News to Know

1. News to Know Office of Student Financial Assistance Florida Department of Education March 2005

2. Navigating Your Financial Future • The finishing touches have been put on our Default Prevention Kit, “Navigating Your Financial Future!” Look for Jacqueline Hill to be making the rounds at the FASFAA Regional Workshops to introduce this new and innovative product to assist you with your institutional Default Management Plan. We will also be setting up separate workshops for our lender partners to show them how they too can benefit from this exciting new default prevention kit. • Don’t forget to check out the debut of our website www.navigatingyourfinancialfuture.org on March 21!

3. Financial Aid Chats • We are pleased to announce the following financial aid chats available in March and April. These chats are FREE to you and your students through our sponsorship of Mapping Your Future. If you need additional information, please contact your Outreach Representative. • Tuesday, April 12, 2005 @ 7 PM • Deferments, forbearances, and default prevention • Tuesday, May 10, 2005 @ 7 PM • Loan consolidation, forgiveness, cancellation, and discharge

4. 458 report • OSFA sends a monthly (JSAR458F) report to institutions requesting updated contact information for borrowers that we have received a request for collection assistance from participating lenders or servicers. It is imperative that schools review this report and provide updated contact information (as needed) to the borrowers lender or servicer. It is not necessary to provide this information to OSFA, as we receive the updates directly from the lender or servicer. Your assistance in providing updated contact information will help us keep your borrowers from entering default. If you have questions on how to complete this task, or need assistance in doing so, please do not hesitate to contact your Outreach Representative.

5. Guarantor Cohort Default Rate • Because guarantors vary widely in their scope of services and the mix of postsecondary institution types, comparing ‘guarantor to guarantor’ cohort default rates can be misleading. For example, many private guarantors choose who they guarantee loans for and with, and often avoid high risk institutions. Public guarantors, such as OSFA, have an obligation to work with any and all institutions that are eligible to participate in the FFEL program. We take pride in working with all FFEL program participants throughout the State of Florida. A more accurate analysis of OSFA’s default prevention success is to measure the current cohort default rate to previous years. See the comparison below: • 2001, Official Rate, 9.2 • 2002, Official Rate, 8.9 • 2003, Draft Rate, 8.6

6. FY 2003 Cohort Default Rate Calculations • Reminder! • The DRAFT FY 2003 Cohort Default Rate Calculations were released February 14, 2005. The OFFICIAL FY 2003 Cohort Default Rate calculations will be calculated on July 30, 2005 and released on September 12, 2005. Please review your DRAFT report in a timely manner so that you may review the data included before the calculations become final.

7. 2005-2006 Application and Verification Guide • The 2005-2006 Application and Verification Guide is now available on line at: • http://ifap.ed.gov/sfahandbooks/0506AppVerGuide.html • A print version is mailed to all institutions participating in the Federal Student Aid Program. Once the handbook has been mailed, additional copies may be ordered online at: • http://www.edpubs.org/webstore/Content/search.asp

8. Mapping Your Future Version 3.5 • The Mapping Your Future (MYF) Online Student Loan Counseling (OSLC) team and staff are preparing for the next release of counseling. OSLC version 3.5, to be released in April or May 2005, will give schools greater flexibility in setting up and assigning account authority for staff, as follows: • Each staff member will have his or her own user name and password to the school's Financial Aid Office Access Area. • Each account will have a designated super user who will maintain the account and approve other staff members' access and authority level to the school's account. The super user request form will be available prior to the release, while other staff members will be able to request their own passwords after the release. • Watch for more information in the OSLC E-News, on the Financial Aid Professionals page at http://mapping-your-future.org/services/fao.cfm, and in your FAO Access Area in the Spotlight area. Please contact Beth Ziehmer, customer care/operations specialist, at feedback@mapping-your-future.org or (573) 796-3730 with any questions.

9. NSLDS Changes • For information regarding changes implemented to NSLDS in January 2005 for the 2005-2006 Academic Year to assist the financial aid community better monitor the eligibility of Federal student aid applicants, visit: • http://ifap.ed.gov/nsldsmaterials/Newsletter9.html

10. OSFA NSLDS Transmission • In January 2005, OSFA began submitting records to NSLDS on a semi-monthly basis. Our submissions are processed by NSLDS on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month. The March transmissions are scheduled for March 10th and March 24th.

11. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Application and Forbearance Forms • This (revised) letter announces approval of the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Application and Teacher Loan Forgiveness Forbearance Form for the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) and the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Programs. • http://ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/GEN0502Revised.html

12. 2005 Best Practices Symposium • Feedback NASFAA has received regarding the 2005 Best Practices Symposium in Las Vegas is summarized by the following statement from one of the participants: "The presenters were absolutely outstanding! They really were the asset of the symposium.…The discussion was outstanding.” • The symposium targets intermediate and advanced aid administrators (Directors, Associate Directors, and Assistant Directors) and are good resources for chief student affairs officers. They promise to be a wonderful opportunities to delve into timely issues affecting aid offices. The next symposium will be held: • April 15-16, Chicago, Illinois

13. Mapping Your Future Annual Conference • “Blazing a New Frontier” -- the Mapping Your FutureTM (MYF) Annual Conference 2005, will be held next month in Fort Worth! The committee has lined up several great sessions for the conference, to be held April 27-29, in Fort Worth, TX. This conference is a great opportunity for professional development at very low cost! • The registration fee is $150 and registration is available online at: • mapping-your-future.org/apps/Surveys/index.cfm?reqSurveyID=53.

14. SASFAA Summer New Aid Officer’s Workshop • Online registration is now available at (www.sasfaa.org) for the 2005 SASFAA Summer New Aid Officer’s Workshop. Select the “Training” tab from the home page and you will find information regarding the workshop, as well as the link to register. The workshop will be held on the beautiful campus of University of North Carolina (Asheville) from June 19 – 24, 2005.

15. 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.

16. 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.

17. 2005 Important Dates • March 15-16, FASFAA Region III Workshop, Orlando, FL • March 22-23, FASFAA Region II Workshop, Jacksonville, FL • March 22-24, SFA Spring Conference, Sparks, NV • April 7-8, FASFAA Region I Workshop, Panama City, FL • April 15-16, 2005 Best Practices Symposium, Chicago, IL • April 21-22, FASFAA Region V/VI Workshop, Ft. Lauderdale, FL • April 27-29, Mapping Your Future Annual Conference, Fort Worth, TX • 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, 2005 SFA Electronic Access Conference, San Diego, CA • November 29 - December 2, 2005 SFA Electronic Access Conference, Atlanta, GA For more information about these events and other future scheduled events, please visit www.fasfaa.org and click on calendar.

18. Outreach Team Contact Information • Ernest Smith, Director of Market Development • 850-322-6498 • Jacqueline Hill, Default Prevention Manager and Outreach Representative • 850-212-1108 • Karen Hurrell, Senior Outreach Representative • 904-745-3091 • Lori Auxier, Manager of Outreach Services and Outreach Representative • 561-434-3993 • Stephanie Durdley, Outreach Representative • 850-322-6219 • Armando Salas-Amaro, Outreach Representative • 305-267-5528

19. Regional Contact Information • Customer Service is our #1 Priority! Call us today! • Lori Auxier, Manager of Outreach Services and OSFA Outreach Representative • 3715 Kirkwood Circle • Boynton Beach, FL 33436 • 561-434-3993 (office) • 850-212-2997 (cellular) • lori.auxier@fldoe.org

20. 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.