Federal Updates

Latest volume of the 2008-09 FSA Handbook now online
ED has released volume 5, Overawards, Overpayments, & Withdrawal Calculations, of the new 2008-09 Federal Student Aid Handbook (FSA Handbook).

TG Updates

TG's 2008 Annual Training Conference offers tools to manage regulatory and industry change
If you're feeling challenged or even a bit anxious about the recent changes in the regulatory world, you're not alone. TG offers some support with its 2008 TG Annual Training Conference, a three-day event designed to offer insight about federal regulatory developments and leave you with the technical knowledge to survive and prosper in the coming academic years.

TG and University of Nebraska publish inaugural issue of Enrollment Management Journal
TG has released the first issue of a new scholarly publication developed in collaboration with the University of Nebraska — Lincoln that is a refereed journal on enrollment management.

Trends and Issues

Six ways your students can save during college
Frugality is important for students, perhaps now more than ever. In these days of credit crunch and growing student debt, it makes sense that students protect and preserve their financial well-being from the moment they start college. You can help them do that by offering some general money-saving practices that will also be useful after college.

Question of the week
Since the TEACH Grant program will become effective July 1, 2008, and schools are already packaging aid for next year, how will schools know if a student is interested in this program?

This, That, and the Other...

Various universities with large financial endowments — Harvard University is a famous example — have promised to eliminate student loans from their campuses and fund their students' education entirely through grants. This has put pressure on other universities to do the same, even though the majority of the more than 3,000 U.S. colleges do not have the resources to be so generous.

You can read the complete International Herald Tribune article on the recent trend at www.iht.com/articles/2008/01/04/yourmoney/mcolumn05.php.