FA Solutions Financial Aid Consulting

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – April 2026

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 17:58:24 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – March 2026

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 14:17:48 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – February 2026

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 14:15:16 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – January 2026

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 13:47:15 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – December 2025

Thu, 04 Dec 2025 21:46:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – November 2025

Sat, 08 Nov 2025 15:12:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – November 2025

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – October 2025

Mon, 20 Oct 2025 11:07:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – October 2025

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – September 2025

Tue, 09 Sep 2025 06:20:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – September 2025

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – August 2025

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 18:18:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – August 2025

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – July 2025

Wed, 23 Jul 2025 15:25:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – July 2025

Important Update: Senate-Passed “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” – Key Higher Education Impacts

Tue, 15 Jul 2025 17:08:00 GMT

Dear School Partners,

The U.S. Senate has passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” a sweeping legislative package that includes major changes affecting federal student aid programs and institutional accountability. Below is a summary of many of the key provisions relevant to higher education institutions. This list is not comprehensive but a starting point to begin thinking about the upcoming changes.

Student Loan & Repayment Changes

Graduate PLUS Loans Eliminated: Grad PLUS loans will be discontinued on July 1, 2026. Students with existing Graduate PLUS loans as of June 30, 2026 may continue to receive graduate PLUS loans to the completion of their program of study. (That time to complete is the lesser of 3 years or the difference between the published minimum time for a full-time student to complete the program and the period of study the individual completed.)

New aggregate borrowing caps will apply beginning July 1, 2026:
$100,000 for graduate students ($20,500 per academic year)
$200,000 for professional programs ($50,000 per academic year)
Graduate-level degree program that prepares students for a specific profession (examples: Doctor Medicine, Juris Doctor, Doctor of Optometry, Doctor of Dental Surgery, etc.)
New Repayment Plan (RAP):

• Replaces existing income-driven repayment plans by 2028

• Income-based repayment based on adjusted gross income, with a minimum payment of $10 per month.

Undergraduate Subsidized Loans: 150% Subsidy Limit restored (limits subsidized usage to 150% of program length)
Eliminates unemployment and economic hardship as reasons for deferment or forbearance effective July 1, 2027
The law contains a $257,500 borrowing cap on all federal student loans, excluding borrowed Parent PLUS loan amounts.
The law requires institutions to prorate annual loan amounts in direct proportion to the percentage of full-time the student is enrolled.

Pell Grant Changes

Pell Grant eligibility extended to shorter-term workforce programs.
Requires foreign income to be included in the calculations for Pell eligibility and requires the use of the IRS definition of AGI.
Pell recipients cannot receive the full award if all costs are covered by non-federal aid.
Additional funding added to address shortfall through FY 2026

Institutional Accountability

Graduate Earnings Accountability: Institutions must meet minimum earnings thresholds for graduates to retain loan eligibility for specific programs.
Return of Credit Hour Definition: Tightens program eligibility and delivery models.

Endowment Tax Expansion

Institutions that serve less than 3,000 students are exempt from the proposed endowment tax.
Private institutions with 3,000+ students with endowments:

• $500K/student: 1.4% tax

• $750K–$2M/student: 4% tax

• Over $2M/student: 8% tax

If you have questions about how these changes may impact your institution or your students, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Sincerely,

Bridget McGuire

Chief Operating Officer

FA Solutions

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – June 2025

Tue, 10 Jun 2025 12:21:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – June 2025

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – May 2025

Fri, 16 May 2025 16:37:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – May 2025

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – April 2025

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 07:01:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – April 2025

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – March 2025

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 19:19:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – March 2025

New Mexico State University

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:13:59 GMT

Background

New Mexico State University required outbound communication support to assist students through the admissions process during peak periods.

Solution

FA Solutions executed outbound calling campaigns, contacting 10,000 students per cycle to remind them of deadlines and events.

Outcome & Benefits

Allowed the university to scale support during peak times without hiring full-time staff.
Cost-effective alternative to in-house hiring.
Continued partnership with repeated engagement.

Howard University

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:13:06 GMT

Background

Howard University initially worked with another call center company, which lacked experienced financial aid professionals. This resulted in approximately 500 daily escalations back to the school and a transactional billing method that led to inefficiencies.

Solution

Referred by EAB, FA Solutions implemented emergency services immediately, followed by a long-term service plan over four to five months. Their billing model incentivized efficiency.

Implementation Time

Emergency services: Immediate.
Long-term solution: 4-5 months.

Outcome & Benefits

Reduced escalations significantly.
Provided cost-effective and efficient financial aid call center services.
Currently expanding services to include financial aid processing and packaging support.

Luther Rice College & Seminary

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:11:45 GMT

Background

Luther Rice College & Seminary faced similar challenges as Faith International University, coming from a third-party servicer with outdated technology and slow processing times.

Solution

Referred by another institution, Luther Rice engaged FA Solutions to streamline financial aid processing.

Outcome & Benefits

Significant improvements in financial aid efficiency.
A strong partnership built over the years, fostering a long-term relationship.

Concordia University, St. Paul, Minnesota

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:10:42 GMT

Background

Concordia University faced challenges due to rapid growth. It struggled to keep up with financial aid packaging, document verification, and timely communication with students.

Solution

FA Solutions took over most financial aid processing functions, including packaging, verification, and phone communications. The university maintained an internal team focusing on face-to-face student interactions.

Implementation Time

6-8 weeks.

Outcome & Benefits

Supported continued university growth without bottlenecks.
Provided redundancy by overstaffing to cover unplanned absences.
Helped the university achieve record-breaking enrollment years.

Faith International University

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:09:08 GMT

Background

Faith International University previously worked with a third-party servicer for financial aid processing but faced issues with outdated technology, delayed aid packaging, and slow customer service response times, leading to delays in receiving federal financial aid.

Solution

Referred by Luther Rice College and Seminary, Faith International University engaged FA Solutions. FA Solutions:

Processed financial aid within 1-2 business days.
Implemented a Microsoft Teams-based communication system for real-time interaction.

Implementation Time

6-8 weeks.

Outcome & Benefits

Instant responses via Microsoft Teams, replacing the previous 1-3 day response time.
Eliminated reliance on ticketing systems.
FA Solutions became a seamless extension of their financial aid department.

Horry Georgetown Technical College

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 14:47:48 GMT

Background

Horry Georgetown Technical College , estimated to have started working with FA Solutions in 2017, faced challenges with their third-party call center for financial aid inquiries. Despite the substantial number of incoming calls, the call center could only address the most basic questions, escalating around 40-50% of calls back to the school. This caused frustration for both students and staff, leading to inefficiencies and an increased backlog of work.

Solution

FA Solutions provided a team of trained professionals familiar with financial aid and the specific requirements of Horry Georgetown Technical College. This team acted as an extension of the institution, integrating seamlessly with the college’s culture. As a result, the escalation rate dropped to approximately 10%.

Implementation Time

Approximately eight weeks.

Outcome & Benefits

The majority of student inquiries were resolved on the first call.
Only 10% of calls required escalation compared to the previous 50%.
Reduced burden on the financial aid staff, improving both efficiency and student satisfaction.
Ongoing relationship since 2017, including outbound calling campaigns to support students in completing financial aid processes more efficiently.

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – January 2025

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 11:45:00 GMT

Federal Student Aid Eligibility for Borrowers with Defaulted Loans: Fresh Start restores Title IV aid for pre-March 2020 loan defaulters, enabling aid access and repayment options for one year.

Essential Insights from Our Webinar Series on Compliance, Self-Care, and Student Success

Tue, 07 Jan 2025 16:22:00 GMT

As we gear up for the regulatory and compliance changes in 2025, it's crucial to be well-prepared. Dive into our webinar series that addressed key topics under the evolving higher education landscape. Each session is a treasure trove of insights and practical strategies to help you navigate the new rules and realities. Whether you're looking to stay ahead of compliance updates, seeking ways to support your staff's mental health, or aiming to break down silos for a unified approach to enrollment, our sessions offer actionable insights and strategies.

1. New Rules, New Realities: Higher Ed Under a New Administration

Discover how the new administration's policies are reshaping financial aid, accreditation, and compliance standards. This webinar provides a comprehensive overview of the latest regulations and what they mean for your institution.

Watch the Recording

2. Mastering the Balance: Self-Care Strategies for the Higher Ed Community

Explore effective self-care strategies specifically tailored for higher education professionals. Learn how to manage stress and foster well-being amidst the constant changes in the education sector.

Watch the Recording

3. Shattering Enrollment Silos: Developing Unified Strategies

Learn how to break down silos within your institution to create a unified enrollment strategy. This session discusses collaborative approaches to increase efficiency and improve student outcomes.

Watch the Recording

4. Successful Strategies to Manage HCM2

Gain insights into managing your institution's human capital management with HCM2. This webinar offers strategies to optimize workforce management in response to evolving educational demands.

Watch the Recording

5. Transforming Student Experience with Extraordinary Communication Strategies

Uncover communication strategies that dramatically enhance student engagement and satisfaction. This session focuses on innovative ways to connect with and support students throughout their educational journey.

Watch the Recording

Staying informed and adaptable is key in the ever-changing landscape of higher education. Our webinars are packed with essential knowledge and strategies to help you thrive in 2025 and beyond. Don’t miss out on the insights—watch the recordings and share them with your colleagues to ensure your team is ready for the year ahead.

Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our partners. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today.

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – December 2024

Thu, 05 Dec 2024 10:22:00 GMT

Simplification Information Area on Knowledge Center: Stay updated on the FAFSA Simplification Act and FUTURE Act in 2025 by bookmarking key pages such as regulations, updates, alerts, and FAQs.

Top takeaways from recent Federal updates

Tue, 19 Nov 2024 17:09:00 GMT

2024 Virtual Federal Student Aid Training Conference – Registration Now Open: Registration is now open for the 2024 Virtual Federal Student Aid Training Conference, held Dec. 3- 6. Register free via FSA Partner Connect. The event features keynote speeches, sessions, and exhibits.

Top takeaways from recent Federal updates

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 11:00:00 GMT

FY 2021 Official Cohort Default Rates Distributed Sept. 23, 2024: On October 4, 2024, it was confirmed that some schools received erroneous cover letters with blank rates in their FY 2021 CDR packages. Corrections are available via the SAIG mailbox. The appeal period begins on October 4, 2024.

Navigating the FAFSA Verification Maze: A Comprehensive Guide for the 2025-2026 Award Year

Thu, 03 Oct 2024 12:48:00 GMT

As the new academic year approaches, students and educational institutions alike must navigate the complex waters of FAFSA verification. The U.S. Department of Education recently published crucial updates for the 2025-2026 award year that warrant close attention. This article delves into these updates, providing a clear roadmap to ensure compliance and optimize student aid.

Direct Data Exchange Continues

The verification process for the upcoming award year remains largely unchanged, with the continued utilization of the Direct Data Exchange (FA-DDX) between the U.S. Department of Education and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This system automatically imports most U.S. income and tax information directly onto the FAFSA form. Importantly, if federal tax information (FTI) is successfully transferred, institutions are not required to collect a Tax Return Transcript or a signed copy of the 2023 income tax return, streamlining the process considerably.

Special Considerations for Identity Theft Victims

In a significant shift, the Department has updated its requirements for individuals who have been victims of IRS tax-related identity theft. Given the extended processing times for Tax Return DataBase View (TRDBV) transcript requests—often exceeding a year—victims are now only required to submit a signed 2023 income tax return with applicable schedules. Additionally, they must provide an IRS 4674C letter acknowledging the identity theft or a signed statement confirming the IRS is aware of the situation.

Incarcerated Students: Verification Simplified

The verification requirements for confined or incarcerated students have been carried over from the previous award year. These students will only need to verify their identity and sign the statement of educational purpose if they are selected for Verification Tracking Group V4 or V5. Institutions are relieved from verifying these students under Verification Tracking Group V1, easing administrative burdens.

Institutional Autonomy in Verification Documentation

Institutions retain the freedom to develop their own text, forms, documents, and certifications tailored to the verification needs of specific students or student groups. However, they must adhere strictly to the language provided in the "Statement of Educational Purpose" for students in Verification Tracking Groups V4 and V5.

Record-Keeping and Institutional Responsibilities

The Department emphasizes the importance of proper record-keeping, reminding institutions that all verification documentation must be maintained for the required Title IV record retention period. Institutions are advised to take proactive steps in ensuring documentation is correctly matched to the appropriate student, especially when discrepancies in tax documentation occur.

Looking Ahead

These updates underscore the Department's commitment to maintaining the integrity of Title IV programs while adapting to challenges such as processing delays and identity theft. Institutions are encouraged to review these changes thoroughly and prepare their verification processes accordingly to support their students effectively.

As the landscape of federal student aid continues to evolve, staying informed and prepared is paramount. By understanding and implementing these updated verification guidelines, educational institutions can better serve their students and ensure that eligible individuals receive the aid they need to pursue their academic goals.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions family of companies is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university.

Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Top 6 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Sun, 01 Sep 2024 06:44:00 GMT

2025-26 FISAP Form Now Available: The FISAP has been updated to deactivate Fields 23c and 23d, reflecting the expiration of emergency FSEOG awards under the CARES Act, and revised due dates and instructions for 2024. The due date for the FISAP has been updated to Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, In addition to updates to the FISAP there have also been changes, click here for more information.
Voluntary Disclosure of Hate Crime Sub-Categories : The U.S. Department of Education encourages institutions to voluntarily report additional hate crime details beyond Clery Act requirements. Institutions may disclose sub-categories of targeted individuals, using various communication methods to enhance awareness and transparency. This includes providing crime prevention tips and resources, although formal statistical grids are not necessary. For guidelines, see the FBI’s Hate Crime Data Collection Manual.
Training Workshops – 2024-25 FSA Fundamentals Training Series : This letter announces the launch of Federal Student Aid’s 2024–25 FSA Fundamentals Training Series. This series comprises the online FSA Fundamentals Online Course and the FSA Fundamentals Virtual Workshop, an instructor-led, online class scheduled for October 2024 through June 2025.
Program Integrity and Institutional Quality: Distance Education, Return of Title IV, HEA Funds, and Federal TRIO Programs : The proposed regulations cover Distance Education, Return of Title IV funds (R2T4), and Federal TRIO programs. They aim to improve student service, access, and Federal Student Aid effectiveness. Details will follow in the final rule.
Volume 2: School Eligibility and Operations Now Available [2024-25 Federal Student Aid Handbook]: Federal Student Aid announces the release of Volume 2 of the 2024-2025 Federal Student Aid Handbook. This volume covers colleges’ Title IV obligations, including eligibility, administrative requirements, and audits. The Handbook is available digitally on the Knowledge Center, with updates communicated via Electronic Announcements.
Updated Course Offerings ‒ Newly Redesigned Learning Tracks and FSA Basic Training for New Staff for2024‒25 Award Year : This letter announces the newly redesigned and updated FSA Training Center offerings in the Learning Tracks category as well as an updated FSA Basic Training for New Staff course. The updated content is available as of Aug. 5, 2024.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright (813) 435-6227 Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Top 6 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Fri, 16 Aug 2024 22:44:00 GMT

Over the last few months, there have been a few key announcements worth mentioning to ensure you remain compliant. Following these updates will help maintain compliance. Here are a few of the top takeaways from recent Department of Education updates:

Important Updates

2018-19 Funding Cancellation Deadline: Federal Pell Grant/Iraq Afghanistan Service Grant (IASG) and Campus-Based Programs:
The Funding Cancellation Deadline for Pell Grants, IASG, and Campus-Based Programs is five years post-Data Submission Deadline. Schools must complete all reconciliation and finalize activities before this deadline; Direct Loans and TEACH Grants are exempt.
2023-24 Grant Data Submission (Closeout) Deadline:
The Data Submission (Closeout) Deadline for Pell, IASG, and TEACH Grant Programs is the last business day in September. Schools must meet regulatory requirements to reconcile to a zero cash balance by this date.
TEACH Grant Closeout Information for 2023-24 Award Year:
The TEACH Grant data submission deadline for the 2023–24 award year is Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. All school data must be received and accepted by this date for the final Ending Cash Balance.

More Federal Updates

4. Draft NSLDS FVT/GE Completers List Now Available:
The draft FVT/GE Completers List was sent to schools on Aug. 3–4, 2024. Schools have until Oct. 5, 2024, to review and correct student data. This list includes data for debt-to-earnings and earnings premium calculations.

5. NSLDS Professional Access Website – Renewing Credentials for the NSLDS Reports Tool:
The NSLDS Reports Tool has been upgraded, causing invalid credentials for some users. To ensure proper functionality and avoid report delays, all users should renew their credentials via the NSLDS Professional Access website.

6. Volume 8, Volume 9, and Errata to AVG Now Available [2024-25 Federal Student Aid Handbook]:
Federal Student Aid announces the release of Volume 8 and Volume 9 of the 2024-2025 Handbook, covering Direct Loans and TEACH Grants, with updates to the Application and Verification Guide.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright
(813) 435-6227

Disclaimer of Liability:
Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Top 5 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Thu, 11 Jul 2024 16:46:00 GMT

Comment Request: Federal Student Loan Program Deferment Request Forms FR TYPE Notice: Borrowers of Direct Loan, FFEL, and Perkins Loan Programs can request repayment deferment through forms that check eligibility based on specific criteria. The U.S. Department of Education seeks to revise these forms, proposing enhancements like removing redundant information, reorganizing content, simplifying language, and updating terms to reflect recent regulatory changes.
NSLDS FVT/GE Reporting Now Available: Schools can now report Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment (FVT/GE) data to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS). They must submit student-specific and program-specific data for students who received Title IV funds. The initial reporting deadline is October 1, 2024, covering the 2023-24 award year. Reporting methods include batch processing, online, and spreadsheet submission, detailed in the updated NSLDS User Guide.
Temporary Injunction on Program Length Regulations: On June 21, 2024, a Texas court halted the enforcement of new regulations limiting the length of gainful employment programs, pending further court decisions. Institutions must follow the pre-existing rules until further notice.
Updated Password Requirements for AIMS Users: Starting July 7, 2024, Federal Student Aid’s Access and Identity Management System (AIMS) will implement new password and passphrase requirements for systems like NSLDS and FAFSA Partner Portal. These updates include enhanced criteria for password length, character variety, and uniqueness.
Reminder – July 31 Reporting Deadline for Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965; Decommission of the Section 117 Interactive Data Table: Institutions of higher education must report gifts or contracts from foreign sources exceeding $250,000 to the Secretary of Education by July 31, 2024.

Of course, these are just a few highlights of information over the last few months. Let our financial aid and compliance experts help your department boost its efforts. Contact us today to explore options. Get FA Solutions and ECM today! Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright (813) 435-6227 Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university.
Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to c heck out our services or get in touch today .

Is your Institution in Compliance with all of the FVT/ GE Requirements? Let FA Solutions Help

Wed, 10 Jul 2024 12:42:00 GMT

Recent statistics show that only 74% of college graduates earn more than the typical high school graduate. The overwhelming majority of these graduates come from for-profit institutions. However, nearly 15% are from public institutions and 9% are from non-profit institutions. Given these facts, it's unsurprising that the Department of Education has updated some of its guidelines in order to help students make informed educational decisions. The new requirements will change financial aid compliance operations and create additional paperwork, but FA Solutions LLC stands ready to recommend the best practices for institutions to help financial aid directors meet student needs and regulatory requirements.

How can FA Solutions Help with Compliance?

FA Solutions is a financial aid servicer specializing in helping educational institutions stay in step with ever-changing regulatory requirements. Many of our staff members worked in financial aid departments before joining our team. We have the expertise and tools you need to stay compliant. We also have a full understanding of the many challenges you face in providing students with a quality education that will serve them well for life. Get in touch with us to find out how we can help you meet the new FVT/GE requirements to obtain or retain approval for Title IV funding.

What are the New Changes, and How Will They Impact Educational Institutions?

The Financial Value Transfer and Gainful Employment regulatory requirements apply to any educational institution that offers programs eligible for Title IV funding. Under these requirements, educational institutions will need to provide extensive data on individual students, program length, cost, and loans to the Department of Education. The DOE will then use the data to calculate debt-to-earning metrics and an earning premium metric. This will enable students to see the expected financial outcome of taking a particular course.

Educational institutions will be required to display these metrics on their websites. What's more, colleges and universities will need to inform students about programs that the Department of Education has classified as "high debt" or "low earnings" before students enroll in these programs. GE programs that don't meet the new requirements will no longer be eligible for Title IV funding.

What is the Deadline for Turning in Paperwork?

Educational institutions can start reporting data to the Department of Education on July 1, 2024. Institutions must submit their first reports by October 1, 2024. As student information changes as graduates complete or drop out of courses, institutions will need to send updated data to the DOE every year.

The deadline for acknowledgments and warning requirements is July 1, 2026. This is also the deadline for the establishment of the Department of Education's disclosure website.

Frequently Asked Questions

Click th e link to access FVT/GE FAQs related to general information, debt-to-earnings rates, earnings premiums, warnings, disclosures and acknowledgments, and reporting requirements. As the regulatory landscape is continually evolving, it's important to stay up-to-date on current requirements to remain compliant with DOE stipulations.

Top 5 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Wed, 12 Jun 2024 12:39:00 GMT

Over the last few months there have been a few key announcements worth mentioning to ensure you remain compliant. Following these will ensure compliance. Here are a few of the top takeaways from recent Department of Education updates.
1. 2024–25 Processing Timeframes Associated with Reporting V4/V5 Outcomes and Unusual Circumstances and Homeless Youth Determinations, and Update on ISIR Values for Ward of Court and Foster Youth Status: Institutions must report verification tracking group V4/V5 results, unusual circumstances, and homeless youth determinations for the 2024-25 award year within specified timeframes. Verification outcomes should be reported via the FAFSA Partner Portal. System limitations currently impact timely updates for independent determinations and ISIR data for ward of the court and foster youth status.
2. NSLDS Professional Access – NSLDS Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment Reports: Three new reports will soon be added to the NSLDSFAP website to assist schools with Financial Value Transparency Gainful Employment (FVT/GE) reporting requirements. Implementation is scheduled within the next two weeks
3. FSA Partner Connect – Automatic Assignment of Alternate E&O Roles for School Users to Occur June 3, 2024: FSA will auto-assign the Alternate E&O Admin role to certain users at schools lacking this role. This update aims to address access issues to the E-App and will be implemented on June 3, 2024.
4. New DHS-SAVE Tutorial Required To Initiate Third-Step Verification Requests: Effective May 28, 2024, DHS's SAVE system will require users to certify completion of a new tutorial before initiating third-step verification requests. Certification is done via the “Manage Profile” section.
5. Update on Processing Paper FAFSA Forms, Implementing School-Initiated Corrections, and Temporary Changes to Process for Reporting Disbursements to Provide Institutional Flexibility: The Department updates on 2024-25 paper FAFSA forms, school-initiated corrections, and reporting Pell Grant disbursements to the COD System, providing flexibility for packaging and awarding aid.
Of course, these are just a few highlights of information over the last few months. Let our financial aid and compliance experts help your department boost its efforts. Contact us today to explore options. Get FA Solutions and ECM today!
Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!
Rob Wright (813) 435-6227 Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

The Impact of HCM2: What Financial Aid Professionals Need to Know

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 09:49:00 GMT

What is HCM2?

HCM2 (Heightened Cash Management 2) is an alternative method used for institutions to receive and disburse federal funds. When operating under this payment method, schools must credit a student’s ledger for the Title IV funds they qualify for and confirm the student received credit balances due before submitting a request to receive these funds.

What is the process of disbursing and receiving funds under HCM2?

Institutions are required to credit student ledgers and pay credit balances due using institutional funds for the Title IV awards they qualify for. They will be required to document that all eligible students received their credit balances via ACH or check cleared confirmation before requesting reimbursement. HCM2 guidelines then require institutions to submit a payment request via COD to receive a reimbursement. The school will receive a form confirming the dollar figure and types of funds requested that must be signed by the President and the user submitting the document. The school will also receive an Excel template that needs to be completed for every student they are requesting reimbursement for. The Excel spreadsheet will request the following data for each student:

⮚ Identifying information

⮚ Name of the program

⮚ Enrollment status/enrollment intensity

⮚ Admission criteria (such as high school diploma, GED, etc)

⮚ Clock/credit hours in the program

⮚ Clock/credit hours in academic year

⮚ Clock/credit hours in payment period

⮚ Clock/credit hours earned

⮚ Cost of attendance

⮚ Direct cost for the enrollment period

⮚ Percentage of tuition retained (for withdrawn students)

⮚ GPA and SAP

⮚ Student award requested

⮚ Student award amount

⮚ Credit balance information (ACH or cleared check confirmation)

A sample of students from the submission will be randomly selected by the Department of Education for further review. The school will have 48 hours to upload the completed student file for all selected students who will then be reviewed by a Department of Education analyst for approval. If all requests are approved, the amount of the payment request will be wired into the institution’s account. If errors are found by the analyst, they can approve only some of the requests or none at all, resulting in less funds being wired into the institution’s account. It is critical that financial aid professionals meticulously review all data for accuracy when submitting HCM2 payment requests to prevent errors that would result in receiving less funding.

What key facts should financial aid professionals know about HCM2?

⮚Institutions on HCM2 status cannot hold credit balances even if a student or parent/guardian gives consent.

⮚ Institutions must confirm students receive their credit balances due via ACH confirmation or cleared check confirmation before submitting a payment request. ⮚ Payment requests can only be submitted once every 30 days.

⮚ HCM2 reimbursements can take up to 30 days to be approved by a Department analyst.

⮚ Only some or none of the disbursements can be approved for reimbursement if any errors are found by the analyst.

⮚ The administration of the HCM2 process at an institution must be audited yearly .

Why might an institution be placed on HCM2?

The Department of Education places institutions on HCM2 status for various reasons to ensure compliance with federal regulations. These reasons can include:

⮚ Audit findings

⮚ Program reviews

⮚ Missed reporting deadlines

⮚ Student complaints

⮚ High cohort default rates

⮚ Action taken by a consumer protection agency

⮚ Adverse action against a school by a state authorizing agency or accreditor

⮚ Failure to comply with Title IV requirements

Working to resolve the challenges that led to an institution being placed on HCM2 and utilizing best practices can aid in an institution meeting the compliance requirements necessary to be removed from HCM2 status.

What are the best practices recommended by FA Solutions and Educational Compliance Management (ECM)?

⮚ Focus on training staff in accuracy when it comes to aid disbursement and adherence to Title IV regulations.

⮚ Continuously review and amend compliance protocols in alignment with latest federal regulations and updates.

⮚ Ensure all documents are reviewed for accuracy before creating an HCM2 submission.

⮚ Create a student file for each student before starting a submission to prepare for the 48-hour deadline to upload files for a sample review.

⮚ Develop a calendar of student disbursements that will be requested in each submission.

⮚ Maintain open communication with your assigned Department of Education analyst regarding submissions.

How can FA Solutions and ECM help my institution with the HCM2 process?

FA Solutions Brands can offer expert assistance in meeting the requirements of HCM2 processing. We offer a variety of solutions from consulting to full service processing to meet the needs of any type of institution to ensure compliance requirements are met and assist schools with navigating the workflow of HCM2 processing and submissions. Get in touch with us today to find out more about how our customizable services can support your institution.

Sources

NASFAA | New Rules for Schools under Reimbursement and Heightened Cash Monitoring Payment Methods

eCFR :: 34 CFR 668.162 -- Requesting funds.

Requesting and Managing FSA Funds | 2023-2024 Federal Student Aid Handbook Implementation Guide (ed.gov)

Top 5 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Thu, 28 Mar 2024 18:15:00 GMT

Over the last few months there have been a few key announcements worth mentioning to ensure you remain compliant. Here are a few of the top takeaways from recent Department of Education updates.

2024–25 FAFSA Updates: Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs) are slowly being released to schools. More than 4.3 million FAFSA forms have been processed. The Department anticipates processing 6 million by the end of March. You can read the latest updates on 2024-2025 FAFSA Processing at 2024–25 FAFSA Updates | Knowledge Center
2024–25 FAFSA Issue Alerts: The Department of Education continues to work on Open Issues related to the 2024-2025 FAFSA. Open Issues can be viewed at 2024–25 FAFSA Issue Alerts | Knowledge Center you can also review the Departments technical reference guide at TechnicalFAQandKnownIssues.pdf (ed.gov)
2024-25 Student Aid Index (SAI) and Pell Grant Eligibility Guide: Don’t forget the 2024-2025 Award year brings with it many changes including EFC goes away and is replaced by the SAI (student aid index) and Pell calculations now include a multiple step process using Maximum, Minimum and Calculated Pell figures. 2024-25 Student Aid Index (SAI) and Pell Grant Eligibility Guide (Updated March 21, 2024) | Knowledge Center
2024 Federal Student Aid Training Conference – To Be Held Virtually Dec. 3–6, 2024: The 2024 Federal Student Aid Training Conference for Financial Aid Professionals is scheduled for Dec. 3–6, 2024, and will be held virtually to reach a broad audience, following the success of the 2023 conference with over 22,400 registrants. The decision supports inclusivity and accessibility, promising an engaging and informative program. Further details and registration will be announced this summer, with registration opening in the fall. Follow @FSAConf and #FSATC2024 for updates.
Update on 2024-25 FAFSA Processing: The U.S. Department of Education has processed over 4.3 million FAFSA forms for the 2024-25 cycle, aiming for 6 million by March end. Updates include a new FAFSA Status tracker, revised timelines for institutions to prepare aid packages, and system enhancements for summer term planning. Additionally, a recent vendor issue affecting the Student Aid Index calculation has been resolved, with no Pell Grant adjustments needed following recent legislation. Institutions are urged to expedite aid processing and ensure equitable student access.

Of course, these are just a few highlights of information over the last few months. Let our financial aid and compliance experts help your department boost its efforts. Contact us today to explore options. Get FA Solutions and ECM today! Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!
Rob Wright (813) 435-6227 Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

4 Proven Ways to Reduce the Pain of Staff Turnover in 2024

Thu, 01 Feb 2024 16:13:00 GMT

By Robert Wright

Turnover is rampant in financial aid offices across the country, and there may be no end in sight. Changing regulations, a heavier than normal workload, or simply a better paying opportunity elsewhere is causing people to either “burnout” or go to where the grass appears to be greener. (Yes, your team is likely being solicited regularly by competing institutions). It is unfortunately just a fact today.
To help alleviate the pain of turnover, consider an exploration call with FA Solutions , as we have become a Virtual Extension of Financial Aid Offices across the United States, having successfully supported around four hundred institutions. Gone are the days where the only option is to outsource all of financial aid and welcome the time that Colleges can select partial of full outsourcing of specific tasks, duties, or even positions, either during an interim period, or long term. You CAN still maintain control, but with a better peace of mind, and workload balance.

Our services include:

1. Interim Staffing : Many schools, large and small, both public and private, experience consistent vacancies or absences in their financial aid department.

We can fill one or multiple positions for your small, large, or online school in the short- or long-term.
Complete continuity of coverage – FA Solutions trains and assigns 2-3 people to each position or task, even the smallest (for the price of one). This means that if one person is out, you still have coverage.
All outsourced staff are qualified with an average of 8-10 years financial aid experience.

2. Third Party Processing : Most third-party processors don’t provide full-service support to schools, but we do. We are not just a dependable and responsive financial aid servicing “vendor,” we become a dedicated partner, as an extension of the College.

Participate in regular meetings, and engaging in real time collaboration throughout the day, preventing the need to submit a ticket for most student resolutions.
Co-sourced staffing model with customized support in key areas. You always have more than one point of contact that is trained to support your school.
Committed and experienced staff to work alongside your team remotely.

3. Inbound and Outbound Student Contact Support | Student Experience Center (SEC) : TIt is extremely challenging to “wear all of the hats” in the Financial Aid Office, and that is where the Student Experience Center at FA Solutions comes in. It is almost impossible to manage all the processing and verification workload and juggling in person student meetings. Trying to answer all phone calls and respond timely to emails becomes unlikely, and this leads to frustration for the staff, the students, and leadership when they hear of complaints in receiving aid timely, or a delay in getting replies to student inquiries. FA Solutions Supports students and staff by handling inquiries via phone/email correspondence, timely and accurately, allowing College staff to manage the other pressing obligations.

Friendly and experienced financial aid counselors
Complete financial aid process walkthrough for students.
We proactively collaborate with your recruiters
Reach out to students to notify of missing documents or other issues with aid delivery.
SEC prevents repeat inquiries, disgruntled students.
Allows your school to stay focused on processing aid.

4. Mentorship and Consulting : With turnover in Financial Aid Leadership , and an extremely competitive labor environment, you may be finding it impossible to recruit and retain a Financial Aid Director with significant experience , and that’s where FA Solutions can help. You may find it easier or more likely to be able to promote from within or hire an experienced Financial Aid Professional with the POTENTIAL to be groomed into a seasoned Financial Aid Director , but who does not have that level of experience yet. For a reasonable monthly fee FA Solutions will provide access to their team of financial aid directors and compliance personnel, day to day guidance and mentorship support. This type of support brings comfort to the newer Director, so they know they are “not alone” on this pretty complicated journey. Without the proper support and mentorship, many face the embarrassing situation of becoming overwhelmed, and the painful cycle of staff turnover, begins again. There ARE solutions to this.
Our team can support individual tasks as well, such as: R2T4, Title IV reconciliation, Professional Judgements, Packaging and awarding, Document verification, auditing files, including, Quality assurance (quarterly and annually).
With our qualified support, institutions have significantly reduced employee turnover, received funds promptly and improved the overall student experience.
If having a financial aid staffing or processing solution with actual redundancy of coverage is important to you, please contact FA Solutions today!

FAFSA Evolution: A Year of Specialized Insight for Financial Aid Directors

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 16:12:00 GMT

In 2023, FA Solutions and Education Compliance Management (ECM) embarked on a mission to empower financial aid directors with invaluable insights into the evolving landscape of FAFSA Simplification. Through a series of thought-provoking webinars, these sessions went beyond expertise, providing a profound understanding for institutions navigating the intricacies of financial aid.

1. Latest and Greatest FAFSA Simplification Information and Impact to your FA Office

In this session, our distinguished speakers, leaders in the field, delivered a comprehensive overview of FAFSA simplification and its broader impact on your financial aid office operations. Tailored for financial aid professionals, the webinar offered strategic insights to navigate this evolving landscape.

2. FAFSA Simplification: Spotlighting SAI and the New Pell Calculation

This session discussed in greater details changes associated with FAFSA Simplification, focusing on the new Pell Calculation introduced. Financial aid professionals gained insights into the intricacies of the calculation and its direct impact on awarding strategies. The session also served as a powerful reminder regarding early implemented Cost of Attendance Changes.

3. 2023-2024 FAFSA Simplification Including Professional Judgements and Cost of Attendance Changes

Tailored session for financial aid professionals, this session provided an in-depth analysis of the new FAFSA simplification requirements. The discussion extended to professional judgements, cost of attendance, student eligibility, and other critical changes, offering profound insights for those steering financial aid decisions.
As we reflect on these transformative sessions, FA Solutions and ECM are more than just third party servicers; we are steadfast partners in your institution's financial aid journey. Our commitment to providing unparalleled guidance will continue to grow alongside the dynamic changes in FAFSA. Together, let's embrace the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in this adventurous FAFSA Simplification landscape.
Partner with FA Solutions and ECM for a journey filled with knowledge, growth, and success. Join us in shaping the future of financial aid - your institution deserves nothing less.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Top 3 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Mon, 18 Dec 2023 18:48:00 GMT

In the recent month there have been a few key announcements worth mentioning to ensure you remain compliant. Following these will ensure compliance. Here are a few of the top takeaways from recent Department of Education updates:

FAFSA Simplification Act Changes for Implementation in 2024-25: 2024-2025 FAFSA will be available by December 31, 2024. Schools will begin receiving ISIRs the end of January 2024. The link shows the current Draft Guide for the new FASFA. Draft 2024-2025 FAFSA Specifications Guide available .

Live Internet Webinars – FSA Partner Connect Training: The letter announces a series of four webinars from Federal Student Aid (FSA) to further clarify updates related to FAFSA Simplification, Borrower Defense Training and updated Top Compliance Findings. The webinars will be presented multiple times in December 2023–January 2024. New FAFSA Simplification Micro Videos, Borrower Defense Training and Top Compliance Findings Videos now available on the fsatraining.ed.gov website.

Operational Information – Reminders About Reporting Federal Work-Study Earnings to the COD System: Federal Workstudy 2022 Calendar Year Wages must be entered into COD before the 2024-2025 FAFSA is available. To ensure accurate SAI calculations upon start-up of FAFSA processing, schools must plan to complete the submission (and COD System acceptance) of FWS earnings for the 2022 calendar year by the end of December 2023.

Of course, these are just a few highlights of information over the last few months. Let our financial aid and compliance experts help your department boost its efforts. Contact us today to explore options. Get FA Solutions and ECM today! Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!
Rob Wright (813) 435-6227 Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims,promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

A Year in Review: Our Top Blogs of 2023 and Navigating FAFSA Simplification

Thu, 14 Dec 2023 22:11:00 GMT

As the curtain falls on 2023, we're thrilled to share a recap of the informative content we've brought to you this year. From shedding light on the latest trends in financial aid industry to providing insights into audit and verification, each blog has been a key to unlocking new perspectives. In the spirit of helping you navigate the financial aid landscape, we've also kept a keen eye on the recent FAFSA Simplification changes. At FA Solutions, we're not just here to inform; we're here to make sure you're well-prepared for the journey ahead.

Let's take a moment to revisit some of the insightful articles that graced our blog in 2023:

The New Net Price Calculator : Don’ts, Dos and FAQs: Explore the dos and don'ts of using the net price calculator to communicate the cost of education. Aligned with federal recommendations, FA Solutions provides valuable insights for Financial Aid Directors.
Understanding and Navigating Cyber security Risks in Higher Education and How Financial Aid Office Can Help : Delve into the critical role financial aid offices play in safeguarding against cybersecurity risks. With an increasing number of ransomware attacks, this article sheds light on protecting educational institutions.
Navigating the New FAFSA Simplification Changes : What Financial Aid Directors Need to Know: FA Solutions offers informative sessions to guide financial aid leaders through FAFSA simplification. FA Solutions and ECM hosted informative sessions on FAFSA simplification to assist in navigating these changes. Check out the sessions here.
Navigating Complexities of Financial Aid Verification : Gain insights into the importance of Financial Aid Directors in assisting students through the FAFSA process. Explore the verification process and best practices to ensuring accuracy.
From Temporary to Permanent : How Interim Staffing Can Alleviate Challenges During the Peak Enrollment Season: Address the challenges financial aid offices face during peak enrollment periods with interim staffing solutions. Discover how temporary support can ease the burden during enrollment season.

With 2023 behind us and looking forward to 2024, we extend our appreciation to financial aid directors for being part of this educational journey. Whether unravelling the complexities of FAFSA Simplification or navigating the evolving landscape of higher education administration, we are committed to delivering valuable insights tailored to your financial aid processes. We eagerly look forward to embarking on a collaborative journey with you, providing unwavering guidance and support at every stage. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Why Dedicated Resources Might Be the Missing Piece in Your Bursar Operations

Mon, 20 Nov 2023 17:34:00 GMT

In the complex tapestry of higher education institutions, Bursar operations play a pivotal role. They are the gears that keep the financial machinery running smoothly, ensuring the success of your institution. However, the demands on your Bursar team can surge dramatically during certain times of the year. FA Solutions LLC understands the paramount importance of maintaining precision and effectiveness, particularly in tasks like ensuring compliance with all relevant financial regulations, managing ledgers, reconciliation, billing, student refunds, managing payment plans/collections, and handling 1098T forms.

The Challenge: Overseeing Student Financial Transactions for the Majority

Consider this statistic from the National Center for Education Statistics: Nearly 72% of all undergraduate students receive some form of financial aid each year, with an average amount of $14,100. If your college or university is responsible for processing financial aid for three out of every four students, that's a substantial workload. Managing this process efficiently is vital but can be overwhelming, especially when juggling tasks like financial acumen, staying compliant and record keeping.

Rethinking the Solution: Dedicated Resources

While hiring additional staff might seem like the most logical solution, it can be a costly and short term remedy. Enter dedicated resources – highly qualified professionals ready to step in precisely when you need them, whether it's for ledger management, reconciliation, billing, processing refunds, collections, or the meticulous handling of 1098T forms. FA Solutions LLC offers a comprehensive approach to Bursar operations, providing expert assistance as and when required.

The Benefits of Dedicated Resources:

Scalable Work Assignment: Partner with FA Solutions LLC for services that adapt to your institution's needs, whether it's third-party processing, financial aid staffing, or student accounts management support itself. This flexibility allows you to access the right level of support, whether it's short-term or long-term.
Cost-Effective Shared Services: By utilizing dedicated resources, you only pay for the specific services and expertise you require. This approach is far more affordable than hiring full-time staff, as the costs are shared among multiple organizations.
Flexible Short- and Long-Term Arrangements: Customize your support based on your staffing needs and expectations. Whether you're gearing up for enrollment season or dealing with unexpected challenges, our services can be adjusted last-minute to ensure excellence in tasks like managing billing rollouts or handling the issuing of 1098T forms.
Experienced and Knowledgeable Professionals: Bursars or Student Accounts Managers are often short on time to train new staff on financial applications and data protection regulations. With our dedicated professionals, you'll collaborate with a team of highly experienced, well qualified staff members who seamlessly integrate with your existing team and assume necessary responsibilities.
Tailored Project Assignments: Dedicated resources allow you to address specific needs within your operations. Whether it's modernizing processes, managing billing, reconciliation, or updating ledgers, our professionals can help you tackle the specific challenges your Bursar's office faces.

FA Solutions is your strategic partner, guiding, supporting, and supplementing Bursars and staff to streamline operations and reduce costs within the Bursar's office. Reach out to us today to discover how we can support your institution's unique bursar operations, offering efficiency and knowledgeable resources.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Top 4 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Wed, 01 Nov 2023 18:31:00 GMT

SAIG Enrollment Agreement required - due to the new FTI process related to the FAFSA Simplification changes schools must sign a new SAIG enrollment agreement: The updated SAIG enrollment agreement, available on Oct. 23, 2023, mandates compliance with FTI protection from the U.S. Department of Education. The agreement emphasizes penalties for unauthorized FTI inspection or disclosure. Organizations must sign this agreement to access the new FTI-SAIG mailbox and 2024–25 ISIRs; non-signees will be denied ISIR access.
Reminder to view the Better FAFSA Better Future Webinar Series offered from over the last quarter with a new session 11/2 for users without an SSN : Better FAFSA® Better Future Webinar Series has been launched, aligning with the commitment to the FAFSA Simplification Act. Scheduled from June to July 2023, these live webinars will address forthcoming changes for the 2024–25 award year. No registration is needed, and sessions are first-come, first-served, with post-webinar recordings accessible.
Compliance with Change in Ownership requires at least 90 days in advance of change : As of July 1, 2023, schools are mandated to notify the Department of Education 90 days prior to a Change in Ownership (CIO) to ensure uninterrupted Title IV funding. To facilitate this, schools are required to submit the necessary documentation through the E-App and provide timely updates to enrolled and prospective students. An Electronic Announcement outlines the interim steps for the 90-day notification, including the submission of state authorization, accrediting documents, audited financial statements, and a student notification copy. While the regulation became effective on July 1, 2023, it's applicable to transactions closing from January 1, 2024 onwards. Transactions that concluded between July 1 and December 31, 2023 are not subject to the 90-day notice requirement.
Improving Income Driven Repayment Plans : The U.S. Department of Education (Department) designates a regulatory provision in its final rule related to income-driven repayment for early implementation. The Secretary is exercising his authority under section 482(c) of the HEA to designate an additional regulatory change made in that final rule for early implementation beginning on Oct. 23, 2023. The Secretary is designating for early implementation the change to the process for a borrower re-enrolling in the Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) repayment plan, which is now also known as the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) repayment plan, after previously being enrolled in a different plan.

Mastering the Intricacies of Federal Financial Aid Programs

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 11:58:00 GMT

As a financial director or enrollment manager, understanding the latest changes made to the FAFSA form is critical. This federal financial aid helps students at your school make their tuition payments, so you need to know how to advise them and run the calculations to determine their aid. Here is what you need to know about these recent changes.

The Current Landscape of Federal Financial Aid

Federal student aid dates back to the 1940s and 1950s. Now, FAFSA Simplification has passed, again shifting how financial aid offices prepare, so they can serve their colleges and student populations. These changes will impact how calculations are run and expand who is eligible for Pell Grants.

The Intricacies and Challenges

The FAFSA Simplification passed has changed how your college aid office will examine student cases and run calculations related to federal student aid. The goal of these changes is to simplify the application and widen the number of people who qualify for different types of aid.
With these changes, your school aid offices will need to make adjustments to ensure they remain compliant with federal regulations and to adjust their application verification processes. They will also need to verify that their disbursement procedures have been properly established.

The Role of Third-Party Financial Aid Processors

By partnering with experts in the field, financial aid offices do not need to go through the changes associated with federal aid alone. Our partnership is game-changing, giving your financial aid office help from experts who specialize in navigating these complexities. This assistance smooths the way for aid offices, giving them the chance to allocate more resources to their students.

The FA Solutions Difference

Navigating the complexities of federal student aid requires careful thought and planning. Here at FA Solutions, we offer customized plans that will fit your unique needs. We have dedicated ourselves to helping financial offices at schools of all sizes. By helping to streamline processes, our services minimize delays and increase successful enrollments.
With schools across the country experiencing shortages in financial staffing, our team brings the decades of experience needed to provide support. Our emphasis on flexibility and relationships will ensure that your team has what it needs to succeed.

Getting Started with Financial Aid

Financial aid programs play a critical role in bringing in new students. The financial aid office needs to understand how these programs work so that you can not only process the paperwork effectively and efficiently, but you can also answer student questions and use the aid programs to build your student bodies.
Discussions surrounding the importance of student aid and making college affordable for students have taken a prominent role in society as a whole. This means that financial aid programs will likely continue to evolve moving forward. For financial aid offices to successfully navigate these changes, working with a dedicated partner who can make the entire process easier. With FA Solutions, you have access to effective help so that you are ready for whatever changes may come.
Looking to simplify and enhance your financial aid processing? Let FA Solutions guide you through every twist and turn. Connect with our team today and discover a tailored solution for your institution’s unique challenges. Looking to simplify and enhance your financial aid processing? Let FA Solutions guide you through every twist and turn. Connect with our team today and discover a tailored solution for your institution’s unique challenges.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

From Temporary to Permanent: How Interim Staffing Can Alleviate Challenges During the Peak Enrollment Season

Thu, 17 Aug 2023 19:43:00 GMT

During the peak enrollment season, financial aid offices grapple with a myriad of challenges, from the high volume of applications to the technical intricacies of disbursement. As schools gear up to serve both new and returning students, they're often met with the realization that a helping hand, or ten, would be beneficial. This is where FA Staffing Solutions steps in with interim staffing recommendations tailored for financial aid directors and enrollment managers. Interim staffing isn't just a stop-gap; it's an efficient approach to ensure that financial aid offices run seamlessly. Considering the complexity and urgency of tasks during this period, having the right staff at the right time is paramount.

The Value Interim Staffing Brings During the Peak Enrollment Rush
Hiring interim professionals is more than just filling roles; it's about targeting specialized expertise. For instance, during the verification phase, financial aid offices could benefit from an interim worker specializing in documentation and compliance, helping reduce the bottleneck and ensuring timely processing.

Moreover, with the influx of inquiries, bringing in experienced interim staff can alleviate the pressure on your core team, allowing them to focus on critical tasks. This helps in preventing burnout and ensures that students receive the support they need, fostering a positive impression of the financial aid office.
Transitioning from Interim Solutions to Long-Term Collaborations
Interim staff is not just for the peak season. The peak enrollment period provides an ideal setting to evaluate these professionals' skills and fit within your team. If they resonate with the department's dynamics, demonstrate efficient handling of the challenges, and contribute to the overall synergy, why not consider a permanent role? It's a tested and proven method to grow your team organically, ensuring continuity and efficiency.
Promoting Long-Term Synergy with Interim Workers
Interim staffing is not just a solution for the present; it's an investment in the future. By alleviating immediate challenges, these professionals lay the groundwork for long-term success. Whether it's ensuring accurate disbursement, streamlining communication with other departments, or even providing financial counseling, interim workers can bridge gaps and foster cohesion.
FA Staffing Solutions: Your Partner in Navigating Financial Aid Challenges
Understanding the unique challenges of financial aid offices, especially during the peak enrollment season, is our forte. At FA Staffing Solutions , our team of experienced professionals, with 7 or more years in the industry, is ready to integrate into your financial aid office environment.

Whether you're a remote college or one that prefers a 'co-sourced' model over complete outsourcing, our adaptable solutions cater to your specific needs. Allow us to assist in building a robust, efficient, and responsive financial aid team ready to face any challenge.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Financial Aid Audits: How to Prepare and What to Expect

Wed, 26 Jul 2023 17:57:00 GMT

Financial aid departments must adhere to federal guidelines for institutional eligibility and financial responsibility. The Department of Education often conducts audits to confirm that institutions are conforming to these rules. Annual audits help the government ensure they’re sending money to institutions that remain compliant with all current regulations. These audits can be stressful times for financial aid departments, so knowing how to prepare is helpful. FA Solutions LLC recommends the best practices for Financial Aid Directors to take to prepare for these audits well.

Knowing Who Performs the Audit

Even though the Department of Education receives the final results, most are conducted by third parties. These can be either independent public accountants with Title IV knowledge or government-assigned auditors.

Understand What Is Reviewed During a Financial Aid Audit

During the audit, the auditor will check several things including but not limited to:

Compliance : Your institution needs to comply with all federal requirements for the Title IV program in order to continue receiving financial aid through federal programs.
Operational effectiveness : The auditor will check that your organization is effective and efficient in providing student services to those seeking financial aid.
Finances : The auditor may check to ensure you are handling financial aid awards appropriately, including the return of Title IV funds when possible and proper handling of Title IV credit balances.
Academics : Academic progress must be satisfactory for those receiving financial aid, and this could be part of the audit

Preparing with Proper Documentation

Documentation of your financial aid office's practices is critical for a smooth audit. Your software should help with this, but you may wish to have additional documentation to present to the auditors. Keeping careful records will ensure you have all of the data needed to pass your audit without trouble.

Staying on Top of Changing Requirements

One of the key problems financial aid offices face is the changing Title IV requirements. In order to remain compliant, your office needs to know the current requirements. Sometimes, working with a third-party financial aid servicer that keeps up with these changes is key to success. The consultant will ensure that you remain compliant as you move forward with the audit process.

Get Professional Help Preparing for Financial Aid Audits

As you prepare for a financial aid audit, partner with FA Solutions. Our consulting services will help you learn about current regulations and embrace best practices throughout the school year. If there are deficiencies that could hurt your audit, we will assist you in fixing these, so you can better serve your students and stay compliant with all the current regulations. Reach out to our team today to learn more about financial aid consulting and membership services.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Top 5 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Mon, 03 Jul 2023 17:40:00 GMT

Live Internet Webinars – Better FAFSA Better Future Webinar Series, June– July 2023 : This letter announces 11 upcoming webinars from Federal Student Aid. These live webinars discuss implementation of the FAFSA Simplification Act, the FUTURE Act, and what your school needs to know about upcoming changes for the 2024–25 award year. The webinars in the summer series will be offered in June–July 2023. One new webinar has been added to the series: a 2024–25 FAFSA® Demonstration on Thursday, July 25, 2023. Refer to the schedule for a complete description of the additional webinar, including the link to join on the day of the event.
Draft 2024–25 FAFSA Specifications Guide: On June 8, 2023, the US Department of Education replaced the 2024-25 Draft ISIR Record Layout in Excel Format. This updated version corrects a field numbering issue that began after field #880 (Schedule F indicator) in the Student FTI-M Information section of the previously posted Excel file.
Sunset of COVID-19 Waivers and Flexibilities : Review the link for more information when each COVID waiver and flexibilities expire now that the national emergency has ended. Some end with the payment period and some with the academic year.
Final Form, Instructions, Desk Reference, and Technical Reference for 2024–25 FISAP : The Fiscal Operations Report for 2022–23 and Application to Participate for 2024– 25 (FISAP) has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The FISAP Form, Instructions, and Desk Reference have been posted to the Knowledge Center. The online FISAP will be made available on the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) website by Aug. 1, 2023.
2023–24 Funding Levels for the Campus-Based Programs: Final funding levels are now out and corresponding worksheets for the Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program and the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) Program for the 2023–24 award year (July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024) posted to the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) website by Feb. 1, 2023.
Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) : Federal Stafford, Federal Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students (PLUS), Federal Supplemental Loans for Students (SLS), and Federal Consolidation Interest Rates for the Period July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024

Maximizing Financial Aid Budgets with Third-Party Servicers

Mon, 19 Jun 2023 12:57:00 GMT

In American education, around 85% of all students who head to college receive financial aid. On top of that, in each application cycle, there are 17.9 million applications sent in. That means the demands on financial aid departments are at all-time highs. Yet, budgets are often quite tight, making it hard to hire enough personnel to process the applications that come through in a timely manner. FA Solutions LLC recommends the best practices for Financial Aid Directors who want to maximize their budgets, and one of those best practices is partnering with a third-party servicer to help process financial aid applications.

Lessen Demand on Staff without Sacrificing the Student Experience: When your financial aid department partners with a third-party servicer , you can process a higher number of applications or process your applications more quickly without having to hire additional staff members. Your current staff members can focus on the applicant-facing actions while the processor handles the high volume of applications that come through the school. This maximizes your hiring budget while still ensuring your students get a top-quality experience.
Process Files More Quickly: With a third-party servicer, you’re able to move files through the process faster. The servicer handles all of the processing and documentation. Standard applications can move through the process in two to three days, allowing you to serve more students without increasing the size of your staff.
Embrace Automation: Automation will help make every aspect of your financial aid office more profitable, but learning a new software program and training your team to use it well can take time. You can skip this learning curve while embracing automation when you partner with a third-party servicer who knows these programs and how to implement them into your financial aid office’s process.
Provide Students with Self-Service Access: Sometimes, you can maximize your financial aid budget by eliminating some tasks. If there are tasks students can handle on their own, such as checking the status of a file, then let them do so. Coordinating services through a third-party servicer can let students access account information when necessary. They can manage loans and meet scholarship requirements with fewer calls to the financial aid office. Your financial aid officers can be available to guide students through the complex parts of the financial aid process and stay on top of regulatory changes, while the students who need to check their accounts quickly can do so on their own.

These are the four main ways that you can maximize your financial aid department’s budget with help of a third-party servicer. If you are ready to take advantage of these benefits, FA Solutions is ready to assist. Our third-party processing, along with our consulting and staffing solutions, will help your financial aid office maximize its profitability. Check out our services or reach out today to learn more.

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Navigating Complexities of Financial Aid Verification

Thu, 25 May 2023 18:07:00 GMT

Financial Aid Directors are an important part of helping students with their FAFSA forms and the whole process of obtaining financial aid. Although this process tends to only require the FAFSA, a small portion of students get selected for verification. The verification process is set up to help ensure that the information students provide is accurate.
Up to 38 percent of FAFSA filers had to go through the verification process over the past ten years, according to the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) and the National College Attainment Network (NCAN). Although this number dropped to just over 17 percent in 2021-2022. NASFAA and NCAN are working on ways to lower this percentage even more.
In the meantime, navigating the verification process can be complicated for Financial Aid Directors. While the percentage of students chosen for verification is decreasing, that’s still a lot of applications that need to go through this process. FA Solutions LLC recommends the best practices for Financial Aid Directors.

Best Practices for Financial Aid Verification

Easily Accessible Forms

Ensuring that verification forms are easily accessible for students is important. For example, having them on the school website or portal or available for an electronic signature offers a convenient way for students to complete these forms.

Yearly Staff Training

Staff should know how to review collected documents for the verification process. Conducting yearly training sessions helps ensure that staff has the most up to date knowledge.

Conflict Checklist

Creating a checklist for staff can make it easier for them to keep track of and identify conflicts when reviewing documents for the verification process.

Policy and Procedure Requirements

Schools have to follow a certain set of rules and requirements when handling applications that are selected for verification. Making sure your school has a verification process in place that meets these requirements is essential. This generally includes giving students a clear explanation of why they were chosen for verification, setting a time period for students to submit documentation, and determining procedures used for correcting FAFSA data. Ensuring that verification forms are easily accessible for students is also important. For example, having them on the school website or portal or with a signature offers a convenient way for students to complete these forms.

School-Selected Verification

The Central Processing System (CPS) flags applications for verification. Schools can also select students if there’s reason to believe that information on an application is incorrect. Flagged applications end up in standard verification group (V1) for tax filers and non-tax filers, a custom verification group (V4) focused on identity and educational statement, or an aggregate verification group (V5) combing V1 and V4. Financial Aid Directors need to know how to navigate the process for each group and collect the appropriate documents.

Verification Exclusions

In some cases, student applications don’t need to be verified. For example, if a student is only eligible for unsubsidized loan funds or drops before being eligible for a disbursement. However, if a student does meet an exclusion for completing verification, schools are still expected to resolve any conflicting data or incorrect information.

Verification Processing

The verification process can lead to delays that affect your school’s financial aid processing. Partnering with a third-party financial aid servicer, such as FA Solutions LLC, can help speed verification processing along. Having this kind of help can make it easier for Financial Aid Directors to handle all of the money that flows through this department.

Get Reliable Help with Financial Aid Verification

FA Solutions LLC is a third party financial aid servicer with the knowledge and ability to help the verification process run more smoothly for your school. Our experts can also ensure that your school stays up-to-date on changes that affect the verification process. We can provide guidance in using best practices for verifying financial aid applications. Contact us to learn more about our services

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Top 6 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Wed, 12 Apr 2023 13:46:00 GMT

Updates to the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act Cybersecurity Requirements : On December 9, 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued final regulations (Final Rule) to amend the Standards for Safeguarding Customer Information (Safeguards Rule), an important component of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act’s (GLBA) requirements for protecting the privacy and personal information of consumers. The effective date for most of the changes to the Safeguards Rule is June 9, 2023. This Electronic Announcement provides a summary of the changes to the GLBA requirements resulting from the Final Rule, explains the impacts of the changes on postsecondary institutions, and describes changes to the Department of Education’s (Department) enforcement of the GLBA requirements.
New Cybersecurity Resources for Institutes of Higher Education Available : Federal Student Aid (FSA) has developed two new factsheets on how to establish an Incident Response Plan (IRP) and the importance of data sanitization.
FSA Enforcement Bulletin, March 2023 – Announcing Use of Secret Shoppers : Federal Student Aid (FSA) is charged with managing the administrative and oversight functions of student aid programs authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and its implementing regulations. These oversight efforts serve multiple purposes, such as protecting students, ensuring the quality of school programs and the accuracy of representations about those programs, and safeguarding the interests of taxpayers in the expenditure of public funds.
Implementing the 2024–25 FAFSA Process : The U.S. Department of Education's (the Department) office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) published the Better FAFSA Better Future Roadmap (Roadmap) , an implementation timeline of resources, guidance, and training materials for students and parents, schools and institutions, and other stakeholders about the redesigned 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. The redesigned FAFSA form is the most ambitious and significant redesign of the federal student aid application and delivery in decades, and will significantly simplify how students, parents, and other educational stakeholders use the FAFSA form starting this year.
2023–24 Funding Levels for the Campus-Based Programs : Final funding levels are now out and corresponding worksheets for the Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program and the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) Program for the 2023–24 award year (July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024) posted to the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) website by Feb. 1, 2023.
Requirements and Responsibilities for Third-Party Servicers and Institutions ( Updated Feb. 28, 2023) : The letter updates guidance to institutions that contract with a third-party servicer (TPS) to administer any aspect of the institution’s participation in the student assistance programs authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA).

5 Benefits of Partnering with the Right Third Party Financial Aid Servicer

Mon, 03 Apr 2023 12:22:00 GMT

Student financial aid is no one’s idea of a picnic. Even the most devoted employees of a school’s aid office sometimes get burned out, and no wonder. The total loan volume for Federal Direct Subsidized Loans during the 2020-2021 year was $16.5 billion. It was $45.5 billion for Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, $1.1 billion for work study, $26.5 billion for Pell Grants … and so on. That’s a lot of money flowing through the system, which puts gobs of stress on you and your team. That’s why so many financial aid offices are partnering with third party servicers today. Here are five reasons you should do the same!

1. Keep Your Financial Aid Processes Moving Smoothly

More than 85 percent of higher education students receive some form of financial aid, representing more than 17 million FAFSAs (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). Managing that kind of volume is tough and it’s easy to get bogged down. A FAFSA consultant can measurably reduce the load by identifying processes to reduce bottlenecks and keeping students moving through the process.

2. Tailor Your FA Services to Your Needs

Not every university has the same needs, so out-of-the-box solutions often don’t work. A financial aid consulting company can help you create a system that works for you, tailored to your unique student body.

3. Speed Up File Processing

Not only do you have to decide where all that money goes, you have to process each file in the relatively short timeline students expect (a matter of weeks) and then document all decision making.
It’s enough to make anyone want to bury their head before the start of each term, which is why increasing numbers of schools are partnering with third party financial aid servicers. A knowledgeable provider will help ensure you turn your files around in 2-3 days for standard applications.

4. Stay Up to Date on Changes

Big changes are coming to the FAFSA in hopes of simplifying it for students and financial aid offices. In the short term, however, all changes create more havoc. Experts can help you integrate these changes quickly and without fuss into your current systems.

5. Automate, Automate, Automate

We all know automation can help make life simpler, but getting there isn’t always easy. Creating a system from scratch or customizing a packaged software system takes time, and an experienced third-party financial aid solutions provider can do that for you!

Get the Help You Need Today … and Every Day

Need some help finding the right financial aid solutions so you can keep funding higher education without losing sleep? FA Solutions is here to help, offering consulting, staffing and third party processing to smooth your workday and support enrollment at your university. Our motto is "A True Extension to your Financial Aid Office," and that’s exactly what we seek to provide to all our clients. Want to learn more? Please feel free to check out our services or get in touch today .

Navigating the New FAFSA Simplification Changes: What Financial Aid Directors Need to Know

Wed, 15 Mar 2023 10:59:00 GMT

The FAFSA Simplification Act will go into effect fully for the 2024-2025 award year. It is the first major redesign of the system in more than 35 years. FA Solutions LLC recommends the best practices for Financial Aid Directors in preparing for this rapid change.

FAFSA is critical to today’s youth entering higher education. For the 2020 to 2021 school year, about 6.4 million students received a Federal Pell Grant award averaging $4,166. About 1.6 million students received Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, and 4.4 million received Federal Direct Subsidized loans _with an average value of $3,764, according to NASFAA .

The changes to the FAFSA process will impact a large number of people. Enrollment directors, financial aid directors, and other school leaders must be ready for these changes.

What You Can Do Now

All financial aid directors should be paying close attention to the changes in the process, including monitoring the implementation of the provisions of this new Act. Some key factors to consider include the following.

Understand the benefits

Financial aid officers view most of these updates to be critical and long overdue. The process should reduce the complexity and length of applications for aid.

Additionally, it will expand eligibility for Pell Grants and allow some students who have the most financial need to receive funds that are higher than their cost of attendance.

Also notable is that the Act resorts aid eligibility to student populations that were excluded prior. That means it will make aid available to more people.

Train and education

One of the most important steps financial aid directors can take right now is to educate themselves and train their staff and school leaders on the changes and how they will impact students and their families. Communication about new eligibility and concepts to obtaining aid will be critical for staff to understand so there’s less confusion. Key to this should be ensuring enrollment staff is confident in their ability to communicate these updates and avoid those, “I’m not sure.” Statements.

Plan to measure aid eligibility

The tradition of the current Expected Family Contribution (EFC) method to the Student Aid Index (SAI) will be significant since most administrations use EFC to plan for institutional aid budgets. Core concerns include:

Get the Help and Support You Need

Being successful in this transition is essential to study bodies. Yet, the process is more complex than many expect. Getting help could alleviate some of those frustrations. Contact FA Solutions Financial Aid Consulting to learn more about the services we offer that can make a difference in your process.

Understanding and Navigating Cybersecurity Risks in Higher Education and How Financial Aid Office Can Help

Thu, 02 Feb 2023 09:00:00 GMT

Between October 2021 and June 2022, more than 150 postsecondary institutions reported ransomware attacks to Federal Student Aid (FSA). During a ransomware attack, educational institutions lose access to critical information and systems and essentially are unable to function.

Ransomware attacks are just one type of cybersecurity risk faced by higher education. FA Solutions LLC, a financial aid-servicing partner, recommends the best practices for Financial Aid Directors in preparing for and responding to cyberattacks.

Why are Higher Education Institutions Vulnerable to Cyberattacks?

An in-depth article was recently published in HigherEdDive on the best way for institutions of higher education to address cyberattacks, the authors noted that the pandemic required institutions of higher education to create new ways to interact with students and forced them to “rapidly build out their digital infrastructure to ensure continuity of learning and working…” While this was necessary, it also created “new entry points for cybercriminals.”

Some issues that HigherEdDive found that make higher education institutions particularly vulnerable include:

Steps the Institution and the Financial Aid Office Can Take to Help Prevent Cybercrime

Cybercriminals take their “jobs” seriously and are hard to beat, but there are steps higher education institutions, along with their financial aid office, can take to make it more difficult for them. Some suggestions are:

Unfortunately, cybercriminals are determined, and even though you may not be able to completely eradicate the threat, you can take these steps with the goal of protecting your data and your reputation.

FA Solutions Provides Cybersafe Third-Party Financial Aid Processing

FA Solutions is not just a third-party service provider, but a partner with the higher education institution. We are well aware of the potential for cybercrime and take seriously our responsibility to prevent such attacks.

Contact us to book a free consultation where you can learn more about how we can assist you in improving and streamlining operational efficiencies.

Top 5 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 13:19:00 GMT

FAFSA Simplification changes effective for the 2023-2024 award year : Changes to professional judgment includes distinguishing between Special Circumstances and Unusual Circumstances, requiring schools to have a publicized policy and prohibiting an institution from having a policy to deny PJs.

2023-2024 Cost of attendance changes including language changes from Room & Board to Food & Housing counting as living expenses. Along with changes to 1st professional credential is included with a few other changes. Student Eligibility changes officially remove the code for selective service and drug convictions aligns with SULA being eliminated.

90/10 Final Rules released : Identifying which federal funds can no longer be counted in the 10% revenue requirement and addresses loopholes that schools can use to adjust the timing of when revenue is received. The biggest change being veteran and service member benefits (such as the GI Bill) will no longer count toward the 10%.
Prison Education Programs Questions and Answers: Starting July 1, 2023 incarcerated students will have access to Federal Pell Grants at qualified institutions and are eligible for the Fresh Start initiative.
Deadline for 2023–24, Underuse Penalty Waiver : Deadline to request a waiver for underspent Campus Based Funds is February 6th. Institutions that failed to spend more than 90% of its 2021- 2022 Campus Based funding can apply for an underuse waiver including detailed information on circumstance that caused underuse of allocation, why the circumstance was beyond school control, and how it will be prevented in the future.
Reorganization of the Federal Student Aid Handbook for 2023-2024: The Department announced on January 11th the 2023-2024 Federal Student Aid (FSA) Handbook will be reorganized. The new structure will have the Application and Verification Guide, nine numbered volumes and appendices. The major change is removing duplicate content and placing all campus based program information together.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

The New Net Price Calculator: Don’ts, Dos and FAQs

Wed, 04 Jan 2023 14:36:00 GMT

Using the net price calculator can help you, as an institution that participates in the Title IV federal student aid program, make sure your students and their families understand the net price of schooling . There are some dos and don’ts of using the net price calculator that you should know. FA Solutions LLC aligns with the Federal Government and recommends these as some of the best practices for Financial Aid Directors.

When Using the Net Price Calculator, Do These Things

When trying to find the correct net price for a program, make sure you’re inputting the largest program at your institution. Even if that program isn’t Title IV-eligible, you should still use your largest program for the purposes of the calculations.

Do remember to input the student’s data for the entire year if you have an “Academic” calendar at your school. If you have a “Program” system, then you should use the entire length of the largest program.

Do update yearly; but wait until the new year’s data is released before updating the new year data into the template. New year version is typically available in January.

When using the Net Price Calculator, Don’t Do These Things

There are some mistakes you could make when using the net price calculator. Remember not to make modifications to the source code of the net price calculator template unless your IT department is capable of understanding the implications. The National Center for Education Statistics will not be able to guarantee they can help if you do so and have questions in the future.

Another thing to avoid is including loans in the net price calculation. The net price calculation is meant to show the cost of an education minus scholarships and grants, but it must show any money that has to be repaid. If you include loans, your institution will not be in regulatory compliance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where Will I Find the URL for My Net Price Calculator?

You’ll find your URL at the Institution Identification screen that is found within the IPEDS system. Where Should My Institution Place the Net Price Calculator?

Include the net price calculator on your website. There is no specific requirement for location but consider making it easy to get to.

Can I Call the Net Price Calculator Something Else on My Website?

No, you need to call it “Net Price Calculator” to be in compliance.

When is the Net Price Calculator required?

Any institution that enrolls full-time, first-time students is required to have a Net Price Calculator.

Stay in Compliance with FA Solutions

At FA Solutions, we have a knowledgeable staff that can help with all aspects of the financial aid process. We’re here to help your team, so you can be sure you’re in compliance. Reach out to us today for a complimentary consultation .

20 Best Practices for Financial Aid Directors

Thu, 01 Dec 2022 14:33:00 GMT

In case you may have missed it, these are the top four blogs in 2022 from our website . These resonated with our followers. Feel free to share with your colleagues or teams!

1. 5 Tips for a New Financial Aid Director:

Getting that big promotion as a financial aid director is a time of excitement but can also be stressful for many new to the role. Our leadership team put together a list of helpful tips for new directors, in this blog.

2. Top 5 Best Financial Aid Practices:

Financial Aid staff have tremendous responsibility to both students and the school. Ensuring quality communication while following all federal, state, and institutional regulations can be challenging at times. With so many competing priorities, we put together a list of best practices to help.

3. 5 Best Practices to Successfully Implement Financial Aid Processes:

Between 85% and 90% of first-time, full-time undergraduate students receive financial aid to help cover tuition charges. There is an abundance of regulations to keep in mind when administering financial aid. FA Solutions LLC recommends the following best practices for financial aid directors implementing change into financial aid processes.

4. 5 Tips to Help Your Financial Aid Staff Cope with the Busy Season:

The most crucial part of processing Financial Aid efficiently is to prepare office staff to ensure employees know what to expect and how to manage the rush of students as efficiently and effectively as possible.

We are here to help you with all your needs. With New Year around the corner, FA Solutions LLC is excited to share financial aid processing expertise with institutions across the country. Talk to us and explore new opportunities for your financial aid office. Visit our website:
GetFASolutions.com

5 Best Practices to Successfully Implement Financial Aid Processes

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 09:07:00 GMT

Between 85% and 90% of first-time, full-time undergraduate students have received financial aid in order to further their studies. This aid, which can be provided by the federal government, state government, and even universities themselves, makes it possible for tens of
thousands of students to earn a diploma and make their career dreams come true. FA Solutions LLC recommends the following best practices for financial aid directors implementing change in to financial aid processes.

1. Explain the “Why” Behind Changes or New Processes

The financial aid process is confusing for many students (and even school staff), as it varies depending on where the aid comes from, what it is based on (i.e., need or merit), and a multitude of other factors. If changes need to be made in the application or disbursement
process, give as much advance notice as possible and be sure to clearly explain the reasons behind the changes.

2. Communicate Clearly Before, During, and After the Change

Advance notice is a must, but it’s not enough on its own. Communicate with staff and students while the process of change is underway. This is particularly important if students have an application in progress; at the same time, even students who have not filled out their aid application should understand what changes are taking place in the process and why. It’s also important to communicate clearly with staff members and other departments affected by the change. Everyone should know what changes are made, why they are being made, and when the transition process will be complete.

3. Document the New Process

Documenting the new process can prevent audit challenges. It also helps financial aid directors keep tabs on how the change is progressing so potential problems can be nipped in the bud and tweaks can be made to the process should the need arise.

4. Be Prepared for Questions with an FAQ

Even a clearly-worded explanation of the coming/current change won’t answer every single staff or student’s questions nor address all the concerns. However, a good FAQ page and/or flyer can help staff and students better understand and accept the change process. Having
printed FAQs can also save you and your team the work of having to repeat the same information to multiple students.

5. Track and Monitor the Outcome

Are the changes bringing about the desired result? Review what’s working and what’s not. You may need to validate your team members are implementing the change properly, although you’ll want to be careful to avoid the urge to continually spot-check team members. Students count on efficient, effective student aid request processing to ensure they have the funds they need for their studies. FA Solutions Services enables financial aid offices to meet student expectations by offering speedy file processing and flexible services to meet the needs of for-profit, non-profit, public, and faith-based educational institutions. If you want to improve your financial aid processes to provide better, faster, and more effective services to students of all ages and walks of life, get in touch with us at your convenience

Top 3 Obstacles Financial Aid Directors should Watch Out this Fall

Mon, 03 Oct 2022 17:53:00 GMT

Financial aid plays a critical role in the landscape of higher education. Financial aid directors influence institutional benchmarks, including student enrollment and graduation rates. It is a complex system, one that seems to experience drastic changes often. FA Solutions LLC aligns with Federal Government and recommends some of the best practices for Financial Aid Directors.

1. Validate and Spot Check Team Results

This isn’t a suggestion that financial aid directors micromanage their teams. You should have people in place you believe in and trust them to complete the tasks accurately. However, validate that they are doing things correctly.

Today, the average student will borrow at least thirty thousand dollars to get a bachelor’s degree. In 2020, 15.85 million undergraduate students enrolled in a university or college. The percentage of students applying for financial aid goes up annually by a rate of .9 percent.

The financial aid director must be able to streamline the process but ensure its accuracy. They must look for trends and anticipate problems. That won’t happen without the validation of team results.

2. Communication is Key

Effective communication is how financial aid directors interact with others to reach organizational goals and improve overall practices. There are different types of communications directors need to manage:

Effective communication in all these areas will improve staff engagement, deter information silos that might include irrelevant or inaccurate, and improve advocacy for students and staff.

3. Delegate

A financial aid director who attempts to do all the work will quickly get overwhelmed. The better approach is to work with your teams and get help when necessary. This shows others how to do the work and allows for more effective collaboration. It is especially critical during peak times, such as before a new semester begins.

Financial aid directors are leaders, managers, and educators. It is their job to ensure that the students have the necessary resources. The best way to make that happen is by validating the teams’ results, learning to communicate effectively at all levels, and delegating work when possible.

about your challenges, and we’ll happily explain how we’ve assisted other schools and will help yours too!

Top 4 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Sat, 01 Oct 2022 12:34:00 GMT

1. Enrollment Reporting Issues

All NSLDS enrollment reporting compliance notifications continues to be suspended. Schools, school servicers, and enrollment providers should retain copies of this announcement and Aug. 31 announcement as documentation for audit purposes. The Print button at the top left of each announcement can be used to print a formatted version of the announcement to paper or PDF. Please also review the most recent clarification on enrollment reporting decision NSLDS Professional Access – Additional Information About the Modernized Website #8 | Knowledge Center

2. Change of Ownership

In accordance with 34 CFR 668.14(g) , an institution’s program participation agreement automatically expires on the date the institution undergoes a CIO that results in a change in control. Under 34 CFR 600.31(a)(2) , the Department may temporarily extend the institution’s program participation agreement on a provisional basis following a CIO if certain conditions are met, including the submission of a materially complete application no later than 10 business days after the day the change occurs.

3. One Time Debt Relief Plan

President Biden announced on August 24, 2022 a student debt relief plan. Information is still being confirmed on process but it is understood if a student’s annual federal income was below $125,000 (individual or married, filing separately) or $250,000 (married, filing jointly or head of household) in 2021 or 2020 may qualify for debt relief. The application should be available online by early October
2022. Information

4. 2022-2023 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

The 22-23 FAFSA is available as of October 1, 2022. It is suggested students complete as soon as possible and use the IRS DRT for income information. www.fafsa.ed.gov

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

5 things you need to know about Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA)

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 13:25:00 GMT

By Bridget McGuire, September 13, 2022

Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) is the statute that authorizes the U.S. government to provide financial assistance to eligible students pursuing higher education. Funds are disbursed directly to accredited institutions, which can then be used for school fees, housing, and other approved expenses.

Here are 5 things to know about Title IV, how it impacts your educational institution, and how a financial aid-servicing agency can help your school create a postsecondary education experience coveted by students nationwide and even internationally.

1. Your Title IV Designation Matters

The highest-performing students look almost exclusively for schools with a Title IV designation. This means an institution is accredited by the U.S. Department of Education and provides a quality degree program. Fortune 500 companies and other top enterprises that scout new graduates for entry-level positions also look for students who have degrees from Title IV schools.

2. You Must Meet Specific Criteria for Title IV Status

Schools interested in receiving Title IV status must meet a number of different criteria in order to be considered eligible to be part of federal student aid like Pell Grants, TEACH grants, and Direct PLUS and Direct Graduate PLUS Loans.

Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) must:

∙ Be licensed to conduct business within the state the school physically resides ∙ Provide at minimum one (1) eligible education program that either prepares the student for a degree or a career within a recognized occupational field

∙ Derive at minimum 10% of the institution’s total revenue from non-Title IV funding ∙ Have fewer than 50% of classes via correspondence and/or have fewer than 50% of students attending classes via correspondence

∙ Meet program integrity requirements

3. You Must Disburse Federal Funds to Students According to HEA Criteria

The Higher Education Act also sets forth guidelines that IHEs must adhere to when disbursing federal aid to students. For example, institutions must inform students how much of their federal aid is in the form of an unsubsidized loan and how much is subsidized. They must also follow regulations on how many disbursements students receive per semester or per year.

4. Title IV Funds Must Be Used For Eligible Expenses

Title IV funds must be applied to eligible expenses, such as tuition costs, school fees, and on-campus housing. Only in certain instances may the funds be used for used for variable in direct expenses.

5. You Must Maintain Eligibility to Keep Your Title IV Status

Your school will need to maintain its eligibility for as long as you wish to keep your Title IV status. If at any time you do not meet one or more criteria, your status may be placed in probation, suspended or revoked and you may no longer receive Title IV funding.

Get Help Navigating Federal Funding With a Financial Aid-Servicing Agency

FA Solutions, LLC is an established financial aid-servicing agency that aligns with Federal Government to help students access quality education. We recommend these best practices for financial aid directors and staff. Contact us today to learn more about applying for a Title IV designation at 727-300-6336.

5 Tips to Help Your Financial Aid Staff Cope with the Busy Season

Thu, 04 Aug 2022 15:24:00 GMT

FAFSA’s Twitter pos t offered tips to help students avoid waiting in long lines or getting put on hold by the financial aid office. For instance, the agency advised students to schedule calls and visits in July instead of August. This way, they can get questions answered quickly before the predictable busy period right before the fall term begins.

Not every student will see FAFSA’s post or heed this sound advice, so financial aid offices still need to prepare for peak. FA Solutions, LLC offers some excellent tips to keep financial aid office employees motivated, efficient, and happy, even when the lines wind outside the door and the phones keep ringing.

Five Tips to Help Financial Aid Office Workers Cope With peak

Financial aid offices may never have a way to entirely avoid a rush of students who have urgent financial aid issues right before they need to pay tuition bills and begin courses. They can prepare office staff to ensure employees know what to expect and how to handle the rush of students as efficiently and effectively as possible.

#1: Help Staff Work Efficiently

Each staff member should understand how to prioritize appointments, walk-ins, phone calls, and messages to avoid getting overwhelmed. If employees find specific duties or periods particularly stressful, consider spreading them around to ensure the same individuals don’t always get stuck with the most challenging responsibilities. See if other departments or even third-party solutions

can relieve some of the workload.

#2: Recognize Employee Efforts

Even if some students don’t always express their gratitude, the department should always find ways to let employees know how much they’re valued. The best way to offer thanks may depend upon the worker’s personality and could include a quiet compliment, a public shout-out, or a thoughtful card.

#3: Ensure a Positive Work Environment

Bosses can also express appreciation by making the office as pleasant and supportive as possible. Employees appreciate extra perks such as water bottles, light snacks, and upbeat music. Some offices, as budgets allow order employee lunches during peak times to help save the employee time and money.

#4: Make Sure Employees Can Enjoy Relaxing Breaks

Employees need a quiet retreat to enjoy their breaks and lunch periods. Offer resources and support for relaxation, meditation, exercise, and mental health. For instance, place a couple of tablet computers loaded with simple games or meditation apps in the break room.

#5: Let Workers Dress Comfortably

If your office requires more professional attire, consider offering the employee a comfortable option. Many colleges allow for a school branded shirt and the employee’s choice of comfortable bottoms, like jeans.

Seek the Best Financial Aid Partners

A financial aid office assumes lots of responsibility to ensure students have a positive experience and can obtain the vital assistance they need. For example, the financial aid department’s effectiveness can have an immense impact on enrollment numbers. In turn, that major responsibility can generate overwhelming pressure during busy times of the year, especially right before new semesters begin.

On the positive side, a trusted, reliable partner will relieve workloads with efficient processing solutions, consulting, and even outsourced staffing. Contact us here at FA Solutions today to tell us about your challenges, and we’ll happily explain how we’ve assisted other schools and will help yours too!

By Bridget McGuire

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) – What You Need to Know?

Sun, 10 Jul 2022 11:39:00 GMT

At institutions of higher learning, understanding the specifics attached to Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is critical for Financial Aid Department Team Members, Financial Aid Directors, Enrolment Directors, and School Leaders alike. FA Solutions LLC recommends these practices to stay in good standing with Title IV regulations and to ensure the proper monitoring of student academic progress and
eligibility for financial aid.

A simplified definition of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is the successful completion of coursework toward a degree or certification. When it comes to financial aid requirements, SAP is directly connected to receiving financial aid funds and support.

Educational institutions have SAP policies and procedures in place as it relates to financial aid. Specific financial aid criteria and measurement systems like SAP are also important for proper and consistent communication with students, faculty, and parents. In addition, SAP requirements also set a guideline for cross-departmental processes, manuals, and evaluation procedures and are part of a student’s ongoing academic record.

There are three criteria for SAP:

Quantitative. This is a measurement of credit hour completion in comparison to program pace. For example ,, a student in a specific program of study will need to complete a specific number of credits successfully completed by the end of each academic year.
Qualitative. This is a measurement of the cumulative grade point average. For most institutions, this means a “student must have a “C” or its equivalent or have an academic standing consistent with the institution's requirements for graduation.”
Maximum Time Frame . This is a measurement of the number of credit hours attempted (including transfer credits). In the United States, this is typically defined as “150% of your programs' published length, as measured in credit hours.” This means that students who cannot graduate within the 150%-time frame lose eligibility for financial aid.

In addition, it’s important to understand other actions that can impact a SAP calculation (and these should all be outlined accordingly through the Financial Aid Department’s policies):

Retaking Courses
Dropping a Course
Remedial Courses
Transfer Credits

There are also different statuses for SAP: “Meeting” versus “Not Meeting.”

Note: There are often warnings, probationary stipulations, or even financial aid suspensions attached to the “Not Meeting” status, so it’s important to understand how all these components impact a student’s eligibility for financial aid.

In addition, institutions of learning should have a documented appeal process with steps outlined and timeframes in the case of a status change.

Need Help with Your Financial Aid Operations?

At FA Solutions LLC we specialize in ongoing financial aid consultation and process support, so if your financial aid staff or larger department needs some help, look no further.

Our goal is to become a partner with your institution to ensure the financial aid process is easy to navigate and understand. We will work alongside your team to also ensure everything is current and can support training efforts as well.

Give us a call or contact us via our online form to schedule a complimentary consultation and learn more about our financial aid services

Top 4 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulation Announcements

Fri, 01 Jul 2022 12:51:00 GMT

In the quarter, a few announcements have been made that will ensure you remain compliant. If you don’t follow these daily you could miss important or impactful information. Here are a few of the top takeaways from recent Department of Education updates.

1. Verification Changes

Announced May 18, 2022 and for the remainder of the 2022-2023 award year Verification Requirements are once again waived for all verification except identity/Statement of Educational Purpose for Verification Tracking groups V4 and V5.

2. Voter Registration

Department reminds schools of the requirement to “make a good faith effort to distribute a mail voter registration form, requested and received from each State, to each student enrolled in a degree or certificate program and physically in attendance at the institution.” This can be done by electronic means as long as the email is only regarding voter registration and to individual students and has an attachment
with a form or link to a website to download the form. Schools should send information at least 120 days prior to the state’s deadline for registering to vote.

3. Perkins

Due to the pandemic, the mandatory assignment of Federal Perkins loans in default more than two years is extended to June 30, 2023 (extended by 1 year), but school’s will need to provide a reason the original deadline of June 30, 2022 could not be met.

4. DL Interest Rates

As a reminder interest rates are determined June 1st for the upcoming award year. For Federal Direct Student Loan Program loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023 are:

Of course, this list could go on and on. So let our financial aid and compliance experts help your department boost its efforts. Contact us today to explore options. Get FA Solutions and ECM today!
Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Best Practices for Return of Title IV Funds

Fri, 17 Jun 2022 17:38:00 GMT

For Financial Aid Departments, Directors, and School Leaders, understanding what happens to Title IV funds if student withdraw from a program are an important component of day-to-day operations. It’s also critical to ensuring an accurate calculation to remain compliant.
Our team at FA Solutions LLC serves as financial aid-servicing partners for leaders and department heads across the country. Understanding the return regulations and implications of Title IV funds is just one of our service options and we recommend the following practices based on success across other partner institutions:

Ensure a solid policy and procedure is documented.
Have strong communication between departments to ensure information about enrollment status changes is shared timely and accurately.
Have a second set of eyes review the calculation.
Review policies and procedures and conduct training yearly.

The return of Title IV funds needs to occur when a student ceases to be enrolled or goes through what is called a 100% withdrawal . It’s important to note that a change in enrollment status does NOT constitute a full withdrawal. An example of this is if a full-time student adjusts to a part-time student status by reducing their semester credit load.

Regulations and specifications around Title IV funds update and adjust constantly. There was new guidance released in July of 2021, and with the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19, another set of flexibilities surrounding the funds is also in effect.

Title IV funds are meant to be awarded to students with the assumption that they will attend school/courses for the entire period of time attached to the funding. When that is not the case, the four best practices above are critical for not just accurate return procedures, but for communication, tracking, and consistency in expectations and guidelines.

Employees supporting financial aid services and students receiving these services alike should have a working and clear understanding of not just when Title IV funds are awarded, but when they are no longer applicable.

Need Help Fixing Your Financial Aid Operations?

Whether your Financial Aid Department and/or team needs a little more support putting best practices in place for the return of Title IV funds or something more robust, FA Solutions LLC is standing by to lend a helping hand. We operate as an extension of your institution so that both employees and students operating within the Financial Aid realm benefit.

Making the financial aid process easier to navigate and understand is what we are here for, and our expert staff will work alongside your team as guides, mentors, and consultants. One of our main goals is to help ensure institutions are aware of and keeping current with new regulations and best practices, like the return of Title IV funds. Give us a call or fill out our online form to connect with a representative to learn more about how FA Solutions LLC can support your Financial Aid Department, best practices, and processes.

Top 5 Reasons for Redundancy in Financial Aid Outsourcing

Tue, 10 May 2022 07:47:00 GMT

By Robert Wright, May 10, 2022

Financial aid makes the education world go round. It’s not exactly a secret either. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 80 percent of college students receive at least some financial aid. If you are in this business, you need resources to manage financial requests and processing.

One powerful tool that can help is outsourcing financial aid work. This provides a backup option to handle increase in requests and processing work which helps to stabilize financial aid offices, registrars, and the entire education structure at any institution. In short, you need help, and hiring an outsourced party can make all of the difference in the world.

These five reasons will show you that outsourced financial aid resources are invaluable.

1. Avoids bottleneck of work

With the ebb and flow of work volume, bottlenecks are bound to arise. Outsourcing financial aid is a reliable solution to these bottlenecks, ensuring that there are no delays in workflow.

Retaining this extra help with the workload will provide you with confidence that no matter the amount of work there is, it will be completed in a timely manner while maintaining a high level of quality.

2. Ensures coverage for unexpected absences

Operations commonly must adapt to employees’ unexpected absences. At one point or another, there will be a time when key employees must take time away from work, and finding a qualified replacement for them on short notice can be very difficult.

Keeping a reliable fallback to outsource financial aid work will alleviate the need to scramble for help in this case; there will always be a reliable source available to take over the workload.

3. Assists with covering peaks and valleys of work volume

Keeping a staff capable of handling the peaks of work volume year-round might not be practical. When the work volume decreases much of the staff might find themselves without meaningful tasks to perform, being unproductive.

Instead of over-hiring workers to cover the peaks of work volume, having a financial aid outsourcing option will allow you to have coverage for this work. This will reduce the need to hire in-house workers that may be unproductive for much of the time.

4. Protect the knowledge of processes and procedures

By having a redundant handler of financial aid services, work will always be completed to company standards. This can be helpful in times when there are workflow problems in your company.

When experienced employees leave, outsourcing their work can ensure their work is covered while their replacements learn how to perform their tasks and their responsibilities. Maintaining the option to outsource work can keep such personnel transitions as seamless as possible, preventing the negative effects of attrition.

5. Consistent resources available

Having a fallback option capable of handling any workload is invaluable. Not only does it provide peace of mind to administrators, but it also helps reduce the stress of employees during busy times.

Students will be able to have reliable, high-quality financial aid assistance available to them and always receive the assistance they need within a reasonable timeframe. Unpredictable events will inevitably cause workflow problems within any organization and having consistent resources in the form of outsourced financial aid assistance will help business run smoothly.

As the industry leader in third-party servicing, contact FA Solutions to help fill vacancies, process files, and contact students. You can thank us later. Learn more at www.GetFASolutions.com

Top 5 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulations

Fri, 01 Apr 2022 13:53:00 GMT

In the past several weeks, many new regulations have been pushed to title IV approved schools. If you don’t follow these every day, you could easily miss something important and impactful. So, here’s our five takeaways from recent DOE financial aid regulations.

1. The White House Extends Coronavirus National Emergency

This announcement extends the use of the return of Title IV funds (R2T4) waiver and withdrawal benefits, verification flexibilities, allows schools to continue to transfer unused Federal Work-Study funds into Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), reach out us with any questions regarding applicable timeframes and details for each flexibility granted.

2. 2022-2023 Pell Grant Increase

Pell charts for 2022-2023 were released at the end of January, however President Biden signed the fiscal year 2022 Spending bill into law on March 15, 2022, which includes increasing the maximum Pell Grant award by $400, bringing the new maximum total to $6,895 for 2022 2023. Note the COD March 27, 2022, update does NOT include the new Pell figures and advises schools delay originating 2022-2023
Pell until the system is updated, if possible.

3. Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement – Borrower Completion Not Required for 2022-2023

Award Year and Beyond It’s still available for students to complete on StudentAid.gov but is not required.

4. Updated Program Participation Agreement (PPA) Signature Requirements for Entities

Exercising Substantial Control Over Non-Public Institutions of Higher Education Currently a schools PPA is typically signed by the institution’s chief executive officer, president, chancellor, or other designated official. The Department announced it may require additional signatures on the institution’s PPA when seeking initial or recertification, or when undergoing change in ownership.

5. HEERF Reporting Reminders

Reminder HEERF Year 2 Annual Performance Report (APR) needs to be submitted between April 11, 2022, and May 6, 2022. Of course, this list could go on and on. So let our financial aid and compliance experts help your department boost its efforts. Contact us today to explore options.

Get FA Solutions and ECM today! Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright
(813) 435-6227
Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Top 5 Best Financial Aid Practices

Fri, 01 Apr 2022 13:08:00 GMT

Financial Aid offices have a tremendous responsibility that comes with a lot of pressure. Your office is responsible for helping students get the financial aid they deserve within state and federal regulations. There are so many factors at play as a financial aid officer.

It’s essential to meet with your teams annually to discuss success stories and challenges you have faced in your office. Some things to consider are: what were your successes, and what strategies can you take from them? What challenges did you face, and how can you break these into best practices for future semesters?

Here are the top five practices that we’ve found to be the best:

1. Document Everything

There is so much involved with processing a student’s financial aid package compliantly. While it may not seem necessary to document everything, all decisions even minor (a change in job status, a small scholarship, etc.), could create challenges during an audit. Ensure staff documents each conversation with a student to reference later.

2. Review Policies and Procedures

It is essential to review your Financial Aid office’s policies and procedures annually and update them accordingly. Summer is a great time to think about questions to add to your existing list and edit your FAQ library. In addition, the slower pace of June can help you build your library and share it with your team before inbound call volume increases and students return to campus.

3. Stay informed

Connect with your state and federal agencies (such as fsapartners.ed.gov) to view any changes in financial aid regulation. If your office is not operating under the newest guidelines, your students and your campus could be at a disservice.

4. When in Doubt, Ask

Even the most seasoned Financial Aid officers have questions. There are many things to keep track of and many regulations to follow. Do not hesitate to ask someone else if you are in doubt. Asking a fellow colleague can mean the difference between a satisfied student and a successful audit versus frustrated students and audit findings.

5. Provide clear directions

Starting a new school year can be difficult, especially for students. Provide incoming students with a list of documents required with clear directions and deadlines. Having access to this information will make your students more comfortable and lessen the burden for you and your staff in the long term.

These best practices should help your Financial Aid office run efficiently and smoothly. At FA Solutions, we’ve helped many institutions with understanding compliance, processes & procedures, and staff management. Talk to us about our ‘Processing’ support service specially curated for your institution. Visit GetFASolutions.com today.

By Bridget McGuire, April 1 2022

5 Reasons of Staff Turnover in Financial Aid

Tue, 01 Mar 2022 10:46:00 GMT

By Rob Wright, March 1 2022

Like many professions facing staff shortages, financial aid offices in higher education institutions across the country are struggling with high turnover rates.

The problem of critical staff shortages began before the global pandemic, but it has been exacerbated by the many pressures associated with COVID-19. Some financial aid offices have turned to third-party financial aid staffing, which offer as little or as much support as needed. For example, some provide limited services to complement office staff or can provide full contract services to help handle financial aid tasks.

Here are five reasons financial aid offices face high turnover and difficulty recruiting in a fiercely competitive job market.

1. Financial aid offices constrained by school policies, pay

Financial aid offices face unique challenges created by employment policies at higher education institutions and limits on compensation for new hires. Most institutions require certain background and skills for job applicants and use a structured pay scale that limits what recruits can be paid. Other industries have adopted more flexibility in hiring practices to resolve their retention and recruiting problems.

2. Remote learning and work changed the office culture

Remote learning and work impacted a key appeal that attracted many people to work in financial aid offices. Financial aid employees often start their careers as work-study students or financial aid counselors. The appeal to many was the in-office culture of camaraderie and a shared passion for helping students. Shifts to remote work meant staff worked from home and had fewer direct interactions with colleagues and students.

3. Staff leave for better paying positions

Some financial aid workers moved on to other opportunities that paid better, including jobs within their own higher education institution. Workers found they could avoid the complicated classification system within their financial aid office and receive a needed pay increase by accepting a different job with the same employer in a different department.

4. Fewer candidates apply for open positions

Although the number of job openings continues to increase in financial aid offices, there are fewer applicants seeking them. Financial aid directors have cited a depleted applicant pool as one of the biggest challenges they face. To handle a similar problem that has emerged, other industries are rethinking their job postings, including expanding eligibility requirements and offering specialized training for candidates who may not have the needed background.

5. Location of financial aid offices creates challenge

As the job market became more competitive in the wake of the pandemic, job seekers no longer gave as much attention to openings in locations that are more remote or rural. This has created difficulty in

recruiting talent because applicants are not as willing to move now as they previously were to start their career. Some recruiters also note that applicants will consider the high cost of living in some metropolitan areas. With the combination of limited pay and more expensive locations, some financial aid offices find it difficult to recruit candidates.

At FA Solutions, we’ve helped many new directors with understanding compliance, processes & procedures, and staff management. Talk to us about our ‘mentoring’ support service that matches you with a senior-level director for ongoing development. And, smile. Visit GetFASolutions.com today.

10 Ways to Pass/ Prepare for an Audit

Tue, 01 Feb 2022 11:00:00 GMT

February 1, 2022, By Robert Wright

Higher-education institutions that participate in federal Title IV programs must submit compliance and financial audit reports annually to the Department of Education. Here are ten ways to prepare for a winning audit.

1. Take Steps To Ensure Proper Reporting

One of the critical challenges is proper reporting. In general, institutions must notify The Department of Education within 30 days if a student receiving aid ceases to be enrolled at least half-time or changes their permanent address. About 13 percent of schools fail to timely report student enrollment status and about 4 percent fail to report disbursements accurately. Colleges can meet this challenge by improving the efficiency of their reporting operations.

2. Act on Previous Issues

An essential step in preparing for the current audit is ensuring you’ve corrected any faults cited in previous audits. This may seem obvious; however, the most frequently cited finding is failure to implement corrective action.

3. Double Check Calculations

Establish a system of checking and rechecking calculations throughout the process. A common finding is a mistake in an R2T4 calculation for a student who withdraws from all classes during a payment period. Examples include using a wrong withdrawal date, using an incorrect number of days in a reporting period, or math errors.

4. Establish a System For Timely Returns

If an institution credits a student with Title IV funds that exceed the amount of tuition and fees, it must release the funds within 14 days. To meet this challenge, institutions must establish appropriate internal controls to release the funds promptly.

5. Establish Eligibility Disbursement Checks and Balances

A common challenge is the proper disbursement of Pell Grant funds. To avoid this finding, establish operational checks and balances to ensure that your institution has not overpaid or underpaid Pell funds, particularly with enrollment changes affecting eligibility.

6. Establish Accurate Verification Procedures

To comply, an institution must require the selected student to verify the information on the FAFSA. Institutions that participate in Title IV programs must establish and follow policies and procedures to ensure this verification is completed timely and accurately.

7. Administer G5 Account Balances Properly

Another common challenge among institutions of higher learning is managing the G5 expenditures timely and correctly. To meet this challenge, institutions must ensure disbursement dates and amounts follow policies and procedures and accounts are named accurately with regular reconciliation processes between all systems.

8. Conduct Exit and Entrance Interviews

Institutions must counsel students about the debts before disbursing direct loan funds. They also must advise students before they cease at least half-time study, withdraw or graduate. Failure to adequately conduct or document these interviews is a common audit mistake.

9. Adequately Report Crime Statistics

Institutions participating in federal student aid programs must file an Annual Security Report and implement specific safety policies, procedures, and programs. Understanding these policies is one key to meeting these challenges. Increasing operational efficiencies is another.

10. Seek Help

An outside consulting firm can examine your operations to help you ensure compliance. The firm also can help you maximize your institutional resources, as well.

At FA Solutions, we’ve helped many institutions with understanding compliance, processes & procedures, and staff management. Talk to us about our ‘mentoring’ support service that matches you with a senior-level director for ongoing development. Visit GetFASolutions.com
today.

Top 5 Takeaways from Recent Financial Aid Regulations

Fri, 07 Jan 2022 14:51:00 GMT

1. Loan repayment is on ‘pause’ until May 2022.

Enough said!

2. Professional Judgment a Growing Area of Concern for OIG

As a part of a recently released report from the Department of Education’s (ED) Office of Inspector General (OIG), the internal watchdog identified concerns with school policies concerning professional judgment (PJ), indicating that institutions need to follow established institutional policies and that policies need to rely heavily on documentation to support the PJ decision made. It is strongly encouraged that school ensure they have proper documentation and strong policies and procedures that they adhere to in the area of professional judgement.

3. Clock hour proration

If a school is allowed to graduate a student before successfully completing all the clock hours in the program, the Title IV financial aid must be prorated. A student’s eligibility for Title IV aid in a clock-hour program is based, in part, on the overall number of clock hours in the student’s program of study. When an institution allows a student to graduate from a clock hour program without completing all of the established hours in the program, the institution has effectively shortened the program’s length – resulting in reduced Title IV eligibility – for the student. Therefore, if a student graduates from a clock hour program without successfully completing all of the established clock hours in the program, the institution must recalculate the student’s eligibility for all Title IV aid in the program and must perform a new proration of the student’s Pell Grants and Direct Loans as if the student had been enrolled in a program with fewer clock hours. Then, if the institution had disbursed Title IV aid in an amount greater than the amount that it recalculates, the institution must return the difference between the recalculated amount of Title IV for which the student was eligible based on enrollment in the shorter program and the amount that was disbursed. The institution, not the student, is ultimately responsible for returning the Title IV aid in these situations.

4. Verifications for 2022 – 2023

Verification groups remain the same. Also, the DOE removed high school completion status as a verification item under the V4 and V5 tracking groups where... ∙ high school completion (or recognized equivalent) is still required for Title IV eligibility ∙ institutions will only be required to report the verification results of a student’s identity ∙ does not impact an institution’s ability to self-select FAFSA items under the institution’s own verification policy

5. Unique Entity Identifier Update

As per the Department of Education by April 4, 2022, schools will no longer be using DUNS numbers and transition to new Unique Entity Identifier. At that point, entities doing business with the federal government will use a Unique Entity Identifier (SAM) created in SAM.gov. They will no longer have to go to a third-party website to obtain their identifier. This transition allows the government to streamline the entity identification and validation process, making it easier and less burdensome for entities to do business with the federal government. The Integrated Award Environment (IAE) manages several systems including SAM.gov, FPDS, eSRS, FSRS, CPARS and FAPIIS. Current SAM.gov registrants have already been assigned their Unique Entity Identifier (SAM) and can view it within SAM.gov. To learn more about this transition, please see the information below. Join and follow our community on Interact to be notified about the latest news and information about the upcoming Unique Entity Identifier (SAM) changes happening at IAE.

Of course, this list could go on and on. So let our financial aid and compliance experts help your department boost its efforts. Contact us today to explore options. Get FA Solutions and ECM today!

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

(813) 435-6227

Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Top 5 Ways to use SEC

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 14:27:00 GMT

By Patrick Verda,

The Student Experience Center (SEC) at FA Solutions LLC provides educational institutions with access to financial aid resources. This includes a team of industry experts in financial aid, student accounts, admissions, and outreach efforts. This program allows your team to focus on the critical aspects of their jobs. The student experience center team helps by minimizing interruptions of student inquiries via phone and email by being the first line contact for most inquiries.

Here’s five of the most common best practices for using the SEC.

Monitor the financial aid department phone . Many schools are short the necessary resources to provide prompt and efficient call-backs from student inquiries. With help from the SEC, your department can be confident that all inquiries are qualified, documented, and responded quickly. If a student correspondence requires escalation, the SEC team will forward to your current staff as directed.
Monitor the financial aid department email inbox . We’ve all experienced getting behind on responding to student inquires received into the department’s email account. Some schools haven’t responded to student inquiries in weeks! The SEC team includes financial aid industry experts to act as a front-line to student questions including FASFA, general aid, and progress. When necessary, the team will forward requests among your team for leadership attention.
Contact students regarding incomplete paperwork. When your team needs to reach or remind students about the appropriate forms necessary for aid, the SEC team is willing and able to make outreach on your behalf.
Contact students regarding FASFA support. Most students have questions about the FASFA, and the SEC team will help to resolve these questions on your behalf.
Contact admissions leads. The SEC team will contact your students to gauge interest in attending, invite to events, or help with qualifying.

Of course, this list could be much longer as no two schools are alike. So let the experts in the Student Experience Center boost your outreach efforts. Contact us today to explore options. Get FA Solutions.

5 Tips for a New Financial Aid Director

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 11:00:00 GMT

Getting that big promotion as a financial aid director isn’t all that it is cracked-up to be. It can be a stressful time for many new to the role. I asked our leadership team for the most common tips to aspiring directors, and here they are. Smile – this will be fun!

Find a mentor . Even if this is new to you, you'll want to grow your knowledge and career by learning from those who have 'been there, done that'. I'm sure it's a bit of human-nature to want to accomplish a task yourself, but you'll be highly regarded by taking advice from a peer. From encouragement, to criticism, to networking, a mentor plays a valuable role in guiding those less experienced through the learning process.
Take compliance beyond the department. If you're leading the direction of financial aid on campus, you'll need to gain the buy-in from other departments. Student accounts, admissions, enrolment and others will benefit from your guidance and messaging. Be proactive; set the tone. Attend other departmental meetings to ensure consistency.
Don't be afraid. Ask questions; be vulnerable; fake it until you make it. These are the best practices of many leaders when tackling tasks bigger than they are. Don't be afraid to be you. Remember, it's ok to say no. As a leader, you're expected to - it's not a sign of weakness.
Use data. Share statistics, facts, and milestones with your internal (colleagues) and external (student) customers with data points aiming to simplify an otherwise complicated effort. Keep it simple, and be concise.
Listen more. For your students and their families, financial aid can be stressful. For other department heads, financial aid is a big unknown. There's no need to prove your expertise or background by talking too much. Rather, be empathetic with those that are struggling to understand by listening more than you are explaining. In most cases, people just want to know that you hear them.

Top 5 Ways for Financial Aid Teams to Reach Students

Sat, 18 Sep 2021 15:39:00 GMT

The personal one-on-one connection made between the financial aid staff member and the student is invaluable. To quote one financial aid director, “creating a ‘client services’ environment that is responsive to students, reinforced with an adequate use of technology and production-based processing, is essential.” The tactics below may seem like a no-brainer, but they are the most effective means to connect with students. The trick, however, is how we’ve found institutions to use these methods. So, here’s our top 5 ways for financial aid teams to reach students, and the best practices associated with each.

Phone: Most all financial aid offices of campuses nationwide will the phone to reach students. However, one hidden trick is to use the phone to address non-urgent matters. For example, if your institution is seeking to change behaviour from visiting an on-campus office to a student portal, an effective tactic is to call students with a 'Did you know that you can take care of your financial aid paperwork online?' message.
Email: Email is by far the most effective medium to reach people. It's easy to manage, and still preferred by nearly everyone. Opt-in and opt-out capabilities allow people to choose their preferred communication method. Many departments have realized the value of and (and text-messaging) to stay in-touch with their constituents on an ongoing basis. For most programs, this is a weekly newsletter, reminders, and/or personalized message.
Text Messaging: For students and in general the younger generation, text messaging is the most effective way to stay in-touch. The average college student receives 128 text messages a day, so you need to be strategic on your messaging - keep it short; keep it catchy; keep a theme.
Snail-Mail: One may think that sending messages via USPS or campus-mail would not be on this list, but again, it all depends on how it's used. Many successful financial aid departments send reminder postcards, checklists, and personalized messages on a regular basis.
Go where they are! If your students live in residential halls, have a pizza party every few weeks with tips and reminders. If your students work off campus, visit them for a coffee-break at their place of employment. If a large number of students are in clubs or athletics, meet them for a 15–20-minute session where they are.

Out of sight, out of mind. To stay relevant, valuable, and proactive, your department can leverage these popular methods to stay in-touch with your student populations.
Please share this blogpost with your colleagues.
If you’re looking for ways to save time and effort in reaching students, contact FA Solutions today. Our ‘Student Experience Center’ specializes in corresponding with students on your behalf using in/outbound phone and email. Explore more about FA Solutions LLC here.

Top 10 Acronyms used by Financial Aid Directors

Wed, 18 Aug 2021 18:23:00 GMT

Acronyms are everywhere in our culture – even in Financial Aid. For new financial aid directors, it can be frustrating to hear and not understand different terminology when managing a department. With that in mind, here are our top-ten most common acronyms used by financial aid departments.

FAFSA – Free application for Federal Student Aid. This is a very recognized document. Most new directors will understand that a FASFA is the required documentation by the Department of Education to determine This acronym is widely used by department staff and parents alike. Anyone attempting to or supporting someone getting into college will understand this.
COA – Cost of Attendance. This represents a college's total estimated expenses for one year including tuition, room and board, books, supplies, transportation, loan fees, and miscellaneous A school's cost of attendance is used to determine each student's eligibility for financial aid such as grants and loans.
FERPA – Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. This is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the S. Department of Education.
ECAR – Eligibility and Certification Report. This a snapshot of the school's participation, programs, location, officials, etc. Targeted specifically to professionals and leaders in higher education and technology, expanding the knowledge base for institutional decision-making and
FISAP – Fiscal Operations Report and Application to Participate in Campus-Based Programs. This one is applied by schools to bag funding for the upcoming year and to report Campus-Based Program expenditure for the previous award
MPN – Master Promissory Note. Used to receive funds from the Federal Direct Stafford Loan Program and the Federal Direct Grad Plus Loan. This may be used for multiple loans for up to 10
NSLDS – National Student Loan Data System. This is the U.S. Department of Education's (ED's) central database for student aid. The system receives data from schools, guaranty agencies, the Direct Loan program, and other Department of ED
COD – Common Origination and Disbursement. The system is a technical solution designed to accommodate the COD Process for Perkins, Pell Grant, Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG), National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant (National SMART Grant), and the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant and Direct Loan
SAP – Satisfactory Academic Progress. Federal regulations require the Office of Student Financial Aid to monitor the academic progress of students receiving financial
R2T4 – Return to Title IV Funds. This refers to the calculation required when a recipient of Title IV aid withdraws from an institution during a payment period.

As a new financial aid director, the above acronyms are critical to understand. But remember, this industry has many, many more. These ten are the most common, we’ve found.

As the industry leader in third-party servicing, contact FA Solutions to help fill vacancies, process files, and contact students. You can thank us later. Learn more at www.GetFASolutions.com .

5 Ways to Impress Your Dean through Financial Aid Servicing

Wed, 28 Jul 2021 21:47:00 GMT

Although acquiring financial aid is a must for large numbers of college students, the financial aid process can seem to be daunting. Fortunately, the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) and other student financial aid organizations have no shortage of tips to make the process easier and more effective for people from all backgrounds.

Here are just a few ways to streamline financial aid servicing for your college dean or other campus financial aid professionals. By following these general guidelines, you will make financial aid processing easier for school administrators and ensure that you are efficiently streamlining the process without facing challenges.

1. The personal one-on-one connection between staff and the student.

On-call resources should be readily available to meet students’ financial needs. As a Financial Aid Administrator you must determine exactly what that need is. [PV2] The colleges with high FAFSA filing rates reach out to students to personally make filing the FAFSA part of the enrollment process and do not wait for students to make the first contact. The personal one-on-one connection made between the financial aid staff member and the student is invaluable in initiating the process for filing the application. To quote one financial aid director, “creating a ‘client services’ environment that is responsive to students, reinforced with an adequate use of technology and production-based processing, is essential.”

2. Align yourself with the most updated Financial Aid programs.

At a minimum, colleges’ financial aid offices should be prepared to reach out to students and parents to provide timely and accurate information about financial aid, and help them understand the true costs and financial benefits of college education. Ensuring that the college is compliant with ever changing regulations reinforces the role! The core of this work includes providing detailed information about college expenses, the sources of aid and applicable rules and requirements, and support throughout the application process, a process that is not always straightforward and simple. Ensure that you are familiar with the latest affairs of private, state and federal financial aid programs.

3. Strategic Institutional Outreach and Community Partnerships.

The college may know which community organizations refer students to the college and could use this list to build a stronger referral process that includes early help with the student aid application. Partnerships between colleges and community organizations provide a low-cost and mutually beneficial process to help adult students understand the opportunities offered by the college, along with knowledge about options for receiving financial aid. As the Financial Aid Administrator a crucial role is to serve the population of the potential community college students and can provide a transition from the students’ familiar environment to the unfamiliar world of college.

4. Willingness to help enroll and retain students.

Many students could not attend or remain in school without financial assistance. To overcome this challenge facilitating receipt of substantial sums of money to help students meet institutional costs will be beneficial. Provide student employment; on- campus jobs help support academic departments, libraries, food service, and other facets of institutional operations. Maintain membership and participate in professional associations– both state or federal –and private organizations, which provide opportunities for advocacy and professional development.

5. Get the professional help you need.

Don’t make the financial aid process any harder than it needs to be. By securing quality consulting and processing to a third-party partner, you can ensure that everything is done right the first time!

At FASOL, we help by customizing Financial Aid Consulting services for your school’s area of concern. We believe in becoming Financial Aid Extension to our Partner Schools in a cost effective manner. Please feel free to contact us today with any questions, for more information or to schedule a consultation with some of our higher education professionals.

Interested in learning more? Click here to follow our updates in our Newsletter

7 Common FAFSA Mistakes That Can Affect Your Financial Aid

Sun, 25 Jul 2021 18:24:00 GMT

“The FAFSA is a form required by colleges, the federal government, and state government for students that want to receive financial aid.”

Apart from scholarships, financial aid is the most useful way to pay for college. Financial aid is not only for students who can prove financial need. The FASFA form asks questions about your personal and family financial situation to determine how much they can pay for college.

According to the US Dept. of Education, over 18 million applicants completed the FAFSA form during the 2017-2018 season. Every student should file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as early and as accurately as possible. If you apply for financial aid later, you might miss the priority deadline.

Some Important Things to Consider

7 Common FAFSA Mistakes College Students Make

Avoid these seven FAFSA mistakes, each of which can lead to higher costs for college. Here are the seven FAFSA mistakes that college students make:

1. Not Filing

Todd Weaver , treasurer of the Higher Education Consultants Association, said, “One of the worst mistakes students and families can make is not submitting the FAFSA.”

Families wrongly believe that if they fall into a specific income bracket, they’re not eligible to receive financial aid. In reality, it depends on so many parts.

Always keep in mind that each family’s financial situation is assessed on an individual basis. Weaver said he saw a family with an annual income of over $355,000 .

But, they were still eligible for financial aid as their three children were attending college simultaneously. During the 2017-2018 school year, financial aid’s average amount for each full-time equivalent student was $14,796 .

2. Filing Late

If you are looking for state financial aid, you must also file the FAFSA on time. If you file the form too late, you may miss out on some support. By filing immediately after the January 1 open date, you can get up to twice as much support as someone that waits a few more months.

State financial aid is limited. There are many states where it is on a first-come, first-served basis until it runs out. These states have a fixed allocation of funds available until they run out. It means that if you file your FAFSA too late, you may have to settle for loans instead of grants.

Use the estimations instead of waiting around until taxes are filed. If you use the estimations, you can update the information after you have submitted the form.

3. Not Signing the Form

If you are filing the form as a dependent, you and your parents must sign the application. If you submit the form online, you and your parents can electronically sign the application with your FSA ID.

4. Not Having an FSA ID

You need an FSA ID to file the FAFSA. It may take up to three days before you can use the FSA ID.

It means that you should get the FSA ID for you and your parents a few days before you plan to file your FAFSA form.

If you wait until you are filling out the form, you may have to save your application and come back another day to submit it. It can delay you receiving your financial aid package.

5. Incorrect Asset Reporting

The government will not check your finances and let you know that you have reported the wrong assets. Instead, they will count those assets and give you financial aid based on what you tell them.

It means you can end up receiving less money. Remember that you don’t need to report every asset. Certain things are not considered assets through the FAFSA like:

401k
IRA balances
Whole life insurance

So, you don’t need to report them. If you have any questions, you can contact the helpline or talk to a professional to find out what you should and shouldn’t include.

6. Not Double-Checking the Submission

If you don’t double-check that your forms have been submitted, you may not be done with the process. There are always issues that can arise with an online system, and the FAFSA is certainly no different.

You have to get a confirmation from the submission. Look for a problem if you don’t get a confirmation. Avoid making these common mistakes:

7. Not Reporting Both Parents’ Financial Information

If your parents are divorced, you must report your stepparent’s financial information in addition to your custodial parent’s financial information.

Legal name: You must write your legal name on the form when you submit it. The name on your FAFSA form must match the name on your Social Security card.
Leaving blanks : Leaving too many blanks can result in improper numbers and can get you rejected. When you do not have anything to enter, you can enter a 0 or 'not applicable' instead of leaving it blank.
Correct Address : You need to list a permanent address that is not your temporary address or summer address.
Unborn children: Count the child if you are pregnant or your partner is, and you will be providing support for that child of at least half. Also, count them if they will be born during or before the year you are applying for financial aid because they are a member of your family.

The Bottom Line

Get started early and use the online version of the FAFSA to avoid common FAFSA mistakes. An accurate FAFSA form can be the best asset in securing financial aid.

As you start to fill out the form, be sure to gather all the information you need, including your FSA ID and your parents’ tax information.

Weaver said, “Take a deep breath and remember that several people go through this every year. The process is not as difficult as some people think.”

Are you a higher education institution that needs a better process for administering financial aid or covering staff turnover in your financial aid department? Contact us today!

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – July 20, 2021

Tue, 20 Jul 2021 21:23:00 GMT

Feel free to forward this newsletter to a colleague. They can subscribe to it on our brand new FA Solutions website . If you have any questions about FA Solutions Services, feel free to give us a call. Thank you!

Rob Wright – (813) 435-6227

Note: Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the Knowledge Center page on the FSAPartners.ed.gov website. The Knowledge Center has replaced the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) website. Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We are not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines, but you’ll find additional information at the Knowledge Center – including earlier Electronic Announcements and Dear Colleague Letters . Important Reminder: Deadlines and event dates noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

2021–22 COD System Peak Processing Reminders (EA ID: COD-21-04): Now through August 2021, we will be in a peak processing period for the 2021–22 award year. Please review the June 24, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Final Form, Instructions, Desk Reference, and Technical Reference for 2022–23 FISAP (EA ID: CB-21-06): The Fiscal Operations Report for 2020–21 and Application to Participate for 2022–23 (FISAP) has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). We have posted the FISAP Form, Instructions, and Desk Reference to the Knowledge Center. The online FISAP will be made available on the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) website by Aug. 1, 2021.

We have also posted the 2022–23 FISAP Technical Reference that provides the technical specifications and record layouts for schools or other organizations who wish to design custom software systems. Please review the June 1, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Distance Education and Innovation Regulatory Webinars – Recordings and Transcripts (DCL ID: ANN-21-07): This Dear Colleague letter notifies institutions that the Office of Postsecondary Education and Federal Student Aid have made available slides, recordings, and transcripts for three live webinars providing an overview of the Distance Education and Innovation regulations, which were published on September 2, 2020, and will be effective July 1, 2021 (unless early implemented by institutions). Please review the June 9, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

FSA Partner Connect – Helpful Information About Help Center and FSA Handbook (EA ID: GENERAL-21-35): The overarching goals for FSA Partner Connect include providing improved experiences for customers in accessing data pertinent to their school or organization, information contained in the Federal Student Aid (FSA) Handbook, and guidance published and maintained in the Knowledge Center. To assist in meeting those goals and supporting increased website use, FSA will periodically publish “Helpful Information About” announcements that provide bite-sized nuggets of information about different features of the FSA Partner Connect website. This is our first “Helpful Information About” announcement and focuses on the FSA Partner Connect Help Center and the FSA Handbook. Please review the May 26, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

150% Direct Subsidized Loan Limit: Electronic Announcement #25 – Guidance and Operational Information for the Repeal of 150% Subsidized Usage Limit (EA ID: DL-21-04): The FAFSA Simplification Act, part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, provides for a repeal of the 150% Subsidized Usage Limit Applies (SULA) requirements.

To address the change in requirements, we will be making changes to the Central Processing System (CPS), the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System, and the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS ^® ), and we have begun the work needed to modify our systems, web and software products, technical documents, training materials, and publications.

In this Electronic Announcement we inform schools about some of the immediate operational impacts starting July 1, 2021. We also provide schools with information about those system, web, and software modifications as well as the anticipated implementation date for each update. Please review the June 11, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Beginning Phased Implementation of the FAFSA Simplification Act (EA ID: GENERAL-21-39): B eginning Phased Implementation of the FAFSA Simplification Act (EA ID: GENERAL-21-39): Today, Federal Student Aid (FSA) announced that there will be a phased approach to implementation of the FAFSA Simplification Act , which passed on Dec. 27, 2020, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 . The FAFSA Simplification Act represents a significant overhaul of federal student aid, including the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA ^® ) form, need analysis, and many policies and procedures for schools that participate in the Title IV programs.

The FAFSA Simplification Act requires changes to most aspects of the processes and systems used to award federal student aid, including replacing the Central Processing System (CPS) and acquiring a new interface to directly receive federal tax information from the IRS. But FSA is not the only entity that has to adapt; the law will also affect every state that uses FAFSA data to award state grant aid and every school that participates in the Title IV programs. Please review the June 11, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Early Implementation of the FAFSA Simplification Act’s Removal of Selective Service and Drug Conviction Requirements for Title IV Eligibility (DCL ID – GEN-21-04): This Dear Colleague letter provides information about the early implementation of the FAFSA Simplification Act’s removal of Selective Service and drug conviction requirements for Title IV eligibility, as well as actions that institutions must take as these changes are implemented in phases across award years 2021-2022, 2022-2023, and 2023-2024. Certain other aspects of the law being implemented are discussed in separate communications. Please review the June 11, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

TEACH Grant Closeout Information for 2020–21 Award Year (EA ID: GRANTS-21-05): The Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant data submission deadline for the 2020–21 Award Year is Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021 . This is the last processing day of the award year. All school data must be received and accepted by this date to be included in a school’s final Ending Cash Balance for the year. Please review the June 14, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Guidance and Operational Information for TEACH Grant Regulatory Changes Effective July 1, 2021 (EA ID: GRANTS-21-06): On Aug. 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) published final regulations in the Federal Register to amend the TEACH Grant Program. The regulations are effective July 1, 2021.

To implement the final regulations, we have made changes to the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System and StudentAid.gov website. In this Electronic Announcement, we provide some school-related operational impacts to consider as well as information about the system and web that are now in place as of July 1, 2021. Please review the July 1, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Notification of Campus-Based Funding for the 2021–22 Award Year (EA ID: CB-21-07): We have posted a report that notifies the community of the approved awards for the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) and Federal Work-Study (FWS) programs for the 2021–22 award year. To access this report, refer to the document titled, “Notification of Campus-Based Funding for the 2021–22 Award Year,” posted on the Campus-Based Awards page of the Knowledge Center. Please review the June 28, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

021–2022 COD Technical Reference (June 2021 Update) (EA ID: COD-21-05) https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/library/electronic-announcements/2021-06-28/notification-campus-based-funding-2021-22-award-year-ea-id-cb-21-07

FEDERAL REGISTERS:

PUBLICATION DATE

June 24, 2021

POSTED DATE

June 24, 2021

SUBJECT

2021-2022 Award Year Deadline Dates Notice

FR TYPE

Notice

PUBLICATION DATE

June 24, 2021

POSTED DATE

June 24, 2021

SUBJECT 2021-2022 Award Year Deadline Dates Notice FR TYPE Notice June 24, 2021 - 2021-2022 Award Year Deadline Dates Notice

June 15, 2021 - Repeal of the Direct Loan Program Subsidized Usage Limit Restriction
June 15, 2021 - 2021-2022 Award Year Deadline Dates Notice

RESOURCES:

June 4, 2021 - Online Training Course – FSA Basic Training for New Staff 2021–22
June 14, 2021 - Federal Student Aid Posts Two New Quarterly Portfolio Reports to FSA Data Center and Highlights Recent Changes to Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Latest FFEL Interest Rate Calculations for the Period July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2022
June 30, 2021 - 2021–2022 COD Technical Reference (June 2021 Update)
June 28, 2021 - 2022–2023 CPS Test System User Guide
June 1, 2021 - Final 2022-23 FISAP Technical Reference
Latest SAIG updates
Latest NSLDS User Resources
Latest Direct Loan Tools
Latest EDE Technical References

Department of Education:

NASFAA:

The Knowledge Center on the FSAPartners.ed.gov website provides guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid. Here is a sampling of some helpful Knowledge Center information pages: Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Training Resources , Library , Federal Registers , Software and Other Tools , and NSLDS Resources .

The Knowledge Center on the FSAPartners.ed.gov website provides guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid. Here is a sampling of some helpful Knowledge Center information pages: Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Training Resources , Library , Federal Registers , Software and Other Tools , and NSLDS Resources .

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Mark your calendars for October 21, 2021

Wed, 02 Jun 2021 19:36:00 GMT

Got anything fun planned for the third Wednesday of October?

We do!

Here’s an overlooked holiday to add to your calendars: National Financial Aid Day.

That’s right, every year, on the third Wednesday of October, a whole day is set aside to celebrate those who work in or with financial aid. This is an important day, as it gives all of us a chance to recognize individuals who often get overlooked.

The holiday itself was first celebrated by Neville R Brown in 2010, who was president of the Eastern Association Student Financial Aid Administrators (EASFAA) at the time. A year later in 2011, the holiday was officially recognized by lawmakers and began to spread throughout the country as a national tradition. Since then, the holiday has been celebrated every year by both financial aid workers and people who have no idea what FAFSA stands for.

While it’s easy to see financial aid services as a cog in the great machine that is education, there are countless individuals working every day to better the lives of students around the globe. Not to mention, financial aid is rarely simple work, as every student has different financial situations and needs in order to give them the best education possible. This variance combined with the massive volume of financial aid requests created each year makes it clear why financial aid professionals should be recognized to such a degree. Just to give an idea, Collegeboard reported that in the 2019-2020 school year, undergraduate and graduate students received a total of $242 billion in aid.

On top of already existing challenges for the financial aid industry, the COVID-19 crisis and its effects on education made financial aid an even more complex problem than ever before. Despite this adversity, financial aid distributors and companies worked hard throughout the pandemic to meet increased demand for financial aid. While students found new ways to attend class online and interact with their peers and professors, financial aid workers also found new ways to get students the help they need no matter the circumstances. Thanks to their efforts, students continued to get the assistance they required even though the economy was on the decline. If there’s any year to participate in the National Financial Aid Day and thank a financial aid professional- it is most certainly 2021.

With all that said, the anticipated holiday is still over a few months away, so why not start the festivities early and take some time out of today to thank someone you know who works in financial aid! Happy early National Financial Aid Day!

For more information, be sure to check out the rest of our website or get in touch with us.

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – May 27, 2021

Thu, 27 May 2021 11:00:00 GMT

Rob Wright – (813) 435-6227
Pamela Notemyer Rogers – (617) 967-7955

Note: Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the Knowledge Center webpage on the FSAPartners.ed.gov website. The Knowledge Center has replaced the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) website. Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We are not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines, but you’ll find additional information at the Knowledge Center – including earlier Electronic Announcements and Dear Colleague Letters . Important Reminder: Deadlines and event dates noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

Memorial Day Federal Holiday Processing and Customer Service Hours (EA ID: GENERAL-21-33): Our federal offices as well as our Title IV processors and contact centers will be closed on Monday, May 31, 2021 to observe the Memorial Day federal holiday. Please review the May 24, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information. FA Solutions will also be closed for the holiday.

Record Submission Due Date for 2019–20 Direct Loan Program Year Closeout (EA ID: DL-21-03): We previously informed schools in a Feb. 5, 2021 Electronic Announcement that the closeout deadline for the 2019–20 Direct Loan Program Year is Friday, July 30, 2021. This is the last processing day before the end of the program year. All school data must be received and accepted by this date to be included in a school’s final Ending Cash Balance for the year. Please review the May 4, 2021, electronic announcement for guidance on how to be considered successfully closed out and for additional information about the closeout deadline.

Summary-Level Return of Title IV (R2T4) Reporting Functionality Now Available on the COD Website (EA ID: GENERAL-21-26): Following a system update completed on April 25, 2021, we are pleased to announce that the R2T4 Lump Sum Reporting page is now available on the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) website. Schools can now use this page to report summary-level totals of Title IV funds that were not returned due to the CARES Act. For more details about the functionality, refer to the March 10th announcement.

As a reminder, the deadline for reporting funds not returned under R2T4 requirements due to CARES Act relief, for all award years through 2020–21, is Sept. 30, 2021. Schools can report these funds using the R2T4 calculator or now through the R2T4 Lump Sum Reporting page. Please review the April 28, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Implementation of updated clock-to-credit conversion regulations (EA ID: GENERAL-21-34): On September 2, 2020, the Department of Education published a final rule amending various institutional and program eligibility regulations issued under the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA).

This electronic announcement specifically addresses the changes to 34 CFR 668.8(k) and (l) that eliminated the requirement for institutions to consider out of class work time when determining the number of Title IV credit hours in an eligible program.

The Secretary permitted institutions to early-implement the regulatory changes published in the September 2, 2020 final rule, including the changes to the clock-to-credit conversion requirements. Otherwise, the final regulations are effective July 1, 2021. Please review the May 25, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

FY 22 Sequester-Required Changes to the Title IV Student Aid Programs (EA ID: GENERAL-21-31): Because the Budget Control Act of 2011 (the sequester law) remains in effect, this announcement provides information regarding sequester-required increases to Direct Loan fees and sequester-required reductions in Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant and TEACH Grant award amounts that apply to loans and grant awards where the first disbursement is on or after Oct. 1, 2021, and before Oct. 1, 2022 (FY 22 Sequester). For FY 22, the sequester-required changes are the same as the FY 21 sequester-required changes that apply to loans and grants where the first disbursement is on or after Oct. 1, 2020, and before Oct. 1, 2021. Please review the May 4, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Expansion of Collections Pause to Defaulted FFEL Program Loans Managed by Guaranty Agencies (DCL ID GEN-21-03): On March 30, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) announced an expansion of the pause on federal student loan interest and collections on all defaulted loans in the FFEL Program that are managed by GAs. These flexibilities will be in place for the same period of time as the pause for loans held by the Department, which is currently slated to run through September 30, 2021. Please review the May 12, 2021, Dear Colleague Letter for additional information.

Next Gen FSA – April 2021 Updates to FSA Partner Connect Website Implemented (EA ID: GENERAL-21-27): On March 28, 2021, we launched FSA Partner Connect with the overarching goals of providing improved experiences for customers in accessing data pertinent to their school or organization, information contained in the Federal Student Aid (FSA) Handbook, and guidance published and maintained in the Knowledge Center. At this time, we are pleased to announce the implementation of three customer-focused updates to the FSA Partner Connect website. Please review the April 28, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

REMINDER – Annual DUNS Number Registration Renewal with System for Award Management Database (EA ID: GENERAL-21-28): The G5 website verifies the Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number in the General Services Administration (GSA) System for Award Management (SAM.gov) website before carrying out administrative actions that involve a DUNS number. These actions could include making an award and performing DUNS number changes or reassignments. To ensure that administrative actions can be completed for Title IV recipients, schools must have “active” DUNS numbers by registering their grantee and payee DUNS numbers in the SAM website (https://www.sam.gov). This announcement is a reminder that all schools must complete the registration confirmation of their DUNS number annually. Please review the April 29, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Additional Designations of Entities under Section 483(a)(3)(E) of the Higher Education Act and Institution of Higher Education (IHE) Guidance (EA ID: GENERAL-21-30): The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has designated the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under section 483(a)(3)(E) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), as entities that may use Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) data. Under Section 483(a)(3)(E) of the HEA, data collected through the FAFSA may only be used for the application, award, and administration of HEA, Title IV program aid, State aid, or aid awarded by eligible institutions or entities designated by ED. Please review the May 12, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

StudentAid.gov Website Enhancements Starting May 2021(EA ID: GENERAL-21-32): Forward progress continues on StudentAid.gov, our single front door on the web for students, parents, and borrowers. On May 16, 2021, we made additional updates to features designed to improve the information and self-service tools available to our customers. These updates continue to provide students, parents, and borrowers with clear, actionable information about the aid they have received and personalized guidance on the loan repayment process. Please review the May 19, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

FEDERAL REGISTERS:

Notice posted May 17, 2021 – Eligibility to Receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students under the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Programs

RESOURCES

April 21, 2021 - Volume 1 – Student Eligibility [2021-2022 Federal Student Aid Handbook]
April 27, 2021 - 2021–22 Federal School Code List of Participating Schools (May 2021)
May 20, 2021 - Small Business Compliance Guide for Distance and Innovation Regulations
April 23, 2021 - Maximum HEAL Program Interest Rates for Quarter Ending June 30, 2021
May 19, 2021 - Interest Rates for Direct Loans First Disbursed Between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022
April 30, 2021 – Mandatory SAIG Software Upgrade – Schedule Change for EDconnect 8.5 Availability and Deadline to Upgrade
April 22, 2021 - Latest Ed Express Updates
May 5, 2021 - Latest Central Processing System Updates

Department of Education:

NASFAA:

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites. Please note that by signing up for this newsletter you will also receive information about FA Solutions services.

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – April 23, 2021

Fri, 23 Apr 2021 11:00:00 GMT

Rob Wright – (813) 435-6227
Pamela Notemyer Rogers – (617) 967-7955

TECHNOLOGY SECURITY ALERT: IRS Warns Postsecondary Institution Students and Staff of Impersonation Email Scam (EA ID: GENERAL-21-22): The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) posted a warning of an ongoing IRS impersonation scam that appears to primarily target educational institutions, including students and staff of institutions that have “.edu” email addresses. Please review the April 12, 2021, electronic announcement .

2020–21 Verification Reporting and Verification Status Code “W” Warning Message (EA ID: GRANTS-21-04): This electronic announcement provides information on the following topics: 2020–21 Verification status code reporting reminders, recipients selected for Verification by the CPS, recipients not selected for verification by the CPS, and 2020–21 Verification status code “W” warning message that was processed on April 7, 2021, and the Verification deadline. Please review the April 8, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Live Internet Webinars – Distance Education and Innovation Regulations – Registration and Details: This letter notifies institutions that the Office of Postsecondary Education will host several webinars that will provide an overview of the changes to regulatory requirements in the Distance Education and Innovation regulations, which were published on September 2, 2020 and will be effective July 1, 2021 (unless early implemented by institutions). Slides, transcripts, and a recording of each presentation will be made available after the presentation on Federal Student Aid’s (FSA) training website at https://fsatraining.ed.gov. For additional information, please review the April 7, 2021, Dear Colleague Letter (DCL ID ANN-21-05).

Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement – Borrower Completion Will Not be Required for 2021–22 Award Year (EA ID: DL-21-02): To reduce the administrative burden on schools as a result of the continued disruptions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19), the requirement that borrowers complete the Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement prior to disbursement will not go into effect for the 2021–22 Award Year. Please review the March 8, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

2021–22 Final Funding Authorizations for the Campus-Based Programs (EA ID: CB-21-05): In a Jan. 28, 2021 Electronic Announcement, we informed schools of tentative 2021–22 funding levels for the Campus-Based programs. We now announce that final 2021–22 Campus-Based programs funding worksheets and the 2021–22 Statement of Account for each of the Campus-Based programs have been posted to the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) website. Please review the April 1, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

SNAP benefits for eligible students during the COVID-19 pandemic (EA ID: GENERAL-21-11) (Updated April 5, 2021): We are pleased to share with our community the following information about students who are enrolled in postsecondary education and qualify for SNAP benefits during the ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency. Please review the February 23, 2021, electronic announcement , as updated on April 5, 2021, for additional information.

Availability of Guide for Compliance Attestation Engagements of Proprietary Schools Expending Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Grants (EA ID: GENERAL-21-21): The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General has published the Guide for Compliance Attestation Engagements of Proprietary Schools Expending Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Grants (Guide). The Guide applies to and provides requirements and guidance for compliance attestation engagements of proprietary schools, as defined in Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations § 600.5, receiving Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) grants through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act; the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021; the American Rescue Plan; or any future acts passed by Congress that include HEERF (collectively, HEERF grant programs). Please review the March 31, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Next Gen FSA – Retirement of FSAID.ed.gov Website (EA ID: GENERAL-21-24): On April 25, 2021, the FSAID.ed.gov website will be retired and legacy FSAID.ed.gov website links will be redirected to StudentAid.gov. The automatic redirects will be in place for at least one year. Please review the April 19, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Next Gen FSA – FSA Partner Connect and Knowledge Center Now Available (EA ID: GENERAL-21-20): We are pleased to announce the launch of the FSA Partner Connect website. We also welcome users to the new Knowledge Center. Please also review the March 28, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

2021 Federal Student Aid Training Conference – We Are Virtual, Again! (EA ID: GENERAL-21-23): The 2021 Federal Student Aid Training Conference will once again be delivered virtually: Nov. 30–Dec. 3, 2021. Please review the April 15, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

RESOURCES

FFEL Program:

4/8/21 - FFEL Special Allowance Rates for the Quarter Ending March 31, 2021 April 8, 2021

Federal Registers:

4/14/21 – Annual Updates to the Income Contingent Repayment (ICR) Plan Formula - 2021

Training:

3/22/21 - FSA Partner Connect Training – Webinars, Tutorials, and Other Training Opportunities

Department of Education:

NASFAA:

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites. Please note that by signing up for this newsletter you will also receive information about FA Solutions services.

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – March 11, 2021

Thu, 11 Mar 2021 11:50:00 GMT

Rob Wright – (813) 435-6227
Pamela Notemyer Rogers – (617) 967-7955

Note: Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the IFAP website . Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We are not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines, but you’ll find additional information on the IFAP website – including Electronic Announcements and Dear Colleague Letters back to thru 2019. Important Reminder: Deadlines and event dates noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

Mandatory Software Upgrade – Deadline Extension to June 5, 2021 to Maintain Access to the SAIG (EA ID: GENERAL-21-08): To comply with this federal mandate, a new version of SAIG software—TDClient or EDconnect—that supports TLS 1.2 must be installed by all users. To allow users additional time to complete this required software upgrade, we are extending the deadline to upgrade from April 17, 2021 to June 5, 2021. After June 5, older versions of TDClient and EDconnect will no longer connect to the SAIG and cannot be used to send/receive transmissions. Please review the February 12, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Direct Loan Closeout Information for 2019–20 Program Year (EA ID: DL-21-01): The Direct Loan established data submission (closeout) deadline for the 2019–20 Program Year is Friday, July 30, 2021. This is the last processing day of the program year, so all school data must be received and accepted by this date to be included in a school’s final Ending Cash Balance for the year. Please review the February 5, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Designation as a Title III or Title V Institution and Waiver of the Non-Federal Share Requirement for FWS and FSEOG (EA ID: CB-21-04): This announcement provides the information regarding the designation of Title III or Title V status for institutions and the resulting waiver of the non-federal share requirements for the Federal Work-Study (FWS) and Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) programs. Please review the March 5, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Update on the use of “Professional Judgment” by Financial Aid Administrators: This letter reminds financial aid administrators of their ability to exercise documented professional judgment when determining eligibility of students for federal student aid and encourages aid administrators to consider the special circumstances that may arise for students and families during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, especially as they relate to unemployment or reduction in work. Please review the January 29, 2021, Dear Colleague Letter for additional information.

First Pell Grant Administrative Cost Allowance (ACA) Payments for 2020–21 Award Year (EA ID: GRANTS-21-02): The first ACA payment for the 2020–21 Award Year is based on records that the COD System has processed from the start of the Pell Grant 2020–21 Award Year up to the date that we process the first ACA payments for the 2020–21 Award Year. We began processing the Pell Grant ACA payments for all schools on Feb. 25, 2021. Please review the March 1, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Operational Implementation Guidance – Federal Student Aid’s Implementation of 2021–22 Federal Pell Grant Payment and Disbursement Schedules (EA ID: GRANTS-21-03): This Electronic Announcement provides institutions with important information about the system, web, and software modifications we are making to reflect the 2021–22 Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant) payment and disbursement schedules, including changes we must implement to the Central Processing System (CPS), the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System, and the EDExpress for Windows software. Please review the March 4, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Federal Pell Grant Program Reconciliation (EA ID: GRANTS-21-01): In this announcement, we provide specific information to assist your school in reconciling the Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant) Program. Both the Financial Aid Office and Business Office should review the enclosed information. Please review the January 29, 2021 electronic announcement for additional information.

2021-2022 Federal Pell Grant Payment and Disbursement Schedules: Attached to this letter are both PDF and Excel versions of the Payment and Disbursement Schedules for determining Federal Pell Grant awards for the 2021-2022 award year (July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022) for full-time, three-quarter-time, half-time, and less-than-half-time students. All 2021-2022 Federal Pell Grant awards must be based on the attached schedules. With the release of the 2021-2022 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) on October 1, 2020, the Department is providing the Pell Grant Payment and Disbursement Schedules so that institutions may inform students and their families of their potential eligibility for a Federal Pell Grant. Please review the January 22, 2021, Dear Colleague Letter for additional information.

COD System Operational Update – Reporting Deadlines and Reminders for CARES Act Relief, Coronavirus Indicator and R2T4 (EA ID: COD-21-01): This announcement provides a Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System update about reporting deadlines and related reminders for reporting disbursement information qualifying for CARES Act relief. Please review the January 22, 2021, electronic announcement .

Guidance on Accreditation and Eligibility Requirements for Distance Education (EA ID: OPE-21-06): On August 31, 2020, we published a Federal Register notice concerning the rescission of guidance that was outdated. That notice announced that Dear Colleague Letter GEN-06-17, Institutional Accreditation for Distance Learning Programs, was rescinded.

Attached to this announcement is Department guidance to accrediting agencies and institutions about the rescission of Dear Colleague Letter GEN-06-17 and our requirements with respect to institutional eligibility for distance education, which currently are waived until after the national emergency related to COVID-19 ends. Please review the January 19, 2021 electronic announcement for additional information.

Issuance of Dear CPA Letter CPA-21-01, Extension of Site Visit Exemption During COVID-19 National Emergency (EA ID: GENERAL-21-03): On January 20, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General issued Dear CPA Letter CPA-21-01. The letter extends the audit site visit exemption provided in Dear CPA Letter CPA-20-01 by tying its expiration to the COVID-19 national emergency and provides the site visit exemption to foreign school audits and attestation engagements as well. Please review the January 22, 2021 electronic announcement for additional information.

Loan Servicing Information – Reporting Student Loan Interest Payments for 2020 (EA ID: LOANS-21-02): As tax time approaches, we want to share general information with the financial aid community about our reporting of student loan interest payments. If a borrower made federal student loan payments in 2020, the borrower may be eligible to deduct a portion of the interest paid on the borrower’s 2020 federal tax return. Student loan interest payments are reported to both the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the borrower on IRS Form 1098-E, Student Loan Interest Statement. This January 29, 2021, electronic announcement provides information about reporting student interest for 2020.

Protecting Student Information – Compliance with CUI and GLBA: As instances of data and information breaches rise, it is vital that institutions of higher education (IHEs) protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) used in the administration of federal student aid programs authorized under Title IV, of the Higher Education Act, as amended1. FSA is finalizing the Campus Cybersecurity Program framework. A multi-year phased implementation will begin with a self-assessment of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800–171 Rev. 2, Controlled Unclassified Information in Nonfederal Systems (NIST 800–171 Rev. 2) readiness and outreach activities. We are committed to fully advancing and encouraging all postsecondary institutions implementation of NIST 800-171 controls. This Electronic Announcement is meant to inform IHEs and their third-party servicers about upcoming activities to ensure compliance with NIST 800–171 Rev. 2. Please review the December 18, 2020, electronic announcement for additional information.

Streamlined Loan Death Discharges Options (EA ID: LOANS-21-04): This announcement is our designation under the death discharge regulations, of a specific NSLDS report, . . . as verification of a borrower or student’s death through an electronic database approved for use by the Secretary that can support the granting of a death discharge without further documentation. Please review the February 22, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

– March 05, 2021

IRS Data Retrieval Tool and Inaccurate $1 Adjusted Gross Income (EA ID: VERIF-21-01): Recently Federal Student Aid (FSA) has become aware of instances where applicants have completed a 2021–22 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA©) form, used the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (IRS DRT) to transfer their tax return information, and had their adjusted gross income (AGI) inaccurately reported as $1 for Title IV purposes. We were alerted to these instances after institutions questioned these $1 AGIs while resolving conflicting information or when providing financial aid counseling to the student. Please review the March 5, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Next Gen FSA – FSA Partner Connect Website Launch Planned for Late March 2021 (EA ID: GENERAL-21-12): During the December 2020 virtual training conference, Federal Student Aid (FSA) announced that FSA Partner Connect—a new portal for our community of institutional and financial partners—will launch in spring 2021. We plan to launch the FSA Partner Connect site at fsapartners.ed.gov on March 28, 2021.

In this announcement we provide background about FSA Partner Connect and a brief summary of the new features that will be available to the community. We also provide preliminary information about our training and communication plans for the next several weeks. Please review the February 25, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

Next Gen FSA – StudentAid.gov Website Enhancements Starting February 2021 (EA ID: GENERAL-21-10): Forward progress continues on the Next Gen FSA initiative and StudentAid.gov, our single front door on the web for students, parents, and borrowers. This announcement summarizes new and updated features that are now available. Please review the February 22, 2021, electronic announcement for additional information.

RESOURCES
Federal Register:

March 04, 2021 - Information about Designation as a Title III or Title V Institution and Waiver Requests of the Non-Federal Share Requirement for the Campus-Based Programs
February 03, 2021 - Rules and Regulations: Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties for Inflation
January 26, 2021 - Campus based Deadline Dates Notice for the 2021-22 Award Year
January 19, 2021 - Notice of the Rescission of Outdated Guidance Documents - Correction
January 19, 2021 - Waivers and modifications of statutory and regulatory provisions under the HEROES Act - Correction

Federal School Code List:

February 04, 2021 - 2021–22 Federal School Code List of Participating Schools (February 2021) (EA ID: APP-21-02)

Federal Student Aid Handbook:

February 4, 2021 - Volume 3 – Calculating Awards &Packaging
February 26, 2021 - Appendices A-G [2020-2021 Federal Student Aid Handbook] (EA ID: GENERAL-21-14)
February 25, 2021 - Volume 2 – School Eligibility and Operations – Federal Student Aid Handbook
February 17, 2021 - Application and Verification Guide [2021-2022 Federal Student Aid Handbook] (EA ID: GENERAL-21-09)
October 9, 2020 - Rescission of and Replacement for the 2016 Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting (Updated Jan. 19, 2021)

Loan Rates:

February 22, 2021 - FY 2018 Draft Cohort Default Rates Distributed Feb. 22, 2021 (EA ID: LOANS-21-03)

Department of Education:

NASFAA:

Other helpful information pages: The following are a few helpful links to information pages available on the IFAP website : Early FAFSA , Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Training Resources , and iLibrary, Federal Registers , and NSLDS reference materials and more. Please review the IFAP website for additional guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions, LLC’s’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites. Please note that by signing up for this newsletter you will also receive information about FA Solutions services.

Fed-Updates Newsletter – June 30, 2020

Tue, 30 Jun 2020 23:35:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – June 30, 2020

Note: Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the IFAP website . Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We’re not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines, but you’ll find additional information on the IFAP website. Reminder: Deadlines and event dates are noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

2020-06-26 – Notification of Campus-Based Funding for the 2020–21 Award Year Posted Date: Awards for the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) and Federal Work-Study (FWS) programs, authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, for the 2020–21 Award Year (July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021) have been approved for the schools listed in the report attached to this electronic announcement. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-06-29 – Title IV Institutional Survey — Web Survey to Begin June 29, 2020: As part of ongoing efforts to ensure that Federal Student Aid and the Department of Education provide the school community with resources to assist them in administering the Title IV programs on their campuses, these offices have implemented a Title IV Institutional Survey. An independent vendor, CFI Group, will conduct the Title IV Institutional Survey electronically and will launch this web survey on June 29, 2020. The survey will close by July 31, 2020. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-05-15 – UPDATED Guidance for interruptions of study related to Coronavirus (COVID-19) (Updated June 16, 2020): This electronic announcement was updated on June 16, 2020, extending the timeframe for relief from Return of Title IV Funds requirements provided under the CARES Act to periods that include March 13, 2020, or begin between March 13 and the later of December 31 or the last date that the national emergency is in effect. Federal Student Aid also clarified that an institution cannot automatically apply CARES Act Return of Title IV Funds relief to all students who withdraw during a payment period or period of enrollment unless a disruption to instruction occurred during that period. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-06-02 – TEACH Grant Closeout Information for 2019–20 Award Year : The Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant data submission deadline for the 2019–20 Award Year is Wednesday, September 30, 2020 . This is the last processing day of the award year. All school data must be received and accepted by this date to be included in a school’s final Ending Cash Balance for the year. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-06-23 – F Y 21 Sequester-Required Changes to the Title IV Student Aid Programs: Because the Budget Control Act of 2011 (the sequester law) remains in effect, with respect to the Title IV programs, this announcement provides information regarding sequester-required changes to Direct Loan fees and sequester-required changes in the percentage reduction that institutions must apply to awards in the Iraq-Afghanistan Service Grant and TEACH Grant programs where the first disbursement is on or after October 1, 2020. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-05-20 – 2020–21 FAFSA Spring Campaign: The week of May 18, 2020, Federal Student Aid began sending emails and mobile app push notifications, when applicable, to 2019–20 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) filers (and parents of dependent 2019–20 FAFSA filers) who have not yet submitted a 2020–21 FAFSA form.

The goal of the campaign is to remind customers that the 2020–21 FAFSA form is available and should be completed soon for those going to school between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021. Students and parents can complete and submit the 2020–21 FAFSA form electronically via fafsa.gov or via the Apple or Android version of the myStudentAid mobile app using the myFAFSA function. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-05-21 – New Call Center Hours for COD School Relations Center Effective May 26, 2020: On May 26, 2020, the hours for the COD School Relations Center changed. The new hours are listed in an attachment to the May 26, 2020 electronic announcement. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2019-07-18 – (Updated May 21, 2020) Training Workshops – Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration: This is an update on the Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration training workshops that were cancelled due to COVID-19. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-06-29 – Next Gen FSA – StudentAid.gov Website Enhancements Starting June 2020: Forward progress continues on the Next Gen FSA initiative and StudentAid.gov, Federal Student Aid’s single front door on the web for students, parents, and borrowers. On June 28, 2020, additional updates to features designed to promote financial literacy and improve the information and self-service tools available to Federal Student Aid. These updates continue to provide students, parents, and borrowers with clear, actionable information about the aid they have received and personalized guidance on the loan repayment process. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-06-22 – Reminder to report ownership/control by, and contracts/gifts from, foreign sources: This announcement is to remind institutions of their statutory reporting obligation under Section 117 of the Higher Education Act (“Section 117”) (20 U.S.C. § 1011f) and to announce the new system that institutions will use to discharge their statutory obligations. Section 117 requires institutions to disclose to the U.S. Department of Education information about ownership and control by foreign sources, contracts with foreign sources, and gifts from foreign sources. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

2020-06-29 – Operational Guidance for Direct Loan Origination Fee Change Oct. 1, 2020 : On June 23, 2020, Federal Student Aid published an Electronic Announcement that explains the sequester required changes to the Title IV federal student aid programs. The June 23, 2020 Electronic Announcement notes decreased origination fees for Direct Subsidized Loans, Direct Unsubsidized Loans, and Direct PLUS Loans (for both parent and graduate student borrowers) with a first disbursement on or after Oct. 1, 2020 and before Oct. 1, 2021. In this announcement, we remind schools how the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System will process Direct Loans with the new origination fees and how to correct records if necessary. Please review this electronic announcement for additional information.

Spotlight on FA Solutions Services – Student Experience Center (SEC) : Our Student Experience Center service can be very helpful during peak periods and especially during this time when so many students are working on their degrees remotely. Our SEC solution can be tailored to fit your institutions unique needs and offers seamless, comprehensive support for Financial Aid, Admissions, Enrollment, and Reenrollment efforts. The SEC is staffed by our professional team of Financial Aid Advisers and Enrollment Specialists who will assist prospective and/or current students in these student service areas for short term or long term engagements. Our school partners are also currently utilizing this service to assist with student “care calls.” Please contact Pam Notemyer Rogers at pnotemyer@getfasolutions.com for additional information.

FEDERAL REGISTERS

Federal Need Analysis Methodology for the 2021-22 Award Year – June 05, 2020

Annual Updates to the Income Contingent Repayment (ICR) plan formula – June 02, 2020

RESOURCES

Application Processing – May and June 2020

COD System (including the latest COD Peak Processing reminders) – May and June 2020

Final 2021–22 FISAP Form, Instructions, and Desk Reference – June 03, 2020

2021–22 Technical Reference for FISAP – June 2020

Federal Student Aid Posts New Reports to FSA Data Center – May 20, 2020

Application and Verification Guide [2020-2021 Federal Student Aid Handbook] – May 22, 2020

Complete 2019-2020 Federal Student Aid Handbook with Active Index – May 22, 2020

2020-2021 Federal Student Aid Handbook Errata and Updates – June 12, 2020

Interest Rates for Direct Loans First Disbursed Between July 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021 – May 15, 2020

Direct Loan Tools – June 2020

EDESuite – June 2020

EDE Technical Reference – May and June 2020

Quarterly SAIG Message Class File Update – June 2020

FFEL Variable Interest Rates – June 2020

Perkins TEF File Text File – June 2020

NSLDS GA TEF File Text File – June 2020

NSLDS Guaranty Agency (GA) Data Provider Instructions (Version 6.0) – June 2020

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION:

NASFAA:

We recently updated the web links in this section: The following are a few helpful links to information pages available on the IFAP website : Early FAFSA , Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Training Resources , and iLibrary , which includes many resources, such as a consolidated list of Electronic Announcements , Dear Colleague Letters , Federal Registers ,and NSLDS reference materials and more. Please review the IFAP website for additional guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Disclaimer of Liability: Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information in FA Solutions’ newsletters. However, FA Solutions makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the newsletters and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of its newsletters. Although FA Solutions may include links providing direct access to other Internet resources, including Websites, FA Solutions is not responsible for the accuracy or content of information contained in these sites.

Fed-Updates Newsletter – May 12, 2020 (updated May 18, 2020)

Tue, 12 May 2020 21:50:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter - May 12, 2020 (updated May 18, 2020)

Newsletter topics: Spotlight on FA Solutions Services - Student Experience Center, Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Reporting, 2018–19 Direct Loan Program Year Closeout, Annual DUNS Number Registration Renewal, Next Gen FSA, and various resources

Note: Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the IFAP website . Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We're not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines, but you'll find additional information on the IFAP website. Reminder: Deadlines and event dates are noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

Spotlight on FA Solutions Services - Student Experience Center (SEC) : Our Student Experience Center service can be very helpful during peak periods and especially during this time when so many students are working on their degrees remotely. Our SEC solution can be tailored to fit your institutions unique needs and offers seamless, comprehensive support for Financial Aid, Admissions, Enrollment, and Reenrollment efforts. The SEC is staffed by our professional team of Financial Aid Advisers and Enrollment Specialists who will assist prospective and/or current students in these student service areas for short term or long term engagements. Our school partners are also currently utilizing this service to assist with student "care calls." Please contact Pam Notemyer Rogers at pnotemyer@getfasolutions.com for additional information.

Memorial Day Federal Holiday Processing and Customer Service Hours : Department of Education federal offices, including Federal Student Aid, Title IV processors, and contact centers will be closed on Monday, May 25, 2020 to observe the Memorial Day federal holiday. Please see the May 15, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information See the attachment for the various centers’ operation status on the holiday. FA Solutions will also be closed for the holiday.

UPDATED Guidance for interruptions of study related to Coronavirus (COVID-19): This May 15, 2020 electronic announcement provides updated information that expands upon the Department of Education's March 5, 2020 and April 3, 2020 guidance. Here, we provide additional regulatory flexibilities due to the President’s declaration of a national emergency due to COVID-19 and provide information about the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), Pub. L. No. 116-136, signed by President Trump on March 27, 2020. Additional guidance will be provided on the Department's COVID-19 webpage as needed.

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Reporting - Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: In order to access Coronavirus, Relief and Economic Security Act, under section 18004 of the Act, all institutions must sign and return the Certificate of Funding and Agreement acknowledging the terms and conditions of the funding. Institutions must also fulfill other requirements as detailed in the May 6, 2020 electronic announcement . Additional information is available in a press release issued by U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos on April 30, 2020.

Record Submission Due Date for 2018 –19 Direct Loan Program Year Closeout: Schools were previously informed in a January 31, 2020 Electronic Announcement that the closeout deadline for the 2018–19 Direct Loan Program Year is Friday, July 31, 2020. This is the last processing day before the end of the program year. All school data must be received and accepted by this date to be included in a school's final Ending Cash Balance for the year. Please review the May 7, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

REMINDER –Annual DUNS Number Registration Renewal with System for Award Management Database: The G5 website verifies the Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number in the System for Award Management (SAM) website before carrying out administrative actions that involve a DUNS number. These actions could include making an award and performing DUNS number changes or reassignments. To ensure that administrative actions can be completed for Title IV recipients, schools must have “active” DUNS numbers by registering their grantee and payee DUNS numbers in the SAM website ( https://www.sam.gov ). This announcement is a reminder that all schools must complete the registration confirmation of their DUNS number annually. Please review the May 1, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Next Gen FSA – Additional StudentAid.gov Website Features Starting April 2020: Forward progress continues on the Next Gen Federal Student Aid (FSA) initiative and StudentAid.gov, single front door on the web for students, parents, and borrowers. On April 26, 2020, Federal Student Aid (FSA) introduced additional features designed to promote financial literacy and improve the information and self-service tools available to FSA customers. The new features provide students, parents, and borrowers with clear, actionable information about the aid they have received and personalized guidance on the loan repayment process. This electronic announcement summarizes new and updated features that are now available.

FA Solutions – March 19, 2020 Update from our CEO – When FA Solutions was first established, we had the goal of being able to offer complete redundancy of coverage in the event Florida experienced a hurricane, or some other natural disaster. To do this, we invested heavily in cloud based technology to allow for remote staffing, and the ability for our employees to travel to unaffected areas if necessary so that work could be adequately performed, and service to students could continue with limited, or no interruption. We are happy to report that this has been heavily tested and fully operational. What we didn’t realize at the time was that together we built a business model that would be able to offer consistency of coverage even during a national emergency, such as the one being experienced today. As of now, FA Solutions expects full-service operations to continue without interruption. This includes the FA Solutions processing and leadership teams, as well as Student Communication through our Student Experience Center. We do ask that each of our school partners stay in complete communication with our teams, so that updates from both sides happen consistently. You are important to us!

RESOURCES:

2020-05-01 Federal School Code List of Participating Schools (May 2020)

NSLDS:

2020-04-30 Subject: Newsletter 68: Implementation of 2020 CIP Codes in NSLDS
2020-04-30 NSLDS Enrollment Reporting (ER) Deleted CIP Code Report Extract File Layout for Schools (SCHDC1)
2020-04-30 NSLDS Enrollment Reporting Roster File Record Layouts (April 2020)
2020-04-30 NSLDS Enrollment Reporting (ER) 2020 Invalid CIP Codes Report Extract File Layout for Schools (SCHCP4)
2020-04-30 NSLDS Enrollment Submittal Template
2020-04-30 NSLDS Enrollment Submittal Cover Letter

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION:

NASFAA:

We recently updated the web links in this section: The following are a few helpful links to information pages available on the IFAP website : Early FAFSA , Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Training Resources , and iLibrary , which includes many resources, such as a consolidated list of Electronic Announcements , Dear Colleague Letters , Federal Registers ,and NSLDS reference materials and more. Please review the IFAP website for additional guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Fed-Updates Newsletter – April 14, 2020

Tue, 14 Apr 2020 21:49:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – April 14, 2020

FA Solutions – March 19, 2020 Update from our CEO – When FA Solutions was first established, we had the goal of being able to offer complete redundancy of coverage in the event Florida experienced a hurricane, or some other natural disaster. To do this, we invested heavily in cloud based technology to allow for remote staffing, and the ability for our employees to travel to unaffected areas if necessary so that work could be adequately performed, and service to students could continue with limited, or no interruption. We are happy to report that this has been heavily tested and fully operational. What we didn’t realize at the time was that together we built a business model that would be able to offer consistency of coverage even during a national emergency, such as the one being experienced today. As of now, FA Solutions expects full-service operations to continue without interruption. This includes the FA Solutions processing and leadership teams, as well as Student Communication through our Student Experience Center. We do ask that each of our school partners stay in complete communication with our teams, so that updates from both sides happen consistently. You are important to us!

Secretary DeVos Rapidly Delivers More Than $6 Billion in Emergency Cash Grants for College Students Impacted by Coronavirus Outbreak – April 9, 2020 press release – First wave of CARES Act funding will provide aid to students for expenses like course materials, technology, housing, food, health care, and childcare.

UPDATED Guidance for interruptions of study related to Coronavirus (COVID-19): The Department appreciates that postsecondary institutions and their students face unique and urgent circumstances as a result of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This guidance provides updated information that expands upon the Department’s March 5, 2020, guidance and provides additional regulatory flexibilities due to the lawful declaration of the COVID-19 national emergency. Please review the April 3, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Financial Responsibility and eZ-Audit Reporting Requirements: The final regulations published on September 23, 2019 (https://ifap.ed.gov/federal-registers/fr092319) establish, in part, new Financial Responsibility reporting requirements stemming from changes in accounting standards and recommendations made by the community. In the attachment to this Electronic Announcement (EA) several concerns raised by institutions, auditors, and other community partners regarding how these requirements will be implemented are addressed. Please review the April 9, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement – Preliminary Implementation in Late April 2020, Borrower Completion Requirement Delayed until 2021: In response to school concerns and the unprecedented disruptions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19), Federal Student Aid will be delaying the requirement that borrowers complete the Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement prior to disbursement for the 2020–21 Award Year. Instead, the borrower completion requirement will begin with the 2021–22 Award Year. Please review the March 27, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Foreign school update ID: FS-2020-01 – Availability of Guide for Financial Statement Audits and Compliance Attestation Engagements of Foreign Schools – The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General has published its new Guide for Financial Statement Audits and Compliance Attestation Engagements of Foreign Schools (Guide). This Guide supersedes the Foreign School Audit Guide (September 2002) and the related amendments to that guide and is effective for fiscal years ending on or after December 31, 2020. Early implementation is not permitted.

Failure to submit foreign school financial statement audits and compliance attestation engagements performed in accordance with this Guide may result in your audits being rejected. If you are a foreign school, please ensure that your auditor is using this Guide for audits of fiscal years ending on or after December 31, 2020. Please review the April 7, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

COD System Implementation for 2020–21 Award Year : During the period April 24-26, 2020, implementation of the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System functionality will take place. Please review the April 9, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

RESOURCES:

2020-03-31 - 2020–2021 COD Technical Reference (March 2020 Update)
2020-04-07 - Federal Family Education Loan Program Special Allowance Rates for the Quarter Ending March 31, 2020

FEDERAL REGISTERS:

2020-04-02 - NPRM - Distance Education and Innovation

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION:

NASFAA:

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Fed-Updates Newsletter – March 19, 2020

Thu, 19 Mar 2020 19:41:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – March 19, 2020

FA Solutions – Update from our CEO – When FA Solutions was first established, we had the goal of being able to offer complete redundancy of coverage in the event Florida experienced a hurricane, or some other natural disaster. To do this, we invested heavily in cloud based technology to allow for remote staffing, and the ability for our employees to travel to unaffected areas if necessary so that work could be adequately performed, and service to students could continue with limited, or no interruption. We are happy to report that this has been heavily tested and fully operational. What we didn’t realize at the time was that together we built a business model that would be able to offer consistency of coverage even during a national emergency, such as the one being experienced today. As of now, FA Solutions expects full-service operations to continue without interruption. This includes the FA Solutions processing and leadership teams, as well as Student Communication through our Student Experience Center. We do ask that each of our school partners stay in complete communication with our teams, so that updates from both sides happen consistently. You are important to us!

Guidance for interruptions of study related to Coronavirus (COVID-19): This electronic announcement addresses concerns expressed by higher education leaders regarding how they should comply with Title IV, Higher Education Act (HEA) policies for students whose activities are impacted by Coronavirus (COVID-19), either directly because the student is ill or quarantined, or indirectly because the student was recalled from travel-abroad experiences, can no longer participate in internships or clinical rotations, or attends a campus that temporarily suspended operations. This information provides flexibilities for schools that are working to help students complete the term in which they are currently enrolled. Please review the March 5, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information. This electronic announcement was updated on April 3, 2020.

Issuance of Dear CPA Letter CPA-20-01, Site Visit Exemption During COVID-19 Outbreak: On March 10, 2020, the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General issued Dear CPA Letter CPA-20-01. This letter provides for a limited exemption from the site visit requirement during the outbreak of COVID-19 “Coronavirus” for audits conducted using the September 2016 Audit Guide, Guide for Audits of Proprietary Schools and For Compliance Attestation Engagements of Third-Party Servicers Administering Title IV Programs (Audit Guide). The limited exemption described in this letter applies to proprietary school audits of fiscal years ending between September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2019, that are conducted using the Audit Guide. The letter, which is available on the OIG Non-Federal Audit website, should be referred to for additional details. Please review the March 11, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

2020–21 Federal Work-Study Program Community Service Waiver Requests: Section 443(b)(2)(A) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) and the corresponding regulations at 34 CFR 675.18(g) set forth the Federal Work Study (FWS) community service expenditure requirements that a school must meet unless the school is granted a waiver from the Secretary. This electronic announcement explains how a school requests a waiver of the community service expenditure requirements under the FWS Program for the 2020–21 Award Year. The deadline for electronic submission of a school’s 2020–21 FWS Community Service waiver request is 11:59 p.m. Eastern time (ET) on Monday, April 20, 2020. Completed submissions must be accepted by the COD system by midnight ET. A waiver request that is received after April 20, 2020 will not be considered. Please review the March 16, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

First Pell Grant Administrative Cost Allowance Payments for 2019–20 Award Year: The Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant) regulations at 34 CFR 690.10 provide for an Administrative Cost Allowance (ACA) payment of $5.00 to each participating school for each student who receives a Pell Grant at that school for an award year. These funds may be used only to defray the costs of administering the Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, and Federal Work-Study programs. This electronic announcement reviews how these first payments for the 2019-20 Award Year were determined. Processing of these payments began on February 27, 2020. Please review the March 2, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Operational Implementation Guidance – Federal Student Aid’s Implementation of 2020–21 Federal Pell Grant Payment and Disbursement Schedules: This Electronic Announcement provides institutions with important information about the system, web, and software modifications that are being made to reflect the 2020–21 Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant) payment and disbursement schedules, including changes that must be implemented to the Central Processing System (CPS), the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System, and the EDExpress for Windows software. Please review the March 4, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

New Form for Forgery Loan Discharge Process for ED-held Loans: The purpose of this electronic announcement is to provide Title IV, Federal student loan program participants with information concerning the existing false signature/identity theft discharge process used by the U.S. Department of Education (Department) and to explain the Department’s new process for addressing claims made by individuals that loans allegedly taken out by them are unenforceable due to forgery of their signatures. A copy of the new form that the Department will use to implement this process is attached and Title IV loan holders are encouraged to create a similar discharge process for loans that they hold if they have not already done so. Please review the February 12, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Next Gen FSA – Additional StudentAid.gov Website Features Starting February 2020: As explained in a December 13, 2019 Electronic Announcement, Federal Student Aid (FSA) completed a first step in the Next Gen FSA initiative and consolidated several student-facing websites into an enhanced version of StudentAid.gov, FSA’s single front door on the web for students, parents, and borrowers. On February 23, 2020, additional features were introduced designed to promote financial literacy for borrowers and improve the information and self-service tools available to FSA’s customers. Please review the February 21, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

C loseout of all 2018–19 Campus-Based program awards has been completed based on the data submitted on the Fiscal Operations Report for 2018–19 and Application to Participate for 2020–21 (FISAP): The 2018–19 awards closeout for the Campus-Based programs is explained in this electronic announcement, which also includes important information regarding the notification process related to the awards closeout. Please review the February 21, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

CPS Reprocessing on March 10, 2020 for 2019-20 Application and Correction Records with Blank DHS Match Results: On March 10, 2020, the Central Processing System (CPS) reprocessed a small group of 2019-20 application and correction records with blank Department of Homeland Security (DHS) match results due to a processing error on February 27, 2020. Please review the March 10, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Enforcement of Cybersecurity Requirements under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act: The Department of Education (Department) continues to take steps to ensure the confidentiality, security, and integrity of student and parent information related to the federal student aid programs. Protecting that information is a shared obligation among the Department, institutions, third-party servicers, and other partners in the financial aid system. We expect all of our partners to maintain strong security policies and effective internal controls to prevent unauthorized access or disclosure of sensitive information.

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), which was signed into law on November 12, 1999, created a requirement that financial institutions must have certain information privacy protections and safeguards in place. This announcement explains the Department’s procedures for enforcing those requirements and the potential consequences for institutions or servicers that fail to comply. Please review the February 28, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

WEBINARS:

2020-3-06 – Live Internet Webinar – Annual Student Loan Acknowledgment – April 2 and April 23, 2020 (This webinar series has been cancelled as explained here: https://ifap.ed.gov/dear-colleague-letters/ANN2004)

FEDERAL REGISTERS:

2020-03-04 – Comment Request; Borrower Defense to Loan Repayment Universal Form

RESOURCES:

2020-02-24 – FY 2017 Draft Cohort Default Rates Distributed February 24, 2020

2020-02-19 – Federal Student Aid Posts New Reports to FSA Data Center

2020-03-06 – SAIG Message Class File

2020-02-14 – NSLDS Death Status Conflict Report Extract File Layout for Data Providers (DSCGA1 & DSCGA2)

2020-02-14 – NSLDS Death Status Conflict Report Extract File Layout for Lenders/Lender Servicers (DSCLN1)

2020-02-14 – GA-2020-02: Death Status Conflict Report, Website Enhancements, and Record Layout

2020-02-13 – NSLDS GA Loan Discharge Submittal Template and Cover Letter

2020-03-06 – NSLDS GA TEF File Text File

Other helpful information pages on the IFAP website: Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Gainful Employment , Cash Management , Processing Resources , FAFSA and the IRS DRT , Training Resources , and iLibrary , which includes many resources, such as a consolidated list of Electronic Announcements , Dear Colleague Letters , and Federal Registers . Please review the IFAP website for additional guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Fed-Updates Newsletter – February 18, 2020

Tue, 18 Feb 2020 18:46:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – February 18, 2020

IFAP Update –Transition of FSAdownload Content and Financial Partners Portal to IFAP Website Implemented (Updated February 12, 2020): Note – On February 12, 2020 this February 10, 2020 announcement was updated with the addition of two attachments: the IFAP Publication URL Crosswalk February 2020 and the IFAP Page URL Crosswalk February 2020. The crosswalks were developed to assist the financial aid community in finding the new URLs that need to be changed in web and document content. Please review the February 10, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

New Form for Forgery Loan Discharge Process for ED-held Loans: This electronic announcement provides Title IV, Federal student loan program participants with information concerning the existing false signature/identity theft discharge process used by the U.S. Department of Education (Department) and to explain the Department’s new process for addressing claims made by individuals that loans allegedly taken out by them are unenforceable due to forgery of their signatures. A copy of the new form that the Department will use to implement this process is attached to this announcement. Please review the February 12, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Federal Pell Grant Program Reconciliation: In a November 19, 2019 Electronic Announcement Federal Student Aid (FSA) published general information regarding Title IV Aid Disbursement Reporting, Excess Cash, and Reconciliation Requirements. In addition, updated disbursement reporting and data submission timelines for all programs were published in a recent Federal Register Notice (Federal Register Volume 84, Number 212 (Friday, November 1, 2019) for the 2019–2020 deadlines). In this announcement, specific information is provided to assist your school in reconciling the Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant) Program. Both the Financial Aid Office and Business Office should review this January 24, 2020 electronic announcement .

2020-2021 Federal Pell Grant Payment and Disbursement Schedules: Attached to this Dear Colleague letter are both PDF and Excel versions of the Payment and Disbursement Schedules for determining Federal Pell Grant awards for the 2020-2021 award year (July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021) for full-time, three-quarter-time, half-time, and less-than-half-time students. Please review the January 31, 2020 letter for additional information.

Tentative 2020–21 Funding Levels for the Campus-Based Programs: Tentative funding levels and corresponding worksheets for the Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program and the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) Program for the 2020–21 Award Year (July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021) were recently posted to the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD). These tentative funding levels are determined in accordance with the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). Please review the January 30, 2020 electronic announcement for information on how to access the worksheets and for important upcoming deadlines.

Loan Servicing Information – Reporting Student Loan Interest Payments for 2019: This electronic announcement provides general information with the financial aid community about federal loan servicer reporting of student loan interest payments. If a borrower made federal student loan payments in 2019, the borrower may be eligible to deduct a portion of the interest paid on the borrower’s 2019 federal tax return. Student loan interest payments are reported to both the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the borrower on IRS Form 1098-E, Student Loan Interest Statement. Please see the January 30, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Direct Loan Closeout Information for 2018–19 Program Year: The Direct Loan established data submission (closeout) deadline for the 2018–19 Program Year is Friday, July 31, 2020. This is the last processing day of the program year, so all school data must be received and accepted by this date to be included in a school’s final Ending Cash Balance for the year. Please review the January 31, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

2020–21 FAFSA Winter Email Campaign : During the week of Feb. 3, 2020 Federal Student Aid began sending emails to 2019–20 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA ^® ) filers (and parents of dependent 2019–20 FAFSA filers) who have not yet submitted a 2020–21 FAFSA form. The goal of the email campaign is to remind customers that the 2020–21 FAFSA form is available and should be completed soon for those going to school between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021. Please review the February 10, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

RESOURCES:

January 29, 2020 – Newsletter 67: New NSLDS Reports for School Users

January 22, 2020 – HEAL Interest Rates

January 11, 2020 – ANN-20-03 Subject: Webinar Recordings – New Accreditation Regulations

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Fed-Updates Newsletter – February 4, 2020 (updated February 13, 2020)

Tue, 04 Feb 2020 21:47:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – February 4, 2020 (updated February 13, 2020)

Newsletter topics: Federal Holiday Processing & Customer Service Hours,2019-20 COD System Peak Processing Reminders, Unconfirmed TG Numbers (SAIG Mailboxes), Two-Factor authentication tokens, FSA User IDs, Federal Work Study, Reporting gifts and ownership and control by foreign sources, Application for participation in Work Colleges Program, Temporary Closures of Federal Loan Servicing Centers, Live webinar – State process alternative for students without a high school diploma or its equivalent to access Title IV aid (Feb. 11 – Feb 12, 2020), and various resources and Federal Register notices.

The links in our Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the IFAP website . Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We’re not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines , but you’ll find additional information on the IFAP website. Reminder: Deadlines and event dates are noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

Washington’s Birthday Federal Holiday Processing and Customer Service Hours: Department of Education federal offices as well as some of their Title IV processors and contact centers will be closed on Monday, February 17, 2020 to observe the Washington’s Birthday federal holiday. Please review the attachment to this February 12, 2020 electronic announcement for the various centers’ operation status on the holiday.

2019-20 COD System Peak Processing Reminders : The peak processing period for the 2019-20 Award Year began last month. To assist schools with planning and processing, Federal Student Aid has issued important reminders as outlined in this December 19, 2019 electronic announcement .

Access Removed for Unconfirmed TG Numbers (SAIG Mailboxes) and Electronic Services User Accounts: In October 2019 every organization enrolled for a Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) account was asked to review and validate its assigned TG numbers by December 13, 2019. Access to enrolled services has been removed for accounts that have not been actively confirmed. Please review this December 19, 2019 electronic announcement for information on how to restore access to these accounts.

TFA Tokens Must Not Be Shared by Multiple FSA User IDs : Professional users of Federal Student Aid (FSA) systems and websites that require Two-Factor Authentication (TFA) tokens, are reminded that tokens must not be shared. One authorized user—identified by a unique FSA User ID—is permitted per token. Users will be removed from tokens that are being shared by multiple FSA User IDs, and this will result in loss of access to Federal Student Aid systems. For additional information, please review this December 19, 2019 electronic announcement .

Guidance related to Federal Work Study (FWS) recipients affected by California wildfires or power outages: In this announcement, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) is issuing guidance in response to institutions that closed campuses during the Fall 2019 payment period due to wildfires or related power outages in California. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has not declared California, as a result of these fires and power outages, a major disaster as defined in The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122(2)); however, a number of campuses were required to close one or more times as a result of the wildfires or related power outages.

The Department is providing flexibility to institutions in complying with the requirements established in 34 CFR 675.16 (a)(5), which states that FWS compensation is earned when the student performs work. Please review this December 23, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Section 117 of the Higher Education Act – Reporting ownership and control by foreign sources and gifts from and contracts with foreign sources: This announcement is to remind postsecondary institutions of their legal obligation to report to the Department of Education ownership and control by foreign sources as well as gifts from and contracts with foreign sources that have a total value of $250,000 or more within a given calendar year. Institutions are obligated to file a disclosure report with the Secretary on January 31 and July 31. When schools do not meet the requirements in Section 117 of the HEA the Secretary of Education may request that the Department of Justice undertake a civil action in federal district court to ensure compliance. Please review this December 23, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Application for Participation in the Work Colleges Program: This Electronic Announcement provides information about the application process for schools interested in participating in the Work Colleges Program under the Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program for the 2020–21 Award Year. To participate in this program the school must comply with all provisions of Section 448 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and the applicable program regulations included in Subpart C of 34 CFR Part 675.

Any school interested in participating in the Work Colleges Program for the 2020–21 Award Year (including schools that are currently participating in the 2019–20 Award Year) must apply no later than March 2, 2020. This deadline applies to both the electronic submission and the required signed paper copy (signed by the school’s Chief Executive Officer /CEO). Note: The Work Colleges Application is not an application to participate in the FWS Program. Please review the January 27, 2020 electronic announcement for additional information.

Loan Servicing Information – Temporary Closures of Federal Loan Servicing Centers Due to Hazardous Weather Conditions: Please review this January 28, 2020 electronic announcement for information on how Federal Loan Servicers will operate during hazardous weather conditions and when they may need to close temporarily.

TRAINING – Live Internet Webinar: State Process Alternative for a student without a high school diploma or its equivalent to access Title IV aid – Start Date: February 11, 2020 End Date: February 12, 2020

RESOURCES:

January 3, 2020 – Federal Student Aid Posts New Reports to FSA Data Center

January 10, 2020 – Renewal of Service members Civil Relief Act (SCRA): Interest Rate Limitation Request Form

January 10, 2020 – Renewal of Private Education Loan Applicant Self-Certification form for use by institutions and private education loan lenders

December 18, 2019 – GA-2019-03: Fiscal Year 2017 Cohort Default Rate Calculations

January 7, 2020 – FFEL Special Allowance Rates During the Quarter Ending December -31-2019

January 7, 2020 – Appendix A-F [2019-2020 Federal Student Aid Handbook]

December 20, 2019 – Volume 2 – School Eligibility and Operations [2019-2020 Federal Student Aid Handbook]

FEDERAL REGISTERS:

January 3, 2020 – Campus Based Programs 2020-21 Award Year Deadline Dates

January 15, 2020 – Interest Rates for Variable-Rate Federal Student Loans Made Under the Direct Loan Program

January 15, 2020 – Interest Rates for Variable-Rate Federal Student Loans Made Under the FFEL Loan Program Prior to July 1, 2010

January 15, 2020 – Interest Rates for Fixed-Rate Federal Student Loans Made Under the Direct Loan Program

January 14, 2020 – Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties for Inflation

January 13, 2020 – Annual Designation of Title III and Title V Schools and Waiver Process

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Fed-Updates Newsletter – December 17, 2019 (updated February 13, 2020)

Tue, 17 Dec 2019 22:05:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – December 17, 2019

Note: Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the IFAP website . Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We’re not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines , but you’ll find additional information on the IFAP website. Reminder: Deadlines and event dates are noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

OUTAGE ALERT – Federal Student Aid Website and System Outages December 21, 2019: On December 21, 2019, Federal Student Aid plans to complete important system work that will impact Federal Student Aid websites and systems. This work is related to the Next Gen FSA website consolidation described in the December 13, 2019 Electronic Announcement and is in addition to the regular weekly maintenance that occurs each weekend. Please review the December 16, 2019, electronic announcement for additional information.

Next Gen FSA Website Consolidation: During the weekend of December 21-22, 2019, Federal Student Aid plans to consolidate the current functionality of StudentAid.gov, StudentLoans.gov, FSAID.ed.gov, and some components of NSLDS Student Access (NSLDS.ed.gov) under one umbrella website which will be an enhanced version of StudentAid.gov. Please review the December 13, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Christmas and New Year’s Day Federal Holiday Processing and Customer Service Hours: Department of Education federal offices as well as most of their Title IV processors and contact centers will be closed on Wednesday, December 25, 2019 to observe the Christmas Day federal holiday as well as on Wednesday, January 1, 2020 to observe the New Year’s Day federal holiday. In addition, some of the Title IV processors and contact centers will have additional closures on the days surrounding the holidays. Please see the December 13, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Designation as a Title III or Title V Institution and Waiver of the Non-Federal Share Requirement for FWS and FSEOG for the 2020–21 Award Year: The information in this electronic announcement is provided regarding the designation of Title III or Title V status for institutions and the resulting waiver of the non-federal share requirements for the Federal Work-Study (FWS) and Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) programs. Please review the December 17, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program Reconciliation: In a November 19, 2019 Electronic Announcement Federal Student Aid (FSA) published general information regarding Title IV aid disbursement reporting, excess cash, and reconciliation requirements. In addition, updated disbursement reporting and data submission timelines for all programs were published in a recent Federal Register Notice (see Federal Register Volume 84, Number 212 (Friday, November 1, 2019) for the 2019–2020 deadlines).

In this announcement, FSA provides specific information to assist a school with reconciling the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program. The information should be viewed by both the financial aid office and business office. Please review the December 17, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Publication of the TEACH Grant Program and Faith-based Entities Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM): On December 11, 2019, the Department of Education published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking revising the current regulations regarding the eligibility of faith-based entities to participate in the Federal Student Aid programs authorized under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and the eligibility of students to obtain certain benefits under those programs. The Secretary is also proposing to simplify the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program requirements to minimize the number of TEACH Grants that are converted to Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, and to update, strengthen, and clarify other areas of the TEACH Grant Program regulations. The public will have 30 days after the date of publication to provide comments through www.regulations.gov . Please review the December 11, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

COD School Testing for the 2020–21 Award Year from January 2, 2020 through December 18, 2020: The purpose of COD School Testing is to provide organizations (schools, third-party servicers, and software providers) an opportunity to test Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant), Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant, and William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) business processes and system software with the COD System prior to the transmission and processing of actual production data using COD Common Record XML Schema Version 4.0d. It also allows schools, third-party servicers, and software providers the opportunity to make corrections or enhancements to software applications and processes prior to sending data to the “live” production environment.

All organizations that wish to participate in COD School Testing must submit the “COD School Testing 2020–21 Sign-Up Document” to the COD School Relations Center. The Center began accepting sign-up documents as of Monday, December 9, 2019. To ensure enough time to complete all testing before the established testing end dates, organizations must register no later than September 18, 2020. Please review the December 9, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

FEDERAL REGISTERS

2019-12-17 Comment Request: Foreign Gifts and Contracts Disclosures
2019-12-16 Annual Designation of Title III and Title V Schools and Waiver Process
2019-12-11 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking – TEACH and Faith Based Institutions

The following are a few helpful links to information pages available on the IFAP website: Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Gainful Employment , Cash Management , Processing Resources , FAFSA and the IRS DRT , Training Resources , and iLibrary , which includes many resources, such as a consolidated list of Electronic Announcements , Dear Colleague Letters , and Federal Registers . Please review the IFAP website for additional guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid.

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright

Fed-Updates Newsletter – December 3, 2019

Tue, 03 Dec 2019 22:48:00 GMT

Fed-Updates Financial Aid Newsletter – December 3, 2019

Note: Fed-Updates newsletter updates are excerpts from original announcements posted on the IFAP website . Please review the entire update by clicking the link included with each posting. We’re not able to include all Federal updates and deadlines , but you’ll find additional information on the IFAP website. Reminder: Deadlines and event dates are noted in our newsletters are subject to change as determined by the Department of Education.

Reminder: Active Confirmation of TG Numbers (SAIG Mailboxes) and Electronic Services User Accounts Required by December 13, 2019: As a reminder, every organization enrolled for a Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) account is required to review and validate its assigned TG numbers and Electronic Services user accounts by December 13, 2019 to Maintain Access to Federal Student Aid Systems. Failure to accurately complete this process by December 13, 2019 will result in loss of access to Federal Student Aid data systems, including services such as Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR) deliveries, ISIR requests, Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) corrections, and National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) enrollment reporting and updates. Please review the November 19, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Title IV Aid Disbursement Reporting, Excess Cash, and Reconciliation Requirements: Federal Student Aid has issued this announcement to remind schools of the general disbursement reporting, excess cash, and reconciliation requirements for all Title IV programs. Because these requirements apply to disbursement and financial data, both the Financial Aid Office and Business Office should review the information provided in the November 19, 2019 electronic announcement .

2020-2021 FAFSA Verification-IRS Tax Return Transcript Matrix: Attached to this Electronic Announcement is the 2020-2021 FAFSA Verification-IRS Tax Return Transcript Matrix that institutions can use for 2020-2021 verification of tax return information. There have been significant changes to IRS tax form line items which are included in this tax matrix. Since the IRS Tax Return Transcript does not have line or item numbers and uses wording that may be different from what is used on the FAFSA, this matrix may help financial aid administrators map 2018 IRS Tax Return Transcript information to FAFSA/ISIR data. Please review the November 26, 2019 electronic announcement .

Implementation of School Notice Requirements Under the 2016 Borrower Defense Regulations : On November 1, 2016, the Department of Education published final regulations (the 2016 final regulations) governing the standard and process for evaluating borrower defense to repayment discharge claims. 81 FR 75926. Those regulations, among other things, established processes for the consideration of borrower defense discharge applications. In particular, 34 CFR 685.222(e)(3)(i) and (f)(2)(iv), provide that the Department will notify the school associated with the borrower defense application of the claim filing, and give the school the opportunity to submit records or a response to the allegations contained within the application. These regulations govern borrower defense applications associated with loans that are first disbursed before July 1, 2020. Please review the November 25, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Liabilities Associated with Closed School Discharges: As explained in an Electronic Announcement posted on December 13, 2018, the Department of Education has implemented certain provisions of the 2016 borrower defense regulations related to automatic closed school discharge. Specifically, new regulations at 34 CFR 685.214(c) (Direct Loan Program), 34 CFR 682.402(d)(8)(ii) (FFEL Program), and 34 CFR 674.33(g)(ii) (Perkins Loan Program) provide for an automatic discharge of some or all of the Direct Loan, FFEL, or Perkins Loan program loans an eligible borrower (or, if applicable, the dependent child on whose behalf a parent took out a PLUS loan) obtained to attend a school that closed on or after November 1, 2013. Please review the November 25, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

Informed Borrowing Confirmation: Modification of Approved Master Promissory Note Confirmation Processes – Operational Impacts to Schools and Preliminary COD System Information: In this announcement, Federal Student Aid (FSA) informs schools of a change to the approved Master Promissory Note (MPN) confirmation processes. This is the first in a series of announcements that will provide operational information about the changes to Direct Loan processing to incorporate the new Informed Borrowing Confirmation process. In this first announcement, FSA explains early operational impacts to schools and provides preliminary information about the changes planned for the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System implementation in April 2020. Please review the November 21, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

College Scorecard Metrics by Field of Study: College Scorecard has published new data metrics including 1) earnings of students one-year after graduation by field of study and 2) cumulative loan debt of borrowers by field of study. These new data metrics begin to address the March 2019 Executive Order on Improving Free Inquiry, Transparency, and Accountability at Colleges and Universities.

In 2020, College Scorecard will continue to expand and address the remaining data metrics described in the Executive Order. In addition, College Scorecard will continue to update earnings information to include post-completion earnings measured further out from graduation as more data become available over time. Please review the November 20, 2019 electronic announcement for additional information.

FEDERAL REGISTERS

2019-11-26 Interim Final Regulation - Total and Permanent Disability Discharge of Title IV Loans
2019-11-20 Matching Agreement with Department of Defense for No-Interest Accrual Benefit

RESOURCES Federal Student Aid Handbook

2019-11-21 2019-2020 Errata and Updates for 2019-2020 FSA Handbook
2019-11-20 Volume 4 - Processing Aid and Managing FSA Funds

150 Percent Direct Subsidized Loan Limit Info

2019-11-25 150% Direct Subsidized Loan Limit Information - Resources
2019-11-25 150% Direct Subsidized Loan Limit Information - Dear Colleague Letters and Electronic Announcements

NSLDS Reference Materials as archived on the IFAP website for 2018 and 2019 COD Technical Reference

2019-11-27 2020–2021 COD Technical Reference

Application Processing

2019-11-15 2020-2021 Application Processing System Specifications for Software Developers (November 2019 Final)

EDE Suite

2019-11-14 ISSUE ALERT: Microsoft Update Causing EDExpress Login Error

Other helpful information pages: Grant and Direct Loan (COD) Processing Information , Gainful Employment , Cash Management , Processing Resources , FAFSA and the IRS DRT , Training Resources , and iLibrary , which includes many resources, such as a consolidated list of Electronic Announcements , Dear Colleague Letters , and Federal Registers . Please review the IFAP website for additional guidance, resources, deadlines, and information related to the administration and processing of Title IV federal student aid. Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter! Rob Wright

Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter!

Rob Wright