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June 2006
Welcome to the June 2006 ISAC Update for Financial Aid Administrators and Business Officers. This version of the electronic ISAC Update is a compilation of e-Messages sent through College Zone’s e-Messaging service throughout June. This e-Messaging service has replaced ISAC’s use of printed newsletters, the ILASFAA ListServ, 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 FAA 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 School Services at 866.247.2172 or at schoolservices@isac.org. 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 Summer Update Conference Calls to be Held in July Please join us on one of the following dates/times:
Registration for the conference calls is not required.  2006-07 Recompute Formula to be Reflected in MAPnet on June 27th 2006-07 MAP Recompute Formula Approved - Students Benefit from Lower Reduction Factor Additional MAP Funding Allows for Lower Reduction Factor As indicated in a June 13th e-Message, the final FY2007 budget includes a larger-than-anticipated increase in MAP funding. The 2006-07 recompute formula approved by the Commission is based on the total appropriation for FY2007 of $384.8 million, which is $34.4 million over the FY2006 appropriation. Changes to the start-up formula, approved for the recompute formula at the June 16th Commission meeting, include:
Current projections indicate that these formula changes could allow 2006-07 MAP award announcements to be made through the end of August. Note that MAP priority consideration dates remain in effect for the 2006-07 academic year. In order to receive full-year award consideration, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) receipt date for continuing applicants (i.e., those applicants who submitted a FAFSA for the 2005-06 academic year) must be on or before August 15, 2006. Details of the 2006-07 MAP recompute formula are available in Table 4: Staff Recommendation for FY2007 MAP Recompute Formula, located on page 8-7 of Item 8 of the June 16, 2006 Agenda Book. The 2006-07 MAP start-up formula is also provided on this same page, as Table 3: FY2007 MAP Start-Up Formula. Recompute Formula Will Be Reflected in MAPnet in Late June ISAC anticipates that MAPnet will be available for awards to be calculated using the recompute formula in late June. You will be notified via this College Zone e-Messaging service once a specific date has been determined. At that time, we will also notify you regarding the date(s) on which the 2006-07 MAPnet system will be temporarily unavailable in order to allow recompute to be moved into production. Further Recompute Information College Zone's 2006-07 MAP Formula section (which can be accessed from the MAP Formula area of the MAP section in the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs portion of the FAA Zone), including the 2006-07 Hand Calculation Forms page, has been updated to reflect the recompute formula. Other Commission Meeting Action At its June 16th meeting, the Commission also took action on the following items. Details are provided in the June 16th Agenda Book, which can be accessed from the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission page at collegezone.com. Specific agenda items may also be accessed by clicking on the appropriate link(s) below.
MAP Recompute Agenda Item; Executive Briefing Scheduled Each year, ISAC is responsible for adopting an allocation formula for MAP. Typically, once the governor and General Assembly take action on the budget (which was signed on May 22nd), the Commission revisits the MAP formula and approves a "recompute" formula that is updated from the formula used at start-up. The final FY2007 budget includes a larger-than-anticipated increase in MAP funding, a total of $34.4 million over the FY2006 appropriation. The total appropriation for FY2007 is $384.8 million, of which $354.3 million is from state general revenue funds, $26.8 million is from ISAC's Student Loan Operating Fund (SLOF) and $3.7 million is from federal LEAP/SLEAP funds. Based on the increase in MAP funding, a recompute formula which replaces the existing 9% reduction factor with a 2% reduction factor is being recommended to the Commission. This recommended formula strikes a balance between the formula changes suggested by the ILASFAA Formula Committee and what is perceived to be the intent of the legislature when it approved the additional funds. In summary, it is anticipated that the Commission will take action on an FY2007 recompute formula that contains the following elements:
Executive Briefing Conference Call - Tuesday, June 20th Executive Director Larry Matejka will offer an Executive Briefing Conference Call on Tuesday, June 20th to provide an update on a variety of ISAC-related topics, including an overview of the results of the Commission meeting. The conference call, for financial aid staff at the Director or upper management level, will be held at 10 a.m. To participate, dial 888.767.9380 and enter passcode 9767339#. Items which will be discussed during the call include:
New Student Loan Interest Rates Effective July 1st The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has released an Electonic Announcement itemizing the interest rates for fixed rate and variable rate Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) Stafford and PLUS loans, effective July 1, 2006. Loans with first dibursements on or after July 1, 2006:
Loans with first disbursements between July 1, 1998 and June 30, 2006:
Further details - including interest rates for Federal Consolidation Loans - are available in the Electronic Announcement, or on College Zone's Interest Rates page.
Financial Aid Administrator Academic Competitiveness Grant Program - No Additional "Rigorous" Illinois Programs
If any of your students and their families are seeking more information about the grants, please refer them to the appropriate Zone of collegezone.com. All five Zones - Student, Parent, Counselor, FAA, and Lender - now include information about these federal grants. Financial aid professionals can find a Q & A document about the new grants in the Federal Information area of the e-Library. A second Q & A document, designed as a follow-up to ISAC's recent HERA Conference Call trainings, also containing information about these grants, will be posted to collegezone.com in the near future. Be watching the Message Board of your Zone for the announcement.
Public Schools - Participating in the ING Grant and IVG Programs IVG Eligibility Data Now Available Online Sent on June 30, 2006 IVG Eligibility at My Zone replaces the CD-ROMs that had previously been mailed to colleges. Now Available The initial release of IVG Eligibility at My Zone includes:
Plans are underway to add report functionality to IVG Eligibility at My Zone. Further information about this upcoming enhancement will be provided via the College Zone e-Messaging service and the IVG Program News area at collegezone.com. Accessing IVG Eligibility at My Zone My Zone is a portal available in the FAA Zone at collegezone.com that allows colleges online access to student-specific data in a secure environment. If your college is currently signed up to participate in My Zone, ask the My Zone Administrator in your office to grant you access to IVG Eligibility at My Zone. For complete information and instructions to access your college's IVG eligibility data, proceed to the FAA Zone front page and select the My Zone Quick Link in the right margin of the page. If your college has not yet signed up to participate in My Zone, proceed to the FAA Zone front page and select the My Zone Quick Link.
MAPnet Users MAP Recompute Formula Successfully Implemented - 2006-07 MAPnet System Available All 2006-07 Institutional Student Information Report (ISIR) records received from the Central Processing System (CPS) on or before Friday, June 23rd have now been updated to reflect eligibility using the 2006-07 MAP recompute formula. On Wednesday, June 28th, ISIR information will be current through Tuesday, June 27th (today). At that time, we will return to daily processing of ISIR data. As a reminder, the 2006-07 MAP Formula section at collegezone.com has been updated to reflect the recompute formula. As always, please refer to MAP Program News for the most up to date information.
FFELP PARTICIPANTS
Latest School DAAR Report Available Sent on June 6, 2006 and on June 19, 2006 The Notification of Student Loan Borrower DAAR Status report (School DAAR Report) for your school is now available on College Zone's My Zone. This online version has replaced the paper rosters ISAC sent in the past. The School DAAR Report is non-cumulative and is available twice a month to those institutions with students for whom ISAC, as the guarantor, has received a Default Aversion Assistance Request (DAAR) during the reporting time period. Each time a new School DAAR Report is made available online, an e-Message will be sent to the "FFELP Participants" e-Messaging subscription group. Accessing School DAAR Reports at My Zone My Zone is a portal available in the FAA Zone at collegezone.com that allows postsecondary schools online access to student-specific data in a secure environment. If you have not yet signed up to participate in My Zone, proceed to the FAA Zone front page and select the My Zone Quick Link. For complete information and instructions to access your school's DAAR Report, proceed to the FAA Zone front page and select the My Zone Quick Link in the right margin of the page. ISAC UPDATE GROUP Electronic ISAC Update for May 2006 Available at College Zone Topics covered in the May 2006 ISAC Update include:
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