Federal Updates

Public service loan forgiveness under the CCRAA
In response to numerous inquiries from TG customers and business partners, we are providing a summary of the public service loan forgiveness program established by the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA).

ED requires additional monitoring for National SMART Grant majors
On October 9, ED released Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) GEN-07-07, providing additional information on the course enrollment requirements for a student to receive a National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent (SMART) Grant Program.

Questions about the College Cost Reduction and Access Act? We have answers.
If you're like most of your colleagues, you've heard of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA), and you may know about some of the more significant provisions in the bill, but you still have a plethora of unanswered questions. Rest assured — you're not alone in your confusion.

TG Updates

Fall 2007 TG Product Enhancements to be released
In a continuous effort to respond to our customer needs, TG will implement enhancements to AdvanTGWeb™, TG Loans By Web™, and TG's mainframe processes on the weekend of October 20. The enhancements include improvements to the student communication via TG Loans By Web for both schools and lenders.

Mark your calendar for TG training at year-end state conferences
If you're planning your year-end work calendar, consider the various trainings TG will be offering at several state conference events. In the next several months, TG will present sessions on loan management, business ethics, and cultural diversity, among others. These workshops will share TG's expertise in financial aid and industry issues; they will also offer you time for asking questions and getting direct feedback.

Jessica V. Solcich Joins TG as Regional Account Executive
Jessica V. Solcich has been named TG's regional account executive for the Texas Gulf Coast region.

Trends and Issues

Question of the week
If a student transfers from a graduate to an undergraduate program during an academic year, must the school consider Stafford loans that the student borrowed as a graduate student to count against the student's undergraduate Stafford annual loan limit?

Common Manual

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

Legislative Update

Reauthorization for the Higher Education Act (HEA) is nearing completion with the 110th Congress. A mix of pending legislation that includes record mandatory increases in the Pell Grant program is before both houses of Congress. The landscape for HEA reauthorization is now defined by several bills, most importantly H.R. 2669, The College Cost Reduction Act. Learn more about the latest developments in HEA legislation on TG Online at www.tgslc.org/lege_report/index.cfm.

This, That, and the Other...

ED's Federal Student Aid (FSA) offers a concise history of federal student aid in its "FSA COACH." The FSA COACH is an online tutorial that looks closely at the school requirements for administering postsecondary federal student aid (FSA) programs authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.

One of the online course modules offers a brief timeline of the legislative history to student aid. Here's an interesting fact from that timeline: On October 4, 1957, the U.S.S.R. launched the first space satellite, Sputnik. In response, the U.S. began an intensive program to build its own satellites. Legislators focused in particular on bolstering the technological skills required to compete with the Soviets. They did so in part through legislation. In 1958, Congress passed the National Defense Education Act, which funded student loans for higher education in critical fields of study such as mathematics, science, and foreign languages. The National Defense Student Loan (NDSL) Program became the first student aid program for non-veterans.

The complete FSA timeline can be found online at www.ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/fsacoach/lesson1_2/1_2_14.html#.