USA Funds® Education Access Report will not be published on Dec. 23 and Dec. 30, due to the holiday season. Publication will resume on Jan. 6, 2009. We look forward to providing you the latest updates about education access and higher education finance issues in 2009.
Access to Education
USA Funds-Supported Research Explores Student Aversion to Borrowing for College
Newly released research, conducted with support from USA Funds, explores why certain students are averse to borrowing to pay college expenses and how their decisions may limit their education options and potential success in college.
Read more.
Report: Nation Lags in Higher Education Access
In “Measuring Up 2008,” the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education reports that, while the United States is making advances in preparing students for college, it is not keeping pace with other nations in providing higher education access. In releasing the report, the group noted inequities by race/ethnicity and income in college affordability, high school completion, college attendance and college graduation. The report includes state-by-state higher education access data.
Operations Bulletin
Spellings: Students Face ‘Perfect Storm’
U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings told financial aid professionals from around the country that college students “face a perfect storm” of growing admissions anxieties, rising tuition costs and a historic credit crisis. Read more.
Department Publishes Notice of Expansion of Loan Purchase Program
The U.S. Department of Education has published notice of an expansion of its loan purchase program to ensure liquidity in the Federal Family Education Loan Program. Through the Short Term Purchase Program, the Department is extending the offer to purchase loans to include eligible loans made for the 2007-2008 academic year. The stopgap action is designed to ensure financing for FFELP loans until the Asset-Backed Commerce Paper conduits become operational.
New Federal Regulations Affect Student Loan Provisions for Military Service
Federal regulations published Oct. 23 include new provisions and revisions to existing provisions affecting certain military personnel and veterans. These changes are effective July 1, 2009, but lenders may implement the changes earlier than that date. Learn more.
November 2008 Integrated Common Manual Available
The November 2008 Integrated Common Manual is available on the USA Funds Web site. View and print the Integrated Common Manual, including the summary of changes approved Nov. 20, 2008, by the Common Manual Governing Board. You will need Adobe Reader to access the materials on the USA Funds Web site.
USA Funds Update
Webcast Offers Refresher of FAFSA Filing Basics
Financial aid professionals who plan to assist students and families with completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid are invited to register for a free one-hour USA Funds webcast on Dec. 17, before the 2009 College Goal Sunday programs begin. Learn more.
Tech Talk
Mapping Your Future Adds TEACH Grant Exit Counseling
Mapping Your Future announced that it now offers online exit counseling for the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant. The counseling provides information about the terms and conditions of a TEACH Grant service agreement, and about a student’s rights and responsibilities if the TEACH Grant is converted to a loan. USA Funds is a supporter of Mapping Your Future, and recommends that school-customers in need of TEACH Grant exit counseling take advantage of the new feature.