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today’s news for Wednesday, September 30, 2015

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How do you Engage an Audience of ONE? Cegment’s Student Engagement Solutions are designed to help institutions convey their unique value and understand affordability with each communication tailored to the individual student’s circumstances. Learn more about how to increase engagement with students at every stage of the financial and enrollment process. Learn more.

NEWS FROM NASFAA

The millions of borrowers struggling to repay their student loans often run into unnecessary obstacles that can intensify their problems when they turn to loan servicers for help, according to a new report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

At a time when students and families are increasingly concerned with the cost of college, seeing a drastic cut in tuition can make an otherwise overlooked college look like a much more attractive option.

As Congress prepares to reauthorize the Higher Education Act, policymakers should focus on promoting better data and transparency, fostering innovative learning models, and eliminating “maintenance of effort” provisions, according to a paper from the Bipartisan Policy Center’s (BPC) Governor’s Council.

Call for Voices: NASFAA Needs Your Ideas On Campus Communications

Does your school have an effective system for coordinating communication between different offices on campus? If so, NASFAA would like to find out about it for an upcoming article. We'd love to hear about your tips, tricks, best practices, and other ways you share information with your colleagues across campus ​and at other institutions. Email [email protected] with your thoughts on this subject.

NASFAA recently conducted an analysis of fiscal year (FY) 2014 and FY15 U.S. Department of Education (ED) program reviews to determine the total and average amount of fines, as well as the average number of findings per institution. The average number of findings per institution was just under two for both years and the average amount of fines per institution was $193,042 in FY14 and $188,968 in FY15. In comparison, the average number of findings yielded a low figure to show that even one finding can produce a costly fine.

Since its inception 50 years ago, NASFAA has helped thousands of students reach their higher education goals. Imagine how far NASFAA will lead us in the next 50 years Help us reflect on our past and look to our future. Memories and artifacts are being gathered for the first-ever NASFAA Time Capsule, which will be sealed at the 2016 NASFAA Conference and reopened in 50 years.

Join us for the Washington Update Webinar, October 15, 2015 at 2:00 pm ET. NASFAA President Justin Draeger will provide his insights into the news emanating from Congress and the White House. This policy-based webinar will provide you with the latest political happenings in Washington, D.C. This webinar is offered at no charge for NASFAA members and webinar package purchasers, but register today to save your spot.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

This letter reminds institutions that participate in the Federal Perkins Loan Program of the requirement that they return to the Department of Education the Federal portion of any Excess Liquid Capital in their Perkins Loan Revolving Fund. The letter includes, as an attachment, interactive worksheets for institutions to use to determine the amount of Excess Liquid Capital that must be returned.

The Department announces the availability of the 2016-2017 FAFSA® MyStudentData Download guide, which includes the record layout for the download file that will be available to users of the 2016-2017 version of the FAFSA on the Web site.

x - HEADLINES

National News

"A recent study by education tech company EverFi found that the average U.S. college student can answer only about a third of basic financial questions correctly," Money reports. "That’s a shame: America’s youngest millennials might not have full time jobs—or even pay their own cell phone bills—but it’s a mistake to assume that their financial knowledge or behavior doesn’t yet matter." NASFAA's Stephen Payne is quoted.

"To look at the national statistics on educational attainment for Latino students is to see a dismal and disturbing picture," Community College Week reports. "... But the numbers can be misleading."

"The actual cost of college is a mystery to many families, but it’s particularly enigmatic for low-income students, who can’t afford the sticker price of many schools, but are often eligible for generous aid packages," MarketWatch reports. "A new tool is trying to demystify the process for this demographic, with the hope that fewer students will be scared off from applying to college by the price advertised by each school."

State News

"There's an ongoing national conversation encouraging people to pursue at least an associate degree. But at one Florida college, some students are finding it's in their best interest to pursue more than one two-year degree," Inside Higher Ed reports.

"One day in February, a Los Angeles high school student texted a hotline number, worried about paying for college," the Los Angeles Times reports. "It was an exchange that could have been difficult in real life, but over text, the expert on the other end simply asked if the student had an alien registration number. The student, whose name is not provided for privacy reasons, asked where to find the number."

"LSU's president wants the next governor to put his money where his mouth is," WBRZ reports. "President F. King Alexander told the Baton Rouge Press Club Monday he wants the next governor to help stop slashing state funds for colleges, invest in workforce training, and provide more money for research."

Opinions

"Turmoil in a financial market has caused some speculation that college students will face higher rates on federal loans — or see them dry up completely. Are student borrowers at risk?" Susan Dynarski writes for The New York Times. "In short, no. But a fuller answer requires a brief history of how Wall Street has an impact on student loans."

Blogs & Think Tanks

"A group of Democratic members of the House of Representatives are sending a letter [Tuesday] morning calling on the Department of Education to 'automatically discharge the debt' of all students who attended campuses run by now-bankrupt Corinthian Colleges, one of the worst actors in the scandalized for-profit college sector," David Halperin writes for The Huffington Post.

"For a growing share of college graduates, the degrees they’re taking home aren’t their first higher-education credentials," The Chronicle of Higher Education's The Ticker reports.

"Treasury Deputy Secretary Sarah Bloom Raskin said it is time for student loan servicers, the middlemen that collect and apply payments, to take responsibility for people falling behind or defaulting on their loans," according to The Washington Post's Grade Point blog.

x - INDUSTRY NEWS

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