Campus Partners Update Newsletter September 1, 2008!
Holiday Closing: Monday, September 1 - Labor Day
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Inside Campus Partners Director, Loan Operations |
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President Signs HEA Reauthorization Bill into Law
On August 14, 2008, President Bush signed H.R. 4137, the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA), which reauthorizes all of the federal student aid programs including the Federal Perkins program. As we communicated to you via email, there are a number of positive changes to the Federal Perkins program that are effective as of the date of enactment (August 14, 2008). ED will be publishing “sub-regulatory guidance” in a Dear Colleague Letter. The HEOA bill is more than 1,100 pages long, so the Dear Colleague is expected to be quite lengthy, too. At this time, we do not know when this initial guidance will be published, but we will keep you informed in future editions of our Campus Partners Update. Below is a summary of the provisions in the HEOA:
Summary of Perkins Loan Provisions in the Higher EducationOpportunity Act of 2008, H.R. 4137
- Reauthorizes Perkins Loan Program through 2015.
- Increases the authorized Federal Capital Contribution (FCC) from $250 million per year to $300 million for FY2009-2014
o “Authorized” does not mean “appropriated,” but authorization is needed before appropriations normally can happen - Permits transfer of 25% of annual appropriation of College Work Study funds to Perkins Loan fund, at campus’ discretion
o Treated as additional FCC — institutional match may be required
o Transfer from Perkins to CWS, SEOG still permitted
o Transfer from CWS to SEOG still permitted - Increases annual Perkins Loan limits to $5,500 for undergraduates, $8,000 for graduate and professional students
- Expands consolidation loan disclosures to require explanation of Perkins Loan benefits that could be lost in a consolidation
- Deletes requirement that forbearance requests be written
- Loan Rehabilitation: 9 on time payments needed, not 12
o No other changes - Increases book allowance from $450 to $600 per year in cost of attendance
- Death or disability discharge of Perkins loans made consistent with how a loan is discharged in FFELP and Direct Loans
- Loan Cancellation Expanded to include, for all Perkins loans, for years of service after enactment:
o Full-time staff members in a pre-kindergarten or child care program that is licensed or regulated by the state;
o Full-time public defenders;
o Full-time faculty members at a tribally controlled university;
o Librarians with a master’s degree in library science who are employed in a school served under Title I of the ESEA, or a public library serving a Title I school;
o Full-time speech language pathologists with a master’s degree working exclusively in Title I schools;
o Full-time firefighters;
o Member of the armed forces who served in an area of hostility, at the rate of 15% for the 1st and 2nd years of service; 20% for the 3rd and 4th years of service; and 30% for the 5th year of service. - ED only permitted to require assignment of a defaulted loan (mandatory assignment) if school knowingly fails to maintain acceptable collection record on the defaulted loan, or
- For voluntarily assigned or referred loans: collected funds MUST BE returned to institution that assigned them every six months, less 30% collection cost:
o Treated as additional capital contribution;
o May require an institutional match.
Campus Partners to Update Systems/Procedures
Campus Partners has already begun looking at how we will update our systems and procedures to accommodate the changes to the Higher Education Opportunity Act. There are still many unanswered questions that will be resolved once ED has provided us with additional guidance in the form of a Dear Colleague Letter. Stay tuned to future issues of our Campus Partners Update for more information.
Our ability to monitor ever-changing federal regulations and make timely changes to our servicing system is just one of the many ways customers benefit when they work with Campus Partners. You never have to worry about making those programming changes to stay in compliance yourself.
COHEAO Mid-Year Conference a Hit!
This year’s COHEAO conference was well attended in beautiful Denver, CO. Harrison Wadsworth III , Principal, Washington Partners, LLC, and Executive Director of COHEAO, kicked off the conference with a legislative update and a review of the Perkins provisions covered in the HEA reauthorization legislation. At the time of our meeting, reauthorization of the Perkins program had passed, but the bill (H.R. 4137) had not yet been signed by the President. As noted in our lead article, that legislation has now been signed into law.
Many of the provisions now included in this legislation are a direct result of the efforts of COHEAO. One in particular is the provision that schools can transfer 25% of their annual appropriation of College Work Study funds to their Perkins Loan fund. Another COHEAO victory is the repeal of mandatory assignments. Mandatory assignment of loans is now only required if the school “knowingly fails to maintain acceptable collection records on defaulted loans, or the school leaves the Perkins program”. For voluntarily assigned loans, funds collected by ED must be returned to the institution that assigned them every six months, less ED’s 30% collection cost. This money will be treated as additional capital contribution and may require an institutional match.
Other sessions included a Department of Education update from Gail McLarnon at the Office of Postsecondary Education. Gail provided attendees with the FY 2009 Budget Update, legislative update, regulatory update, and addressed Perkins loan issues. Paneldiscussions, led by financial aid directors, included sharing new technologies to connect with borrowers, cash forecasting for Perkins loans, and contracting for Perkins collections.
Campus Partners ended the sessions on Tuesday with a workshop on An In-Depth Look at Recent Regulations. Our own Sharon Cameron, Audit and Compliance Specialist, and Pattie Mastin, Account Manager, conducted this workshop to provide participants with a summary of the regulation changes in the November 1, 2007 Federal Register. Cameron and Mastin also presented a “nuts and bolts” presentation on how to assign loans to the Department of Education. Both sessions were well attended by school administrators and well received by the group.
Updated 2008-2009 Federal School Code List
The Office of Federal Student Aid released the updated electronic 2008-09 Federal School Code (FSC) List of Participating Schools on the IFAP Web site. The list will also be available on the National College Access Network (NCAN) Web site. The Federal School Code List contains the unique codes assigned by the Department of Education for schools participating in the Title IV federal student aid programs. Students enter these codes on the FAFSA to indicate which postsecondary schools will receive the processed application results. For additional information, go to: http://www.ifap.ed.gov/eannouncements/0801FedSchCodeListUpdates0809.html.
Another Perfect Audit Complete
For the ninth consecutive year, Campus Partners has received perfect marks from our third-party audit firm, Porter Keadle Moore, LLP (PKM). We are pleased to announce that no findings were reported for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2008, and PKM issued its “unqualified” opinion, which means that it is issued “without reservation and unconditionally.”
If you have not ordered your copy of the June 30, 2008 audit report, please complete and return the Audit Report Request Form, found on our Web site at the following address: http://www.campuspartners.com/forms.html.
Click here to view our stellar audit history.
Attachment: Audit Report Request Form
In addition to an impressive audit history, here are some fun facts about Campus Partners:
- Campus Partners has been in business since July 1965 and is the most experienced loan servicer in the industry. We started out with 10 customers, from North Carolina, and today we service loans for over 500 colleges and universities across the country.
- Our customers are very loyal. Forty of our customers have been with us for over 40 years, and over 80% have been with us for over 15 years. (We will publish our
40 for 40 Honor Roll next month.) - Our workforce is very stable. More than 20 employees have worked here for over 20 years, and the average length of service per employee is 13 years.
- Our customers are very satisfied with us. Customer service surveys conducted over the last few years reveal 92% of you are very satisfied with our services, but our goal is 100% satisfaction. If you have suggestions for improvement or want to discuss any issue, just contact any member of our management team listed on page two of the Update newsletter. Look for more details about our next annual Customer Satisfaction Survey soon.
Meet Our Staff
This month we are profiling Debra Adams, Director, Loan Operations. Debra is one of our most experienced employees, having been with the company for over 30 years. She has worked in almost every area of loan servicing and recently assumed responsibility for both private and Perkins loan operations. Debra is very excited about her expanded role and has many ideas for enhancing the borrower and customer experience. Read more about Debra in this month’s “Inside Campus Partners.”
Regional Meeting
Campus Partners has decided to re-institute Regional Meetings. In light of customer feedback and the cost of transportation, we will be coming to you instead of holding a national meeting in 2009. These meetings will provide an opportunity for training, product and regulations updates, and networking with other student loan administrators in a location convenient to your college or university. There will be no charge for these meetings.
Regional Meeting plans will be published in future editions of the Update newsletter and on our Web site.
Student Loans 101 Workshops Schedule
Our final Student Loans 101 of the year is scheduled for November 13-14, 2008 at our office in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Our newly expanded training room now seats more people so register now and bring a group for this superlative training. Times for the workshop are listed below to help you in making travel arrangements.
Time: 1st day: 8:30 AM- 4:00 PM 2nd day: 8:30 AM - 12:30 PM
To register, fax a completed registration form to Debra Pitts at 336-607-2025.
Attachment: Registration Form for 2008
Study Hall is in Session!
Our Study Hall schedule appears below. Be sure to join us on September 11 for our next Web conference featuring The Borrower Experience.
To register for these events, please contact Debra Pitts at dpitts@campuspartners.com.
Study Hall Schedule
| Topic | Date |
|---|---|
The Borrower Experience |
Thursday, September 11 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
Regulations Update |
Thursday, October 9 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
All About Collections |
Thursday, December 11 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
Conference Schedule-See you there!
Representatives from Campus Partners will attend the following conferences.
Williams & Fudge will hold its 22nd Annual Student Loans and Receivables Conference on September 21-24, 2008 at the Omni Charlotte hotel in Charlotte, NC. For more details, visit their website at www.wfcorp.com.
The Minnesota Collection Network will hold its meeting October 20-22 in Bloomington, MN at the Sheraton Bloomington. More information is available at http://www.mnnetwork.org/..
Cutoff dates for August, September, October, and November are presented below:
Transaction
|
Aug. 2008 |
Sept. 2008 |
Oct. 2008 |
Nov. 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Last day to receive collection payments |
8/26 |
9/23 |
10/28 |
11/21 |
Last day to receive regular payments |
8/27 |
9/24 |
10/29 |
11/24 |
Last day for online payments |
8/29 |
9/26 |
10/31 |
11/26 |
Date final post begins |
8/29 |
9/26 |
10/31 |
11/28 |
Report date used for final post |
8/31 |
9/30 |
10/31 |
11/30 |
Last day deposits created for deposit to bank account |
8/29 |
9/26 |
10/31 |
11/26 |
2008 Cutoff Dates
Month |
Last day to receive collection payments |
Last day to receive regular payments |
Last day for on-line payments |
Date final post begins |
Report date used for final post |
Last day deposits created for deposit to bank account |
December 2007 |
12/21/2007 |
12/26/2007 |
12/28/2007 |
12/28/2007 |
12/31/2007 |
12/28/2007 |
January 2008 |
01/28/2008 |
01/29/2008 |
02/01/2008 |
02/01/2008 |
01/31/2008 |
01/31/2008 |
February 2008 |
02/26/2008 |
02/27/2008 |
02/29/2008 |
02/29/2008 |
02/29/2008 |
02/29/2008 |
March 2008 |
03/25/2008 |
03/26/2008 |
03/28/2008 |
03/28/2008 |
03/31/2008 |
03/28/2008 |
April 2008 |
04/25/2008 |
04/28/2008 |
05/02/2008 |
05/02/2008 |
04/30/2008 |
04/30/2008 |
May 2008 |
05/27/2008 |
05/28/2008 |
05/30/2008 |
05/30/2008 |
05/31/2008 |
05/30/2008 |
June 2008 |
06/24/2008 |
06/25/2008 |
06/27/2008 |
06/27/2008 |
06/30/2008 |
06/27/2008 |
July 2008 |
07/28/2008 |
07/29/2008 |
08/01/2008 |
08/01/2008 |
07/31/2008 |
07/31/2008 |
August 2008 |
08/26/2008 |
08/27/2008 |
08/29/2008 |
08/29/2008 |
08/31/2008 |
08/29/2008 |
September 2008 |
09/23/2008 |
09/24/2008 |
09/26/2008 |
09/26/2008 |
09/30/2008 |
09/26/2008 |
October 2008 |
10/28/2008 |
10/29/2008 |
10/31/2008 |
10/31/2008 |
10/31/2008 |
10/31/2008 |
November 2008 |
11/21/2008 |
11/24/2008 |
11/26/2008 |
11/28/2008 |
11/30/2008 |
11/26/2008 |
December 2008 |
12/26/2008 |
12/29/2008 |
01/02/2009 |
01/02/2009 |
12/31/2008 |
12/31/2008 |
January 2009 |
01/27/2009 |
01/28/2009 |
01/30/2009 |
01/30/2009 |
01/31/2009 |
01/30/2009 |
