Federal Updates

Master Agreements released, Notice of Intent to Participate revised and deadline extended
ED said it would delay the release of the Master Loan Sale Agreement and the Master Participation Agreement that will be used to implement ED's loan purchase and participation plans under the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act of 2008 (ECASLA). ED indicated that the delay would not result in an extension of the deadline for submitting the Notice of Intent to Participate (Notice). However, when ED released the Master Agreements last week, it also released a revised version of the Notice and extended the deadline to submit the Notice.

ED accelerates updates to R2T4 on the Web
ED recently announced that its Return of Title IV funds (R2T4) on the Web site would be updated on September 28, 2008, to implement provisions related to the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 (CCRAA). ED said that the Web site would be unavailable for most calculations. Schools would be required to use CCRAA-compliant paper worksheets to complete the R2T4 calculation in the interim.

New teacher loan forgiveness forms approved
ED released Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) GEN-08-11/FP-08-09, which announced the approval of revised Teacher Loan Forgiveness (TLF) Application and TLF Forbearance forms and provided guidance for the implementation of the new forms.

Current special allowance rates: Quarter ending June 30, 2008
Special allowance rates for the quarter ending June 30, 2008, are now available.

TG Updates

TG completes preparations for school designations in lender-of-last-resort program
In accordance with ED's implementation deadline of July 1, 2008, TG has completed system enhancements to support the new lender-of-last-resort (LLR) provisions of the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act of 2008 (ECASLA).

TG awards $5.6 million in competitive grants to advance college access and student retention
TG has awarded more than $5.6 million in competitive grants to 49 institutions and nonprofit organizations to advance college access, student retention, and educational research. This is the fourth consecutive year that TG has awarded the competitive grants through its Public Benefit Grant Program, the company's philanthropic initiative.

TG latest Edufacts™: Economic downturn? Not necessarily for college graduates
TG's newest edition of Edufacts, a public information series on issues in higher education, examines research into the hire rates for recent college graduates.

Bonnie Brinkley helps TG's guarantee, support, and reporting team go the extra mile
Dedication is typical of team members at all levels in TG’s guarantee, support, and reporting team. Even assistant vice president Bonnie Brinkley offers a hand, manually entering loan changes and backing up team members when needed.

Trends and Issues

Question of the week
If a school uses summer as a trailer, may it certify loans for summer 2008 using the new $2,000 unsubsidized Stafford annual loan limits for undergraduates established by the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act of 2008 (ECASLA)?

Common Manual

2008 Common Manual updates available
The 2008 annual update to the Common Manual is now available in paper, on CD, and on TG Online. This update includes all of the policies approved since July 1, 2007.

This, That, and the Other...

Rising gas prices have been a boon to one industry — distance education. More students are looking closely at their gas bills, especially since most of them — some 79 percent according to estimates — live off campus. With gas prices climbing above $4 a gallon, "commuting online" seems to be a more cost-effective way to study.

According to a recent New York Times article, colleges from Massachusetts and Florida to Texas and Oregon have reported large online enrollment increases, with student numbers in some cases 50 to 100 percent higher than last year. Although 4-year institutions with large online programs have experienced increases, the largest changes have occurred at 2-year community colleges, where the majority of students are commuters and many support families.

Once a marginal expense in comparison to tuition and books, gas prices may rival these charges and surpass them in some cases. For working students already struggling to meet college costs, this can be an alarming fact.

Read the full article at www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/education/11colleges.html?_r=2&ref=education&oref=slogin&oref=slogin.