 Welcome to the Counselor Zone
At your fingertips, High School Counselors/Personnel, College Admission Counselors, library and community agency staff have access to a centralized source of information concerning college planning, paying for school, and career planning information for students and their parents, as well as information concerning ISAC's programs, processes, and resources.
Counselor Message Board
The Counselor Message Board is updated each week. New messages for the week are identified by the  symbol. Items under the More section, located toward the bottom of the page, provide links to information on topics that were recently listed on this Message Board.
A State Legislative Update, which was last updated on July 2nd, contains the status of bills that pertain to programs administered by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) and higher education in general.
In observance of the Independence Day holiday, ISAC offices will be closed on Friday, July 3rd, reopening on Monday, July 6th. Access collegezone.com anytime, or send an e-mail message to a School Services Representative for questions or inquiries.
Encourage your college-bound students to check out the 2009-10 edition of the U.S. Department of Education's Funding Education Beyond High School: The Guide to Federal Student Aid. Information, including how to apply, is provided regarding grant, loan and work-study programs available through the Federal Student Aid office. The resource is available in English and Spanish, and may be viewed online or downloaded as a Portable Document Format (PDF) file.
A May 27, 2009 electronic announcement from the U.S. Department of Education (ED) provides a summary of interest rates for Stafford and PLUS loans, effective
July 1, 2009. For loans first disbursed from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010, subsidized Stafford loans for undergraduate students will carry a lower interest rate (5.6%) than subsidized Stafford loans for graduate students and unsubsidized Stafford loans for all students (6.8%). PLUS loans for parent and graduate student borrowers continue to have a rate of 8.5%.
Charts providing information regarding Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) interest rates, loan limits, and fees - effective July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010 - are available via the e-Library's Federal Information page.
A May 26th press release announces that ISAC has named the Illinois 2009-10 Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholars. Congratulations to these Illinois high school students who have been recognized for their outstanding academic achievement.
Lists identifying the 2009-10 Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholars were sent by ISAC to high schools earlier this spring, and recipients have been sent notification letters that contain Eligibility Certification forms and Information and Student Responsibilities documents. Remind your graduating seniors who have been named Byrd Honors Scholars that they must return the Eligibility Certification form to ISAC on or before July 15, 2009, so that their college will be able to request payment on their behalf for the fall term.
An April 21st e-Message encourages high schools to participate in the new High School Scholarship Programs (HSSP) Electronic Delivery System for the upcoming HSSP processing cycle (determining eligibility for 2010-11 college freshmen). In order to avoid receiving an ISAC-generated paper roster in the fall, schools must submit their school-generated sixth semester data on or before September 30, 2009. Further information is provided within the HSSP section of the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs area.
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Outreach Calendar/Events
Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) GEN-08-12/FP-08-10 [Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA)]
2009-10 State Scholar Announcements
U.S. Department of Education's Federal Aid First
State & Federal Aid Estimator
Federal Student Aid's FAFSA4caster
FAFSA Completion Information
Most Recent ISAC Communiqué:
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