Transcript News to Know

News to Know
Office of Student Financial Assistance
Florida Department of Education
May 2005
State Program Renewal Application
OSFA is pleased to announce the development of
an online Renewal Eligibility Application for
Institutional Participation in State Programs.
Florida Statute requires that OSFA annually
evaluate all institutions for participation in
these state scholarships and grants. To access
this pre-filled online application, go to:
Need
help?
Contact
Vicki
Eddy at
(850)
410-5192

www.FloridaStudentFinancialAid.org.
 Select “State Grants, Scholarships & Applications.”
 Go to “Postsecondary Institutions” and select “Institution
Information,” then “Institution Application – Renewal.”
Grade and Hour Reporting
 The 2004-05 OSFA Grade and Hours (G&H) Report is
available by batch or online via the state student financial aid
database. The report is requested from each institution within
30 days after the end of the spring term. The deadline for all
reports is June 30, 2005. This one electronic report collects
G&H information for all students who have received statefunded financial aid from the following programs: Florida
Student Assistance Grant (FSAG), Bright Futures, Florida
Resident Access Grant (FRAG), José Martí Scholarship
Challenge Grant, Rosewood Family Scholarship, Florida Work
Experience Program (FWEP), Scholarships for Children of
Deceased or Disabled Veterans (CDDV), Robert C. Byrd
Honors Scholarship, and Mary McLeod Bethune Scholarship
(MMB).
Annual Review of User Security
 OSFA is conducting an annual review of security rights
for SSFAD users. At this time, security designees
should review the status of:
 Users:
 Delete users no longer at your institution
 Change the security role of an existing user
 Create new users in the proper format
 Create a new userid in the proper format for an
Need
existing user whose name changed
help?
Contact  Contacts:
Neil
 Review and update contact information for your
Walter at
institution.
(850)
245-1915.
Congratulations!
Armando Salas-Amaro will be leaving OSFA
effective May 27, 2005 to pursue a new
opportunity at AmSouth Bank. We wish him
well in his future endeavors! Stay tuned for
information regarding our new South Florida
Outreach Representative. In the interim,
clients in his region can reach Lori Auxier at
561-434-3993 or [email protected].
Welcome Aboard!
Effective May 16, 2005, Kelly Bernhardt has joined
the OSFA Outreach Team as the Northwest Florida
Outreach Representative. Kelly has over 15 years of
student lending experience, most recently as a
Regional Account Executive for AmSouth
Educational Lending. She looks forward to working
closely with the schools and students in Region I.
Kelly’s hire will allow Jacqueline Hill to transition
full time into the role of Manager of Default
Prevention Services. Join us in congratulating both of
them in their new roles!
Guarantee Fees
OSFA is pleased to announce that we will
continue to offer 0% guarantee fees! Waiving
this fee is just one more step in OSFA
Providing Access to Education.
Origination Fees
Our current process is to reflect a standard
3% origination fee on the Notice of Guarantee
for all Lenders. If you are a Lender who
discounts the origination fee, please notify a
member of the Outreach Team (if you haven’t
already) so that we can update our system and
reflect the correct origination fee on the Notice
of Guarantees that we distribute on your
behalf.
NASFAA Core Materials
CORE is a comprehensive set of instructional
materials designed by NASFAA for training financial
aid professionals with less than two years of
experience. CORE's 13 modules cover financial aid
administration from A to Z. It includes topics such as
application processing, need analysis, cost of
attendance, verification, return of Title IV funds,
professional judgment, and more. Complete
information and an order form for the 2005-06
edition of CORE are available on-line (PDF).
Mid Level Financial Aid Workshop
It’s time for the SWASFAA/SASFAA Mid
Level Financial Aid Workshop. The Workshop
is scheduled for June 12-14, 2005 in Dallas,
Texas. Participation is limited to 60
participants, so register quickly! For more
information visit the SWASFAA website.
2005-2006 EDExpress Training Sessions
2005-06 instructor-led online training on Pell
Grant Processing using EDExpress and the
Common Origination and Disbursement
(COD) system will continue to be offered
through July 2005. Registration is required for
these two hour sessions. Please visit the FSA
website to choose the class that best fits your
schedule.
Consolidation Loan Options
Experts predict that student loan interest rates
will rise between 1.5 and 2 percent on July 1st.
This expected increase has borrowers who are
considering consolidation to review their
options. To address permitting borrowers to
enter repayment early, and therefore take
advantage of lower loan consolidation interest
rates, DCL GEN-05-08 has been issued.
Access to and Use of NSLDS Information
DCL GEN 05-06 was posted on April 11,
2005. This letter reminds member of the
financial aid community who have access to
information contained in NSLDS that they are
responsible for using their access properly and
for protecting the sensitive data contained in
the system. Please forward this information to
all staff that have access to NSLDS.
Integrated Common Manual
The Integrated Common Manual was updated
in April 2005. The online version can be
reviewed on the NCHELP website.
If you would like a hard copy of the Common
Manual for your office, please contact your
Outreach Representative.
Mission Statement
The Florida Department of Education, Office
of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA),
serves as a guarantor for the Federal Family
Education Loan Program (FFELP), and the
administrator of Florida’s scholarship and
grant programs. The OSFA Mission is to
facilitate higher education access and services
by providing exemplary customer attention,
comprehensive financial aid information, and
convenient and efficient products.
Philosophy
 As a public agency, OSFA has the ability to offer its partners
and customers something few guarantors can: the ability to
shape OSFA programs and services based on their specific
concerns. Earnings generated from OSFA’s loan programs are
used to help fund scholarship and grant programs, financial
aid workshops and publications, and to provide better services
for our participants. When schools and students choose to use
the OSFA guarantee for student loans, they are actually
helping countless other needy and deserving students by
investing in education programs. So, if a participant has a
problem or suggestion, OSFA administration listens and does
whatever it takes to implement a solution that meets their
needs. Public dollars deserve that kind of accountability in
education finance.
2005 Important Dates
 June 8-10, FASFAA Spring 2005 Conference, Miami
Beach, FL
 June 19-24, SASFAA Summer New Aid Officers
Workshop, Asheville, NC
 July 3-6, NASFAA Annual Conference, New York, NY
 October 25-27, FASFAA Fall 2005 Conference, Orlando,
FL
 October 31 - November 3, SFA Electronic Access
Conference, San Diego, CA
 November 29 - December 2, SFA Electronic Access
Conference, Atlanta, GA
 February 12-15, 2006, SASFAA Annual Conference,
Greensboro, NC
 April 5-7, 2006, 2006 SFA Spring Conference, San
Antonio, TX
For more
information
about these
events and
other future
scheduled
events,
please visit
www.fasfaa.
org and click
on calendar.
Outreach Team Contact Information
 Ernest Smith, Director of Market Development
 850-322-6498
 Jacqueline Hill, Default Prevention Manager
 850-212-1108
 Lori Auxier, Manager of Outreach Services/Outreach Representative
 850-212-2997
 Karen Hurrell, Senior Outreach Representative
 904-745-3091
 Stephanie Durdley, Outreach Representative
 850-322-6219
 Kelly Bernhardt, Outreach Representative
 850-277-2331
Regional Contact Information
Lori Auxier, Manager of
Outreach
Services/Outreach
Representative
 3715 Kirkwood
Circle, Boynton
Beach, FL 33436
 561-434-3993 (office)
 850-212-2997 (cell)
 [email protected]
Closing
Confidence in the institution’s ability to
determine our integrity, character, and
truthfulness is of the utmost importance to
OSFA. The Office of Student Financial
Assistance wants to know and deliver what
you seek in a partner. You have the right to
choose. Together, we have the power to make a
difference. Trust the Office of Student
Financial Assistance to help you help your
students. They are our future.