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The College Board. For more than six decades, the College Board has been a leader and innovator in financial aid. College Board’s fully integrated financial aid solutions are designed to help your institution develop equitable, effective, and efficient financial aid policies and processes. Visit us at collegeboard.org. 

Simplification of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a hot topic in Washington, especially with the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act looming. In a report released today, a FAFSA Working Group (FWG) convened by NASFAA has chimed in with an application model that would simultaneously simplify the process for students and families of all income levels and accurately target limited federal funds to those most in need.

As 2016 presidential candidates head toward primary elections, questions about college affordability and student loan debt have been hot on the campaign trail. In advance of tomorrow night's GOP presidential primary debate, get a rundown of what the Republican and Democratic candidates have said so far about higher education.

A bipartisan team of congressmen on Wednesday introduced a bill for what they say will be a more innovative and affordable way for students to pay for college. The Investing in Student Success Act of 2015 – co-authored by Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) and Rep. Todd Young (R-IN) – would allow for the creation of income-share agreements.

As of yesterday afternoon, NASFAA has not received a response from the Department of Education (ED) to our request for an extension of the July 31 gainful employment (GE) reporting deadline.

As part of a broader effort to help states redesign their education programs for today’s students, the Education Commission of the States (ECS) has created a 50-state policy database that looks at the 100 largest state-funded financial aid programs in the U.S.

The purpose of this letter is to clarify institutional and applicants' roles and responsibilities related to Title IV dependency determinations for unaccompanied homeless youth.

This Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) reminds Guaranty Agencies (GAs) of their obligation to submit a self-assessment as part of a recent security program initiated by Federal Student Aid (FSA) and advises GAs of the steps FSA will take to ensure appropriate management and protection of personally identifiable information (PII) under the control of GAs.

This letter reminds institutions of higher education and their third-party servicers of their continuing obligations to protect data used in all aspects of the administration of the Title IV Federal student financial aid programs.

In preparation for the upcoming October 1, 2015 deadline for submission of the Fiscal Operations and Application to Participate (FISAP), the Department is encouraging schools to utilize the eSignature option for the Chief Executive Office (CEO) signature on the FISAP as well as the Lobbying form, Work Colleges Application form, Work Colleges Expenditure Report, and Expenditure Report for Title IV Aid to Students with Intellectual Disabilities, as applicable.

"Apollo Education Group, which owns the University of Phoenix, disclosed in a corporate filing Wednesday that they received a civil investigative demand from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission," Inside Higher Ed reports.

"A Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia study shows that the rise of student debt correlates to a decline in U.S. small business formation," according to the Philadelphia Business Journal. 

"The Obama administration’s plan to restore funding for in-prison college programs won praise from inmate advocates Tuesday, alongside allegations that officials are ignoring the will of Congress and eschewing the needs of law-abiding students," The Wall Street Journal reports.

"Rutgers student-athletes receiving full scholarships are about to get a four-figure check," NJ.com reports. "On average, a New Jersey resident enrolled as an arts and sciences student residing on the New Brunswick campus will pay a total bill of $26,185 to attend the school in 2015-16 after the university Board of Governors voted to hike tuition, room, board and fees by approximately 2.4 percent. That figure doesn't take into account costs for school supplies, transportation, and miscellaneous personal expenses, including 'a reasonable allowance for the documented rental or purchase of a personal computer,' according to guidelines set by [NASFAA]."

"According to a new report by the U.S. Department of Education, Arizona has the highest college dropout rate in the country," KPHO reports.

"In February 2014 Kim Kotary was living in Queens, N.Y., working 25 hours a week in three part-time jobs at nonprofits and as a freelance crafts teacher and designer, and worrying how she’d ever pay off the $20,000 she borrowed to earn a master’s from New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology back in 2002," John Wasik writes in an opinion piece for Forbes.

"The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators is out with recommendations for how to simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as the Fafsa," The Chronicle of Higher Education reports in The Ticker.

"U.S. households for the first time would be able to examine how much a college's graduates earn and how often its students receive a degree with new data the Obama administration intends to make public in the coming weeks," The Huffington Post reports.

"My relationship with the U.S. is like having a crush on a girl who does not like me back. I would like to stay here to explore, grow, work, and live, but this place wants me to do none of these things and leave," Bo Daraphant, a Thai living in the U.S., is a participant in the Dream Riders Across America Bus Tour organized by the National Korean America, writes in The Hill's Congress Blog.

"Young Americans are disproportionately disconnected from the financial mainstream. The share of Americans ages 15 to 24 without bank accounts is double the national average, and they are often more likely to use high-cost or predatory financial products," according to The Center for American Progress.

"A few weeks from now I will don cap and gown and receive my Master's degree in Fine Arts from the venerable Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA," Jeb Harrison writes in The Huffington Post's The Blog.

"At first when thinking of attending Summer Institute I was excited about the prospect of having an opportunity to get a well-rounded intense training in federal financial aid," Chris Darnell, a systems specialist in the Office of Financial Aid at Wichita State University, writes in a blog post for KASFAA.

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