ISAC Acts to Assist Victims of Hurricane Katrina

SPRINGFIELD – While those living in the Gulf Coast area continue to struggle with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission is working to provide assistance and helpful information to students and their families impacted by the disaster.  Evacuees coming into Illinois should use ISAC as a general resource for student financial aid information, including questions about the status of student loans and repayment.  For borrowers living in the designated disaster areas, short-term relief from student loan payments is being applied to their loans.  Borrowers should contact their lender to verify or request loan forbearance.  ISAC counselors will be able to guide borrowers to the appropriate lender. 

Under guidance from the U.S. Department of Education, ISAC has suspended collection activities for impacted borrowers from whom ISAC collects student loan payments.  For loans held by ISAC, the agency has extended in-school status to students who were enrolled in college and borrowing educational loans to ensure that they are not required to begin repayment on those loans.  Finally, ISAC is working with a number of local colleges and universities to make alternative loans available to impacted students displaced from colleges along the Gulf Coast, particularly those unable to qualify for Title IV assistance.  Through ISAC’s non-profit student loan division, the agency will work with schools that are accepting students from these institutions, and where necessary, waive normal degree-seeking and enrollment status requirements.  This process will make available loan funds that will allow students to continue their education, demonstrating the critical need for availability of a state-operated student loan provider, especially in times of necessary immediate action.        

In its role as the State of Illinois’ centralized agency responsible for administering and promoting student financial aid programs, ISAC will support Illinois colleges and universities to ensure that students who had planned to attend a college now closed due to the hurricane will receive financial aid, such as the Illinois Monetary Award Program grant, if the Illinois student meets the agency’s eligibility criteria and is now attending an approved Illinois postsecondary institution. 

Individuals with questions regarding student financial aid or education loans can call ISAC toll-free at 800-899-ISAC (4722).  Information is also available on ISAC’s Web site, collegezone.com.

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.