Federal Updates

Loans not fully disbursed pose some risk of insurance and reinsurance eligibility
Borrowers, schools, and lenders continue facing challenges as the student loan marketplace stabilizes. One such challenge is related to loans that are not fully funded.

TG Updates

NASFAA conference watch: TG offers regulatory and borrower-focused training for 2008 conference
At this year’s event, TG presents four sessions on an assortment of topics, including the regulatory scene; the effects of changing student demographics on financial aid; managing graduate and professional student aid; and financial literacy services for low-income and first-generation college students.

TG's new financial literacy video teaches students the do's and don'ts of credit card spending
To help students understand how to use and manage credit cards, TG recently developed a series of educational tools, including a short video targeted to high school and college students.

TG training helps schools prepare for entrance and exit counseling
According to federal regulations effective July 1, lenders, servicers, and guarantors can no longer support or participate in providing mandatory entrance and exit student loan counseling to students. To help schools provide this counseling, TG offers a new training session — Effective Loan Counseling — as part of Positive+Balance™.

Tech Report

TG provides support through AdvanTG Web™ for new preferred lender list disclosure requirement
Final rules released last November require that a school that chooses to develop and distribute a preferred lender list also provide certain disclosures. TG is implementing a new feature in AdvanTG Web to assist schools that wish to provide this information in an online format.

Trends and Issues

Question of the week
When will ED start exercising its authority to purchase student loans under the recently-enacted H.R. 5715?

This, That, and the Other...

The U.S. Financial Literacy and Education Commission offers information and services to improve the financial literacy of all Americans. The Commission created a website — MyMoney.gov, available at www.mymoney.gov/default.shtml — which offers links to materials that teach the importance of saving for retirement, managing credit cards, investing, avoiding scams, and many other useful subjects. The site also offers a free "My Money" Tool Kit, which contains a variety of helpful publications aimed on improving financial literacy, including:

• The Consumer Action Handbook, a resource directory that provides information on how to contact specific businesses and local consumer protection offices;
• Get the Facts on Saving and Investing, which provides helpful tips and worksheets for calculating net worth, income, and expenses;
• Questions You Should Ask About Your Investments, which offers advice on questions to ask before investing; and
• The Savings Fitness: A Guide to Your Money and Your Financial Future, which provides guidance on preparing a personal savings plan for retirement.