Academic freedom and faculty speech will continue to be prominent issues in fall 2026. Colleges and universities should approach the coming semester with a clear understanding that faculty expression can raise difficult questions not only in classrooms but also in shared governance settings, public commentary, social media use, and campus events. Summer is an important time to assess institutional policies and decision-making frameworks and to consider the following issues:

Summer offers a valuable opportunity for colleges and universities to review their HR policies and employee handbooks before hiring cycles intensify and campus operations become more demanding in the fall. Human resources policies shape how institutions handle recruitment, employee conduct, leave, complaints, performance issues, accommodations, and separations. When those policies are outdated, inconsistent, or poorly communicated, legal risk can spread across departments quickly. A summer review helps institutions identify problem areas before they lead to employee conflict or administrative strain.

Student protests and campus programming will remain closely connected issues in Fall 2026. As many institutions of higher education know, protests, demonstrations, invited speakers, counterprogramming, and other expressive activities can emerge quickly and affect multiple parts of campus at once. These events often raise questions about speech, safety, space use, event management, and institutional neutrality. Summer is the best time to evaluate whether your college’s or university’s current policies and operational practices are prepared for that complexity before students return in the fall.

Student accommodation requests continue to evolve, and institutions are seeing a wider range of issues than in prior years. While many requests still involve familiar academic adjustments, colleges and universities are increasingly asked to evaluate accommodations connected to housing, attendance, technology (including AI), temporary health impacts, and mental health. Summer is an important time to assess whether institutional processes are prepared to address these requests in a way that is timely, individualized, and legally sound.

Greek life may be a campus tradition that students and prospective students value, but it also presents recurring legal and risk-management challenges that deserve focused summer attention. By the time students return in the fall, recruitment, social events, new-member activities, and chapter transitions can create immediate pressure on student affairs, campus safety, conduct, and legal teams. A summer risk review gives institutions the opportunity to assess whether existing expectations, oversight practices, and response mechanisms are aligned before fall activity intensifies.

Financial aid and student loan issues consistently generate complex questions for colleges and universities, particularly in light of the changes brought about by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) and the rising cost of college. As the fall semester approaches, colleges and universities should expect more inquiries about aid packaging, eligibility, verification, professional judgment, satisfactory academic progress, and the information students receive about loan options. These questions are not only operational; they can raise significant legal and compliance concerns if your institution’s financial aid processes are unclear or inconsistent with current federal guidance.

In the break between the end of spring sports seasons and fall preseason, colleges and universities should use the summer to assess athletics operations and compliance. Athletics departments often operate on demanding timelines, making it even more important to pause before the season begins and ask the right questions.

We recently posted an article on Hunton’s Insurance Recovery blog regarding an important appellate victory the Hunton Insurance Coverage team won for clients St. John’s University and Hofstra University in a coverage dispute arising from United Educators Insurance Company’s (“UE”) categorical refusal to defend or indemnify the universities in student class action lawsuits filed after the universities transitioned to remote instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision is significant both for colleges and universities facing pandemic-related tuition refund suits, and for policyholders more broadly

Title VI issues continue to garner increased attention across higher education, making summer an important time for institutions to assess whether their policies are prepared for the year ahead. In addition to the risk of federal enforcement actions and lawsuits, student complaints, programming disputes, harassment allegations, bias incidents, and questions about institutional response can all test the clarity and adequacy of a campus policy framework.

Summer is a critical time for reviewing Title IX policies and procedures before the start of a new academic year. When students return, institutions need more than technically compliant language. They need policies that are current, internally consistent, and practical for the employees responsible for implementing them. Because Title IX obligations affect reporting, response, supportive measures, investigations, resolution processes, and training, even small policy gaps can create confusion at sensitive moments.