ED issues important guidance regarding changes to Federal Pell Grant Program
ED published Dear Colleague Letter P-11-02, which provides guidance about changes resulting from the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act of 2011. This law contains a provision that repeals Section 401 (b)(5) of the Higher Education Act (HEA), which allows an eligible student to receive a scheduled second Pell grant.

New guidance on state authorization rule issued
ED issued additional guidance in Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) GEN-11-11 to clarify the Program Integrity final rule topic of state authorization as it relates to distance education.

Gainful employment focus: Determining if an educational program is subject to GE rules
The Higher Education Act (HEA) and current federal regulations specify that a Title IV-eligible program must either lead to a degree or prepare students for gainful employment. This article will focus on the three types of schools eligible to participate in the Title IV programs, and outline which of their programs are subject to the GE rules.

TG conference presenters provide updates on federal and state issues
At last week's TG Annual Training Conference, attendees heard the latest news from representatives at federal and state levels concerning appropriations, policy, and other major issues of the day.

Best-selling financial literacy author Ramit Sethi provides keynote speech at TG conference
Ramit Sethi, author of the New York Times bestseller I Will Teach You To Be Rich, opened the 2011 TG Annual Training Conference. In his address, Sethi considered how psychology and persuasion can affect a consumer's personal financial behavior.

TG debuts online learning environment for students, the TG Learning Center
A session at last week's TG conference offered a preview of a new way to access TG's financial literacy materials — the Web-based TG Learning Center.

Study finds that many borrowers have loans in delinquency at some point
According to a recently released study conducted by the Institute of Higher Education Policy (IHEP), loan delinquency affects more borrowers than default and, as such, may constitute a greater threat to the financial well-being of borrowers.

TG conference session offers insight on financial decision-making
At last week's TG conference, Dr. Kim Davis of Texas State University and Dr. Ryan Hailey of George Fox University gave an engaging presentation on the interplay between economic theory and psychological reality.