Clasp COO David Kafafian served as the primary negotiator for employers and the business community, ensuring that new Department of Education regulations strengthen support for high-value talent pipelines as shortages loom.
BOSTON, Jan. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Clasp’s Chief Operating Officer, David Kafafian, served as the negotiator for employers and business on the U.S. Department of Education’s Accountability in Higher Education and Access Through Demand-Driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) Committee, a federal negotiated rulemaking committee focused on strengthening the connection between higher education and workforce outcomes.
The AHEAD Committee detailed the parameters for Workforce Pell, a new program that for the first time allows Pell Grant funding to support short-term education and training programs that can train and place students in less than 15 weeks. The committee also defined the rules implementing new accountability measures under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), which tie federal higher education funding eligibility to the workforce outcomes of program graduates.
This is a critical moment for employer voices in higher-education policy. As the AHEAD Committee advances new accountability rules, Clasp estimates that separate proposed changes to federal Plus loan caps under OBBBA could leave some graduate clinical degree programs facing funding gaps of 40-85% of the program costs. These changes will directly affect healthcare talent pipelines for hospitals and health systems—years before shortages appear in hiring data.
Selected for its leadership at the intersection of higher education and workforce development, Clasp worked actively with leading employers across sectors—and specifically large health systems—to surface real-world workforce implications and elevate employer perspectives on access, affordability, and talent pipeline sustainability. Clasp advocated for policies that encourage educational institutions to invest in high-skill, high-wage, and in-demand programs, along with the career resources and employer partnerships required to support skill relevance and graduate placement. Clasp also collaborated with fellow negotiators from state workforce boards, community colleges, four-year institutions, and student advocacy groups to help the Committee reach consensus on both topics.
“Healthcare employers have typically been downstream of the higher-education system that produces the next generation of talent,” said David Kafafian, COO of Clasp. “It was a privilege to be at the table with an active voice shaping this next chapter of higher-education policy on behalf of the employers we serve—and those we don’t.”
As the rules move toward implementation, Clasp is helping hospitals and health systems understand what changed—and how to respond—by:
- Assessing role- and region-specific pipeline exposure
- Mapping education access risk using Clasp’s School Deserts Index
- Drafting regulations that connect higher education and workforce
- Aligning education partnerships, loan repayment, and early-commitment models with long-term access-to-care goals
Healthcare employers using Clasp have already committed more than $130M toward student loan repayment, increasingly treating these investments as pipeline infrastructure rather than retention perks.
“Employers can’t recruit their way out of a shrinking pipeline,” Tess Michaels, Clasp’s Founder and CEO, added. “The systems preparing for 2026 engage earlier — with education partners, policymakers, and students — to protect access to care.”
Healthcare employers navigating the implications of Workforce Pell and these new accountability rules can explore how Clasp helps future-proof their talent pipelines at clasp.com/futureproof.
About Clasp
Clasp helps healthcare employers address workforce shortages at the source, building long-term talent pipelines powered by employer-sponsored student loan repayment. By aligning education financing, employer partnerships, and early-career commitments, Clasp enables health systems to invest earlier in the clinicians and technicians they need most. Clasp partners with leading hospitals and health systems nationwide—including Boston Children’s Hospital, Memorial Sloan Kettering, MyEyeDr., Northwestern Medicine, Novant Health, OhioHealth, and VCA Animal Hospitals—to support sustainable workforce supply across critical roles and regions.
For more information, visit clasp.com/futureproof.
Media Contact:
Morgan Viehman
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SOURCE Clasp
