ISAC Announces Workforce Reduction

CHICAGO—The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) announced Tuesday afternoon (February 17) it will reduce its workforce as a result of a continuing business re-engineering process.

The reductions include 17 staff members in addition to the elimination of 15 approved--but currently unfilled--positions.

The Commission is making these changes two months after an initial staff notification and after a thorough review of ISAC processes to ensure the agency’s day-to-day commitments to the students and families of Illinois can be executed efficiently and with its usual high level of customer service.

"The agency did a comprehensive review of processes, procedures and personnel in an effort to ensure best practices are being followed," said ISAC Executive Director Andrew Davis. "What we found was an opportunity to serve our mission more efficiently.

"It’s very painful in the short term, but these staff reductions are necessary to maintain the foundation for a sustainable future for ISAC as we continue to focus on the business of making college affordable and accessible for Illinois students."

The move is another facet of an organizational makeover undertaken over the past two years with the goal of making ISAC more agile, efficient and effective. This continuing evolution has included two past workforce reductions that eliminated 120 filled and vacant positions, the sale of approximately $3 billion in predominantly out-of-state student loans, and the paying down of $3.3 billion in debt.

The Illinois Student Assistance Commission employs approximately 400 people at offices in Chicago, Deerfield and Springfield. It provides students of all ages and backgrounds with the resources and support to obtain financial aid for higher education.

A state agency, ISAC has paved the path to post-secondary education with innovative programs for more than 50 years. Last year alone, ISAC continued its mission to make college affordable and accessible for Illinois students by issuing 185,000 grants and scholarships totaling more than $448 million.

The Commission administers the State of Illinois's highly successful Monetary Award Program (MAP). MAP is the fourth largest state funded, need-based scholarship program in the fifty states. In addition ISAC coordinates other public programs such as the Illinois Veteran Grant and College Illinois!(SM) , the Commission’s innovative 529 prepaid college tuition program. Students and families have free access to a comprehensive collection of accurate and unbiased financial aid and college planning information at ISAC’s family of websites available at: www.knowhow2GOIllinois.org.

About ISAC
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission is the State’s centralized provider of financial assistance aimed at helping students and families access postsecondary education and/or training. Each year, the Commission awards an estimated $400 million in scholarship and grant aid to nearly 185,000 qualified students, and also provides an additional $740 million to borrowers through its student loan programs. The agency offers credit-based alternative loans, a 529 prepaid tuition program known as College Illinois!, and a broad array of outreach and informational services to ensure that families have access to the information they need to pay for a college education. More information is available by calling toll-free 800.899.ISAC (4722) or visiting the agency’s Web site at www.collegezone.com.