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VOL. 25, NO. 7IGSL, 7B
January 2008
Welcome to the January 2008 ISAC Update for financial aid administrators and business officers. This version of the electronic ISAC Update is a compilation of e-Messages sent through College Zone’s e-Messaging service throughout January. This e-Messaging service has replaced ISAC’s use of printed newsletters, the ILASFAA ListServ, and special e-mail lists as our primary means of communicating information to you.
The articles in this Update have been organized according to the FAA Zone subscription groups to which the messages were distributed via College Zone’s e-Messaging service.
Questions?
Questions regarding information in this ISAC Update can be directed to School Services at 866.247.2172 or at schoolservices@isac.org. On occasion, you may be directed to a specific contact person or area; when this occurs, we will provide the appropriate information in the individual article or message.
MULTIPLE SUBSCRIPTION GROUPS
2008-09 MAP and IIA Program Start-up Scheduled for February 7th
Sent to Financial Aid Directors, Financial Aid Administrators, MAPnet Users, and Business Officers on January 29, 2008 We anticipate start-up for the 2008-09 Monetary Award Program (MAP) and the Silas Purnell Illinois Incentive for Access (IIA) Program, including the launch of the 2008-09 MAPnet system, to be implemented around noon on Thursday, February 7, 2008. Once we have confirmed on February 7th that start-up has been successfully implemented, we will notify you via this College Zone e-Messaging service.
Please note the following regarding MAPnet availability:
- MAPnet 2006-07 Historical View will no longer be available effective Wednesday, February 6th at 7 p.m.
- MAPnet 2007-08 will continue to be available each day between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
- MAPnet 2008-09 is anticipated to become available on Thursday, February 7th around 12 p.m. (noon).
Information Available at collegezone.com
- The MAP Formula section of the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs area has been updated with 2008-09 MAP start-up information. As a reminder, the 2008-09 MAP start-up formula reflects no changes from the 2007-08 recompute formula.
- The MAP and IIA Program News sections contain up-to-date information for each program.
- The MAP-Automated Delivery Process (ADP) File Specifications have been updated for the 2008-09 processing cycle. This 160-byte file layout is pertinent to schools utilizing the file extraction features of MAPnet, or sending payment requests for MAP or the IIA Program to ISAC via File Transfer Protocol (FTP). No changes have been made for 2008-09 processing. The 2008-09 MAP-ADP File Specifications are available within the Electronic Tools section of the e-Library.
2008-09 MAP Start-up Formula Approved - Summary of January 25th Commission Meeting
Sent to Financial Aid Directors and Financial Aid Administrators on January 28, 2008 The following is a summary of action taken at Friday's meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC). Details regarding several of the topics discussed are provided in the January 25th Agenda Book, which can be accessed from the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission page within the e-Library at collegezone.com.
FY2009 (2008-09 Academic Year) MAP Start-up Formula Approved - Agenda Item 12
Under the assumption that level or nearly level funding will be received for the Monetary Award Program (MAP), the FY2009 start-up formula reflects no changes from the FY2008 recompute formula.
We anticipate start-up for 2008-09 MAP and the Silas Purnell Illinois Incentive for Access (IIA) Program to be implemented on February 7, 2008, including the launch of the 2008-09 MAPnet system. Specific details regarding the start-up implementation schedule will soon be sent via a separate e-Message, and will also be posted at collegezone.com.
Partial Payment of Federal Default Fee for 2008-09 Approved - Agenda Item 10
For the 2008-09 academic year, ISAC will continue to pay 50% of the federally-mandated default fee for ISAC-guaranteed loans, thus reducing the cost to students and parents of borrowing through the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). This borrower benefit is made possible using funds from the Student Loan Operating Fund (SLOF). ISAC will continue to encourage lenders to pay the other 50% of the default fee on behalf of borrowers. As a resource for students and parents who are FFELP borrowers, a List of ISAC's Participating Lenders (displayed in descending order of loan volume guaranteed through ISAC, and identifying which lenders have agreed to pay the other 50% of the default fee on behalf of borrowers) is available within the Student Zone at collegezone.com.
Proposed Rules Amendments - Agenda Item 14
Rules amendments are being proposed for the 2008-09 academic year to nine existing Parts. The full text of the proposed rules amendments and notices will be made available via the e-Library's ISAC Administrative Rules section, following publication in the Illinois Register. The anticipated effective date of these proposed rules amendments is July 2008.
Adopted Rules (Veterans' Home Nurse Loan Repayment Program) Approved - Agenda Item 13
The Commission approved and adopted rules for the Veterans' Home Nurse Loan Repayment Program. These rules will be submitted to the Administrative Code Division of the Secretary of State for publication as final adopted rules. Once adopted, they will be communicated to ISAC's clients through publication in the Illinois Register, as well as being posted at the e-Library's ISAC Administrative Rules section. The anticipated effective date of these rules is February 1, 2008.
Next Meeting
The next regularly scheduled Commission meeting is set for Friday, April 4, 2008 at University of Illinois at Springfield.
Commission Meeting to be Held Friday, January 25, 2008 - Executive Briefing Scheduled for January 28th
Sent to Financial Aid Directors and Financial Aid Administrators on January 16, 2008 The next regular meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Friday, January 25th at Loyola University in Chicago (Beane Auditorium, located on the 13th floor of Lewis Towers at 111 E. Pearson). Information regarding a subsequent Executive Briefing Conference Call is provided at the end of this message.
The tentative agenda for the meeting includes:
- FY2009 Monetary Award Program (MAP) Start-up Formula
- Adopted Rules - Veterans' Home Nurse Loan Repayment Program
- Proposed Rules and Amendments
- Partial Payment of Federal Default Fee for 2008-09 Academic Year
- Selection of College Illinois!(SM) Large-Cap Value Investment Managers
- FY2007 College Illinois!(SM) Prepaid Tuition Plan Annual Report
- Supplemental Sale of Student Loan Portfolio
- Mission Statement
Details regarding the FY2009 MAP start-up formula and the rules and amendments will be posted later this week within the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the e-Library at collegezone.com.
Results for items requiring action from the Commission will be available following the meeting via the 2008 Agenda Books page (located within the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section).
Executive Briefing Conference Call - January 28th
On Monday, January 28th, ISAC Executive Director Andy Davis will offer an Executive Briefing Conference Call to provide an overview of the January 25th Commission meeting and an update on other ISAC-related topics. The conference call, for financial aid staff at the Director or upper management level, will be held at 10 a.m.
To participate, dial 888.767.9380 and enter the passcode: 9767339#.
Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Important Dates
Sent to Financial Aid Directors, Financial Aid Administrators, Public Schools - Participating in the ING Grant and IVG Programs, MAPnet Users, Business Officers and FFELP Participants on January 3, 2008 The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) would like to make you aware of the following information, which may be of interest to you and/or your students.
You may either scroll through the entire message, or click on the appropriate link(s) to go directly to details about a specific topic:
UPDATES
Operational dates, and information regarding the next regularly scheduled Commission meeting
RESOURCES & TRAINING EVENTS
Upcoming CAP events, and "FAFSA Expert Training" & "Understanding Financial Aid Packaging" sessions
HOLIDAY SCHEDULES
Processing schedules for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Presidents' Day
UPDATES
January 10th: 2007-08 MAP and IIA Program First Term Payment Claims Due
2007-08 first term payment claims for the Monetary Award Program (MAP) and Silas Purnell Illinois Incentive for Access (IIA) Program are due on or before January 10, 2008. Details regarding MAP payment processing and IIA payment processing, along with the 2007-08 MAPnet User Guide, are available within the FAA Zone.
January 15th: 2007-08 IVG Program First Term Payment Claims Due
2007-08 first term payment claims for the Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) Program are due on or before January 15, 2008. For more information regarding the payment process, refer to the IVG Payment page.
January 25th: Commission Meeting
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission will take place on Friday, January 25, 2008, at Loyola University in Chicago. A listing of tentative agenda items will be available prior to the meeting via the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the e-Library. Information can also be accessed by selecting the link that appears beneath the "Resource Center" heading at the College Zone home page.
After January 28th: State Scholar Mailing Labels or Listings Available to Order
After the student appeal period expires in January, ISAC provides Illinois colleges and universities the opportunity to order a set of mailing labels or a listing of State Scholar Finalists for recruitment purposes. Watch for more information about the availability of order forms in the State Scholar Program News area.
RESOURCES & TRAINING EVENTS
College Awareness & Preparation (CAP) Resources Available for 2008-09 FAFSA Cycle
The 2008-09 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) cycle, including FAFSA on the Web, Corrections on the Web, and FAA Access to CPS Online, opened on January 1, 2008. The Central Processing System (CPS) began processing 2008-09 FAFSA data on Wednesday, January 2nd. Details regarding the 2008-09 application cycle are provided within the Applying for Financial Aid section of the e-Library.
Check out the College Awareness & Preparation (CAP) page for information regarding resources that are available to help your students complete the financial aid process. Several events, including FAFSA completion seminars, will take place across the State of Illinois from now through March. Encourage students to attend the event that best fits their schedule.
CAP is a comprehensive effort of the Illinois Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (ILASFAA), Inc., the Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling (IACAC) and ISAC. Formerly known as Financial Aid Admission/Awareness Month (FAAM), CAP strives to fulfill its mission through a series of workshops, seminars and statewide support with partners from all sectors of education in the State of Illinois.
January - February: FAFSA Expert Training
As was announced in December, "FAFSA Expert Training" & "Understanding Financial Aid Packaging" sessions are being held throughout the state in January and February. These free all-day sessions (9 a.m. – 3 p.m.) are designed to go beyond the basic line-by-line walkthrough of the FAFSA and delve into the more complex tax, asset, eligibility, and need analysis questions. Space is limited so register today!
HOLIDAY SCHEDULES
A complete listing of 2008 holidays on which ISAC staff will be unavailable is provided at the ISAC Events Calendar.
January 21st: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
February 18th: Presidents' Day
In observance of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Presidents' Day holidays, ISAC offices will be closed on Monday, January 21st and on Monday, February 18th, respectively. Our offices will reopen on the Tuesday following each holiday.
Loan records received at ISAC on the holidays, as well as disbursement records received at the National Disbursement Network (NDN), will be processed the following business day. This means that, for each holiday that falls on a Monday, CommonLine or Common Account Maintenance (CAM) files will be processed on the following Tuesday, with results available on Wednesday (or the next available day for any schools opting to receive NDN files on specific days of the week). Note that ELM Resources will continue to process and transmit files on the holidays.
Although ISAC's offices will be closed on those days, MAPnet will be available during regularly scheduled hours and will reflect records processed by the Central Processing System (CPS) through the Friday immediately preceding each respective holiday. MAP payment requests submitted from 5 p.m. (CT) the preceding Friday through 5 p.m. (CT) the following Tuesday will be processed Tuesday night, and payment results (which will show late claim indicators for 1st term claims) will be available via MAPnet on Wednesday morning.
For Assistance
Remember that you can access collegezone.com anytime, or send an e-mail message to ISAC's School Services Department. With the exception of holidays (such as those indicated above), ISAC staff will review and respond to messages during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. CT).
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MAPNET USERS
ISAC's School Services Department Announcement
Sent on January 24, 2008 As you may be aware, John Penick has retired from the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) after many years of dedicated service to the Illinois financial aid community. We wish John much happiness in his well-deserved retirement.
Because John had been the contact person for many Monetary Award Program - Automated Delivery Process (MAP-ADP) users, we wanted to take this opportunity to clarify that all MAP-ADP inquiries (including MAPnet) should be directed to ISAC's School Services Department. Our representatives will be happy to assist financial aid administrators and business officers as they administer ISAC's gift assistance programs for their students.
Online resources regarding MAP-ADPand MAPnet are available within the Processes area of the FAA Zone at collegezone.com.
Shortening Processing Time for MAPnet File Extractions and Reports
Sent on January 15, 2008 As schools recently submitted their 2007-08 Monetary Award Program (MAP) and Silas Purnell Illinois Incentive for Access (IIA) Grant first term payment claims, ISAC staff received feedback regarding the amount of time it takes to process MAPnet Eligibility and Payment file extractions and reports.
We appreciate receiving such information from our partners, and would like to take this opportunity to provide some reminders that may help reduce processing time. Schools are encouraged to consider the following when reconciling MAP and IIA data, as well as when submitting 2007-08 second and/or third term payment claims.
File Extractions and Reports Have Separate Processing Queues
Based on partner feedback, in December 2006 we implemented a system with two separate queues - one for file extractions, and the other for reports. This means that file extractions and reports can be processed simultaneously, helping to reduce the amount of time it takes to process these requests.
Note that jobs are run in the order that they are received within each queue. Consequently, if several schools submit large file extraction (or report) requests at the same time, each request will be processed only after all previously-submitted jobs for that queue have completed. Length of processing time will vary depending on where a particular school's job is located within the queue. Multiple jobs submitted at the same time will impact file extractions the most, since these jobs take longer to run than reports.
Steps to Reduce Processing Time
The following are steps that schools may wish to consider in order to reduce the amount of time it may take to process file extractions and reports:
- Extract Processing: When running an Eligibility Status File (ESF) extract, enter a date range. Extracts run without a date range will generate a file that includes every record associated with that school. Entering a date range will mean fewer records are included, thus reducing the amount of time it will take to process the file. If the school runs this extract on a daily basis, each extract would only include one day's worth of data.
- Report Processing: MAPnet becomes inaccessible during the time a report is being generated. In order to minimize the impact of this down time, schools may wish to review their schedule and - to the extent possible - only run reports when MAPnet is not needed for other functions (for example, at the end of the day).
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FFELP PARTICIPANTS
List of ISAC's Participating Lenders Available for FFELP Student Loan Borrowers
Sent on January 24, 2008 As a resource for students and parents who borrow through the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP), a List of ISAC's Participating Lenders [displayed in descending order of loan volume guaranteed through the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC)] is available within the Student Zone at collegezone.com.
There are several factors for borrowers to take into consideration when choosing a lender, such as whether a lender discounts or pays the federal loan fees, or if rebates or other special discounts are offered for making a series of consecutive, on-time payments. As a guarantor of federal student loans, it is ISAC's policy to pay half of the federally-mandated 1% default fee on behalf of the borrower. Lenders that have agreed to pay the other half of the default fee on behalf of the borrower are identified with an asterisk (*) on the List of ISAC's Participating Lenders.
Student loan borrowers should be encouraged to select lenders - whether from the list at collegezone.com or another source - based on which one(s) best meet their individual needs.
Revised Stafford and PLUS MPN Addenda and PLDs and New Addendum for Federal Consolidation A/PN Now Available
Sent on January 11, 2008 A January 2008 Dear Colleague Letter (DCL FP-08-02) announces the availability of revised Master Promissory Note (MPN) addenda and Plain Language Disclosures (PLDs) for Federal Stafford Loans and Federal PLUS Loans, and a new Application/Promissory Note (A/PN) addendum for Federal Consolidation Loans. These revised documents explain the changes to loan terms and conditions that were made by the Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005 (HERA) and the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA) of 2007.
Implementation of Revised Documents
Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) participants should note the following:
- Use of the current Stafford and PLUS addenda and PLDs (which had been issued with DCLs FP-06-05 and FP-07-02) must be discontinued, and use of the revised addenda and PLDs should start as soon as possible. For more detailed guidance on the use of addenda and PLDs, program participants should continue to refer to DCL FP-06-05.
- Until revised Stafford and PLUS MPNs and a revised Federal Consolidation Loan A/PN are approved for use, the revised addenda must be used with the current promissory notes.
- The consolidation loan addendum must be provided to all borrowers who apply (or applied) for a consolidation loan on or after October 1, 2007. Current consolidation loan borrowers must be notified of changes to terms and conditions that may apply to their loan(s). [As explained in DCL FP-07-05, the approval of a revised Federal Consolidation Loan A/PN that included the HERA changes eliminated the need for the previous consolidation loan addendum. However, a new consolidation loan addendum is now required to explain the CCRAA changes to borrowers.]
Revised Documents Available at College Zone
The revised documents are now available for partners via the Order Materials area at collegezone.com.
Latest School DAAR Report Available
Sent on January 3, 2008 and January 22, 2008
The Notification of Student Loan Borrower DAAR Status report (School DAAR Report) for your school is now available on College Zone's My Zone. This online version has replaced the paper rosters ISAC sent in the past.
The School DAAR Report is non-cumulative and is available twice a month to those institutions with students for whom ISAC, as the guarantor, has received a Default Aversion Assistance Request (DAAR) during the reporting time period. Each time a new School DAAR Report is made available online, an e-Message will be sent to the "FFELP Participants" e-Messaging subscription group.
Accessing School DAAR Reports at My Zone
My Zone is a portal available in the FAA Zone at collegezone.com that allows postsecondary schools online access to student-specific data in a secure environment. If you have not yet signed up to participate in My Zone, proceed to the FAA Zone front page and select the My Zone Quick Link.
For complete information and instructions to access your school's DAAR Report, proceed to the FAA Zone front page and select the My Zone Quick Link in the right margin of the page.
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ISAC UPDATE GROUP
Electronic ISAC Update for December 2007 Available at College Zone
Sent on January 2, 2008 The December 2007 edition of the ISAC Update is now available for your review within the ISAC Publications section of College Zone's e-Library. This version of the monthly electronic ISAC Update is a compilation of e-Messages sent to financial aid administrators and business officers in December via College Zone's e-Messaging service.
Topics covered in the December 2007 ISAC Update include:
- New Awards Announced for 2007-08 Teacher Education Scholarship Programs
(sent December 28, 2007)
- Happy Holidays from ISAC
(sent December 17, 2007)
- College Zone and Related Internet Applications Temporarily Unavailable on December 18th
(sent December 14, 2007)
- Financial Aid 101 Workshop Rescheduled
(sent December 13, 2007)
- "FAFSA Expert Training" & "Understanding Financial Aid Packaging" - Register Now
(sent December 13, 2007)
- 2008-09 Teacher Program Applications Available - Due on or before March 1, 2008
(sent December 11, 2007)
- Latest School DAAR Report Available
(sent December 3, 2007 and December 18, 2007)
- Electronic ISAC Update for November 2007 Available at College Zone
(sent December 3, 2007)
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