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VOL. 27, NO. 3L
September 2009
Welcome to the September 2009 ISAC Update for lenders and servicers, which is a compilation of e-Messages sent through College Zone’s e-Messaging service throughout September. This e-Messaging service has replaced ISAC's use of printed newsletters and special e-mail lists as our primary means of communicating information to you.
The articles in this Update have been organized according to the Lender Zone subscription groups to which the messages were distributed via College Zone’s e-Messaging service.
Questions?
Questions regarding information in this ISAC Update can be directed to Lender Services by sending an e-mail message to lenderservices@isac.org or calling 800.477.4411 and speaking with one of the following staff members:
- Sharon Bankston, extension 2826
- David Barinholtz, extension 2822
- Denise Cannon, extension 2823
On occasion, you may be directed to a specific contact person or area; when this occurs, we will provide the appropriate information in the individual article or message.
MULTIPLE SUBSCRIPTION GROUPS
Online Student Loan Counseling Among Mapping Your Future Products and Services to be Unavailable October 10th-11th
Sent to Marketing News, Announcements and Operational Updates, Announcements on September 29, 2009
Major enhancements will be made to the Mapping Your Future Web site on Saturday, October 10th and Sunday, October 11th, resulting in the temporary unavailability of some important products and services - including Online Student Loan Counseling (OSLC). These enhancements are critical due to the increased volume of students completing counseling sessions and the increased number of counseling confirmation queries by schools and guarantors.
Please share this information with your student loan borrowers who need to complete online counseling sessions so that they can plan their schedules accordingly.
The following products and services will be unavailable on October 10th and October 11th:
- Online Student Loan Counseling (OSLC) – Students will not be able to complete counseling sessions, nor will they be able to retrieve their counseling record from a previously-completed session.
- Integration of Loan Counseling – If a Master Promissory Note (MPN) is integrated with OSLC, the MPN system will not be able to query the database to verify if a student has completed loan counseling.
- Financial Aid Office (FAO) Access Area – Schools will not be able to access their accounts.
- SchoolExpress – Schools will not get a response.
- ExitExpress – Guarantors will not get a response.
- ServicerExpress – Servicers will not get a response.
Mapping Your Future staff understand the inconvenience that can result from extensive, unplanned maintenance. Consequently, they only disrupt service for maintenance when it is determined to be crucial to the performance of the site.
Weekly maintenance, when required, is normally conducted on the Mapping Your Future Web site on Mondays, between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. (CT). Analysis of usage statistics and bandwidth consumption has determined that the site has the least amount of traffic during this time so, in order to minimize service disruption, staff typically use this period to perform Mapping Your Future network upgrades and repairs.
If you have questions, please contact Mapping Your Future.
Message from ISAC's Executive Director
Sent to Marketing News, Announcements and Operational Updates, Announcements on September 15, 2009 Dear Colleagues:
Since January 2007, when I became Executive Director of ISAC, our agency and our industry have experienced significant changes at an unprecedented rate. In working with the Commissioners and ISAC staff, we have been taking steps to make the organization more agile, effective, and efficient to ensure that ISAC fulfills its mission of making college accessible and affordable for all Illinois students well into the future.
To that end, ISAC will be experiencing another workforce reduction of approximately 15 percent by the end of the first quarter of 2010. We currently employ 381 people at our offices in Chicago, Deerfield and Springfield. The position eliminations will come from both the top and bottom of the organization - principal administrative appointments as well as civil service positions will be affected. The reorganization will occur in two phases with the first beginning in mid-September and the second phase taking place during the first quarter of 2010 as ISAC completes restructuring and consolidating IDAPP servicing operations to a single third-party servicer. These necessary measures will save the agency well over
$1 million a year.
Because you are key partners in helping ISAC achieve its mission, I wanted to send this message rather than have you simply read a general press release on the matter. I think it's important for you to know that while these organizational changes are taking place, we understand that the need for our services has never been greater, and these changes will help our agency remain successful in fulfilling our mission efficiently and effectively.
The Commission will continue to focus on five core areas of operations: research, planning and policy analysis; program services (scholarships & grants administration); college access and outreach; College Illinois!® 529 prepaid tuition; and student lending. I'm especially excited about the new offering from our College Access and Outreach division - the ISACorps - as it significantly increases our field presence throughout the state to engage students, parents, and community members in college planning and preparedness programs.
I know many of your own organizations are experiencing fiscal and budgetary issues and making hard decisions as ISAC has had to. In addition to the staff reductions mentioned above, we are also adding three furlough days in which the agency will be closed, beginning with November 25 and December 24 of this year and a date to be determined in the first quarter of 2010. These dates were selected to minimize impact on students and schools, and this additional shared sacrifice will spare approximately six to eight additional jobs.
In addition to our internal issues at ISAC, we are also actively engaged with the Save Illinois MAP Grants campaign. I thank the many partners that have reached out to ISAC to work collaboratively to restore funding for this critically important student assistance program. Please visit saveillinoismapgrants.org on a regular basis for updated information.
Andy Davis
Executive Director
Commission Meeting to be Held Friday, September 18, 2009
Sent to Marketing News, Announcements and Operational Updates, Announcements on September 11, 2009 The next regular meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Friday, September 18th at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.
Some of the items on the tentative agenda for the meeting are:
The Agenda Book, providing the complete agenda and item descriptions, is available via the 2009 Agenda Books page (located within the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the e-Library at collegezone.com). The online Agenda Book will be updated within 1-2 business days following the meeting to reflect action taken.
There are no plans for a conference call briefing following this meeting.
* Members of the public are invited to provide testimony at the Commission meeting about the impact of reduced funding for MAP. If unable to do so, concerned parties are encouraged to write, e-mail, call or visit their state legislators. The saveillinoismapgrants.org Web site is the source for updates to the MAP funding issue, including templates and other resources. Testimony from the hearing will be available on the Web site following the meeting.
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ISAC UPDATE
Electronic ISAC Update for August 2009 Available at College Zone
Sent on September 1, 2009 The August 2009 edition of the ISAC Update is now available for your review within the ISAC Publications section of College Zone's e-Library. This version of the monthly electronic ISAC Update is a compilation of e-Messages sent to lenders and servicers in August via College Zone's e-Messaging service.
Topics covered in the August 2009 ISAC Update include:
- Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Important Dates
(sent August 7, 2009)
- Electronic ISAC Update for July 2009 Available at College Zone
(sent August 3, 2009)
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