Brought to you by:

Attigo®. Get free online training on important topics related to default management, professional development, student success, and business solutions through SmartSessions™. Presented by certified trainers with decades of experience, our sessions keep you a step ahead in an ever-changing world. Join us for an upcoming presentation. Get started at attigo.com.

In a speech at a veterans convention in Kentucky Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced that veterans who are deemed totally and permanently disabled will automatically have their loans forgiven, in effect replacing their need to actually request loan forgiveness. This action had been under consideration at the Department of Education (ED) for some time, and comes after a bipartisan group of lawmakers requested ED to expedite loan forgiveness for veterans who had service-related disabilities.

NASFAA today released its updated recommendations for Congress as it navigates the process of restructuring federal student aid programs through the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA). NASFAA’s recommendations span strengthening need-based aid through the Pell Grant program and simplifying the FAFSA, to consolidating loan repayment plans and standardizing language in financial aid aid offers. NASFAA urges Congress to codify prior-prior year (PPY), eliminate student loan origination fees, and expand data-sharing between the Department of Education and the Internal Revenue Service. Read the full document to learn more about NASFAA’s priorities for the HEA.

Initially reported in spring 2019, schools are again observing increased combat pay reporting on the FAFSA. At NASFAA’s request in the spring, the Department of Education's Office of Federal Student Aid has been researching the issue. NASFAA has recently inquired about the status of their investigation and will share any information we receive in Today's News. For more on the issue, refer back to our March 28 Today's News article on the subject. 

This edition of the Capitol Recap includes a bill that would establish guidelines and add consumer protections to income-share agreements (ISAs), as well as another bill that would work to fix some of the issues with the TEACH Grant program. In total, 27 different student aid-related bills were introduced in July. Mirroring the national discussion around student debt, many of these bills focused on loan repayment and consumer information. NASFAA’s Capitol Recap provides summaries of each bill introduced in July, while the NASFAA Legislative Tracker provides a comprehensive list of all student aid-related bills introduced so far this session.

Each year, NASFAA presents awards to deserving members of the financial aid profession and higher education community during the National Conference. Let's take a moment to congratulate the winner of the 2019 Gold Star Award, which recognizes innovative ideas in the financial aid arena at any level, targeted toward any constituency. Congratulations to the Southern Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (SASFAA) for its State President’s Guidebook! Take a look back at past recipients of the Gold Star Award, and see all of the 2019 award recipients.

NASFAA is collaborating with Google Education team to survey financial aid administrators. During this study, participants will share information about financial aid for post-secondary education in order to help the Google Education team better understand student needs and enhance future products. Google is currently scheduling participants for video sessions that will be conducted remotely.

During the period July 26-28, 2019, Federal Student Aid implemented additional Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System functionality that supports the Campus-Based programs and the processing of federal Pell Grant, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant, Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant, and William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) awards for the 2019–20 Award Year. 

VIEW NEXT ISSUE

Contact us to submit questions, content or to purchase advertisements.