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1/2/2009
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) would like to make you aware of the following information, which may be of interest to you and/or your students.
You may either scroll through the entire message, or click on the appropriate link(s) to go directly to details about a specific topic:
UPDATES
Operational dates, and information regarding the next regularly scheduled Commission meeting
RESOURCES & TRAINING EVENTS
Upcoming CAP events, and Mapping Your Future's TEACH Grant exit counseling
HOLIDAY SCHEDULES
Processing schedules for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Presidents' Day
UPDATES
January 10th: 2008-09 MAP and IIA Program First Term Payment Claims Due
2008-09 first term payment claims for the Monetary Award Program (MAP) and Silas Purnell Illinois Incentive for Access (IIA) Program are due on or before January 10, 2009. Details regarding MAP payment processing and IIA payment processing, along with the 2008-09 MAPnet User Guide, are available within the FAA Zone.
January 15th: 2008-09 IVG Program First Term Payment Claims Due
2008-09 first term payment claims for the Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) Program are due on or before January 15, 2009. For more information regarding the payment process, refer to the IVG Payment page.
January 30th: Commission Meeting
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission will take place on Friday, January 30, 2009, at Benedictine University in Lisle. A listing of tentative agenda items will be available prior to the meeting via the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the e-Library. Information can also be accessed by selecting the link that appears beneath the "Resource Center" heading at the College Zone home page.
After January 30th: State Scholar Mailing Labels Available to Order
After the student appeal period expires in January, ISAC provides Illinois colleges and universities the opportunity to order a set of mailing labels of State Scholar Finalists for recruitment purposes. Watch for more information about the availability of order forms in the State Scholar Program News area. Remember that a listing of all 2009-10 State Scholars - displayed alphabetically by high school, within each school's county - is available within the 8th-12th Grades area of the Student Zone at collegezone.com. This online listing replaces the printed listings that were available for order in previous years.
February 15th: STS First Term Payment Claims Due
2008-09 first term (first semester/first quarter) payment claims for the Student to Student Program of Matching Grants (STS) are due on or before February 15, 2009. For more information regarding the payment process, refer to the STS Payment Procedures page.
RESOURCES & TRAINING EVENTS
College Awareness & Preparation (CAP) Resources Available for 2009-10 FAFSA Cycle
The 2009-10 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) cycle, including FAFSA on the Web, Corrections on the Web, and FAA Access to CPS Online, opened on January 1, 2009. The Central Processing System (CPS) began processing 2009-10 FAFSA data on Friday, January 2nd. Details regarding the 2009-10 application cycle are provided within the Applying for Financial Aid section of the e-Library.
Check out the College Awareness & Preparation (CAP) page for information regarding resources that are available to help your students complete the financial aid process. Several events, including FAFSA completion seminars, will take place across the State of Illinois from now through March. Encourage students to attend the event that best fits their schedule.
CAP is a comprehensive effort of the Illinois Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (ILASFAA), Inc., the Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling (IACAC) and ISAC. Formerly known as Financial Aid Admission/Awareness Month (FAAM), CAP strives to fulfill its mission through a series of workshops, seminars and statewide support with partners from all sectors of education in the State of Illinois.
Mapping Your Future Offers TEACH Grant Exit Counseling
Mapping Your Future has released Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant exit counseling as the 18th product within Online Student Loan Counseling (OSLC). The TEACH Grant counseling session provides information regarding the terms and conditions of a TEACH Grant service agreement, along with the rights and responsibilities that apply if a TEACH Grant is converted to a loan.
If you have an existing OSLC account for your school and would like to add TEACH Grant exit counseling to your participation categories, contact Mapping Your Future at feedback@mappingyourfuture.org. If you don't have an OSLC account, complete the school submission form at mappingyourfuture.org/oslc/schoolsignup.cfm to request participation.
Further details regarding OSLC, including a listing of all available counseling types, are provided at the Learn more about Online Student Loan Counseling page of the Mapping Your Future Web site.
OSLC is a free service, provided by the guaranty agencies from around the country - including ISAC - that sponsor Mapping Your Future, as well as the Friends that support the organization. All of the counseling sessions are guarantor and lender neutral.
HOLIDAY SCHEDULES
January 19th: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
February 16th: Presidents' Day
In observance of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Presidents' Day holidays, ISAC offices will be closed on Monday, January 19th and on Monday, February 16th, respectively. Our offices will reopen on the Tuesday following each holiday.
Loan records received at ISAC on the holidays, as well as disbursement records received at the National Disbursement Network (NDN), will be processed the following business day. This means that, for each holiday that falls on a Monday, CommonLine or Common Account Maintenance (CAM) files will be processed on the following Tuesday, with results available on Wednesday (or the next available day for any schools opting to receive NDN files on specific days of the week). Note that ELM Resources will continue to process and transmit files on the holidays.
Although ISAC's offices will be closed on those days, MAPnet will be available during regularly scheduled hours and will reflect records processed by the Central Processing System (CPS) through the Friday immediately preceding each respective holiday. MAP payment requests submitted from 5 p.m. (CT) the preceding Friday through 5 p.m. (CT) the following Tuesday will be processed Tuesday night, and payment results (which will show late claim indicators for 1st term claims) will be available via MAPnet on Wednesday morning.
For Assistance
Remember that you can access collegezone.com anytime, or send an e-mail message to ISAC's School Services Department. With the exception of holidays, ISAC staff will review and respond to messages during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. CT).
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