Federal Updates

Reauthorization: Loan counseling
Previous Shoptalk Online articles provided summaries of the various changes brought about by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA). This week we begin a series of articles focusing on the details of select provisions in hopes of clarifying the required changes and assisting our customers in planning for inevitable operational changes.

Periods of unavailability for processing Loan Participation Program funding requests
On September 3, ED released an Electronic Announcement (E-ANN) providing further guidance on the implementation of the loan purchase programs authorized by the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act (ECASLA).

Updated integrated HEA Title IV available on TG Online
TG is pleased to announce the availability of an updated integrated Higher Education Act (HEA) Title IV document that incorporates changes from the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA).

Closed school corner
The Department of Education announces one new closure.

TG Updates

TG default aversion consultant Joe Braxton helps students stay on the right track to managing money
More colleges and universities are turning to money management programs like TG's Positive+Balance™, a comprehensive workshop series that teaches students the basics of financial literacy as well as the skills to succeed in college and career. TG's default aversion counselor Joe Braxton has been a mainstay of the TG program and a veteran of many college workshops on financial literacy. He sees his job as one benefiting students, parents, and schools.

Trends and Issues

Question of the week
If a student will graduate in December 2008, may he receive more than half of his annual Stafford loan limit in the fall term?

Common Manual

Common Manual Updates
Information on recent updates to the Common Manual.

Legislative Update

The 110th Congress returned from recess on September 4, with final adjournment scheduled for September 26. The 111th Congress will convene on January 13, 2009, with as many as 50 new members of the House of Representatives and 10 new members of the Senate, as well as a new administration.

In the short time left to it, Congress may consider an extension of the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act (ECASLA) for another year. Passed earlier this year, ECASLA was intended to inject liquidity into the credit markets and to strengthen the lender-of-last-resort program. The legislation has been partially successful, but it was never meant as a permanent fix to the liquidity problem. The 111th Congress will consider two pieces of legislation that may offer a more long-term solution, including the Emergency Student Loan Market Liquidity Act and the Student Loan Access Act.

Learn more by reading the full Legislative Report on TG Online at www.tgslc.org/lege_report/2008/lr_080902.cfm.

This, That, and the Other...

The Chronicle of Higher Education recently published its first-ever survey on the best colleges to work for. Survey results are based on responses from more than 15,000 administrators, faculty members, and staff members at 89 colleges and universities. Respondents were asked to rank 70 statements on a five-point scale. Topics included the healthiness of faculty and administrative relations; professional career development programs; compensation and benefits; and general job satisfaction, among other things.

If you want to know which colleges provide a healthy work-life balance or which schools have effective internal communications, refer to the Chronicle's survey at http://chronicle.com/weekly/v54/i45/great_colleges_tables.htm.

Note that The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a paid subscription to review some content.