FSA Reminds College Presidents to Adequately Staff, Train, and Provide Resources to Aid Offices Ahead of Significant Changes to the FAFSA
By Hugh T. Ferguson, NASFAA Senior Staff Reporter
Federal Student Aid (FSA) in a letter to college presidents, chancellors, and chief executive officers is reminding institutions of higher education about the significant overhauls set to impact the financial aid system in the upcoming academic year, and urging institutional leaders to be prepared for potential impacts the changes may bring.
The letter, scheduled to be emailed to college leaders this week, specifically points to the continued rollout of the FAFSA Simplification Act as well as the implementation of the FUTURE Act, which will both alter the current systems and procedures schools use to award federal student aid. The letter was posted as an Electronic Announcement ahead of time on Wednesday for financial aid professionals to view.
“The federal student aid system is undergoing its biggest overhaul in decades, and financial aid offices are leading the way to ensure institutions are prepared to deliver on a smooth implementation process for students and families,” said NASFAA President and CEO Justin Draeger. “We applaud FSA for underscoring the need for aid offices to be adequately resourced, trained, and staffed for this monumental transition and for alerting the aid community to the government’s communication with institutional leaders. Good policy is only as strong as its implementation, and a close partnership with our federal colleagues is critical to ensure that outcome. We look forward to continuing to work with FSA toward a successful rollout of forthcoming FAFSA simplification efforts.”
Richard Cordray, the chief operating officer of FSA, in the letter underscored the importance and scope of the upcoming overhauls that will impact college campuses, and urged leaders to consider a number of ways in which they can prepare to adjust their current systems.
Cordray said it would be difficult to fully estimate the specific institutional impact, but outlined key “insights” about how the changes could impact institutions, such as:
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A possible need for more institutional resources to ensure that financial aid offices are adequately trained and that software is kept up to date;
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The need to thoroughly review current admissions and financial aid deadlines and practices since the 2024-25 FAFSA form will be available in December of 2023;
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A possible need for additional staffing to adjust to a potential increase in the number of students determined to be eligible for federal financial aid programs; and
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A need to adjust current enrollment and/or retention strategies that utilize institutional aid programs and/or funds.
While the list of areas of impact is broad in scope, Cordray warned college presidents that insufficient financial resources for items like staffing, software updates, and training may increase risks of non-compliance, and could thus lead to audit findings, fines, and/or liabilities.
“Over the next several months, our teams will deliver specific outreach and training to institutional student financial aid administrators across the country,” Cordray said, reminding professionals that a total of 10 webinars focused on FAFSA simplification will take place in the months of June and July. “These trainings will be key to your success with this transition. We strongly recommend that you encourage and support participation by your financial aid team.”
Cordray also directed schools to familiarize themselves with more detailed information on FSA’s FAFSA Simplification topics page.
“We strongly recommend that you encourage and support participation by your financial aid team,” Cordray wrote. “Thank you in advance for your partnership as we work together to ensure successful implementation of the FUTURE Act and FAFSA Simplification Act. We are confident that the beneficial outcome will be to increase access to postsecondary education nationwide.”
Publication Date: 4/12/2023
Frederick H | 4/14/2023 1:41:15 PM
I'm very appreciative of the message. Prior to now, it's been a common conversations for many years amongst other financial aid professionals that campus leadership doesn't understand just how much work financial aid offices have to manage and the number of hours that management has to work to ensure compliance and accuracy; and it's hard to understand if the focus is on Admissions and/or you're not actually doing the work. 2024/25 will likely lead to another exodus from the industry.
Jeff A | 4/13/2023 11:53:55 AM
So, we need to staff up for simplification; Got it. Curious where all these new professionals will come from over the next few months.
Or is it that simplification will bring a flood of new students, so we should staff up the entire university to handle wave of new students to higher ed?
David S | 4/13/2023 11:1:45 AM
I too applaud ED's message to college presidents to make sure their Financial Aid Offices have sufficient resources, human and technological. That said, I am confident that approximately 1% of college presidents will read said communication, and approximately 0% will make any changes to Financial Aid Office staffing as a result.
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