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals. Park is in D.C. for his confirmation hearing.

PROGRAM ALLOWING PELL GRANTS FOR PRISONERS IS RENEWED: The Education Department has again approved a pilot program created by the Obama administration that allows prisoners to use Pell Grants to pay for higher education programs, a department official said Wednesday. The fourth year of “Second Chance Pell” would start July 1.

— Liz Hill, a department spokesperson, said in an email the department doesn’t yet have enough data to evaluate the program. “But we don't want to deny any student the opportunity to receive the education they want and need while we wait to get conclusive results,” she said. Read more from Kimberly Hefling.

HBCU BILL MOVING ALONG: A bill to build on Trump's executive order on historically black colleges and universities cleared the Senate less than a week after it was introduced, and the co-author of its House companion thinks it will get a vote there by the end of the month.

— Deemed the HBCU PARTNERS Act, S. 461 (116), the measure would require federal agencies with relevant grants and programs to create an annual plan of how to better engage and support HBCU participation. The agencies would then have to measure, track and report their progress to Congress. It also would codify the President's Board of Advisors on HBCUs, which is intended to be a direct line from the institutions to the White House.

— “I am impressed by the swift movement of the bill on the Senate side, and am working with both Chairman [Bobby] Scott and Ranking Member [Virginia] Foxx to move the bill in the House,” Rep. Alma Adams(D-N.C.) told Morning Education. “The rapid movement of this bill illustrates the need for bipartisanship to move priorities across the finish line.”

BREAKING NEWS ON APPROPRIATIONS: A spending package and border security deal released overnight includes $100 million via the Justice Department for the STOP School Violence Act. The bill also includes $110 million for NASA’s STEM education programs, an increase of $10 million above fiscal 2018. Read the full text of the spending deal, intended to avert another government shutdown, here. A summary is here.

SUPERINTENDENTS ASK CONGRESS TO FUND SCHOOL LUNCHES: School superintendents are among those watching to see if a spending deal will get signed by Trump by Friday, averting another government shutdown. More than 130 superintendents from 30-plus states wrote to Congress asking that USDA gets funded so the federal school lunch program isn’t disrupted.

— “We urge you to end this political food fight,” the superintendents wrote.

— Meanwhile, the Food Research & Action Center said in a report this week that more low-income children are getting fed through the federal School Breakfast Program. Nearly 12.5 million kids participated in the program on an average day during the 2017–18 school year, the group said. That’s a 1.2 percent increase from a year earlier.

TRUMP TAPS STUDENT AID OFFICIAL FOR TOP PROCUREMENT JOB: The president plans to nominate Michael Wooten to be the next administrator leading the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, which is part of OMB.

— Wooten has served for the past several months as a senior adviser for acquisitions in the Education Department’s Office of Federal Student Aid. The Trump administration is in the process of a massive overhaul of the contracts it has with companies that collect student loans. Read more.

— The Education Commission of the States is out with a new policy brief examining how states responded to the GOP tax law’s expansion of 529 education savings plans to include K-12 education expenses. Read it here.

— The Foundation for Excellence in Education has a new report that addresses how to best align state career and technical education programs with industry needs.

— Many counselors don’t feel as knowledgeable about local college transfer policies and for-profit college comparisons as they do in advising students about community colleges, according to a new survey by the National Association for College Admission Counseling.

— Federal judge orders Puerto Rico’s education secretary to turn over documents as part of investigation into a school tutoring program: The Associated Press.

— Educator strikes reignite tensions with Teach for America: The Associated Press.

— One year after deadly shooting, Parkland parents call for school board changes: NPR.

— Virginia House committee kills student loan protection bill: Richmond Times-Dispatch.

— South Dakota legislation would ban teaching of "gender dysphoria": POLITICO.

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