ISAC Student PortalISAC Communiqué
Volume 33, Number 5C
November 2023
| Messages sent to: | Multiple Subscription Groups |
| ISAC Communiqué |
Welcome to the November 2023 ISAC Communiqué, which is a compilation of e-Messages sent through ISAC's e-Messaging service throughout November.
The articles in this electronic Communiqué have been organized according to the Counselor subscription groups to which the messages were distributed.
Questions?
Questions regarding information in this electronic Communiqué can be directed to School Services at 866.247.2172 or at ISAC.schoolservices@illinois.gov. On occasion, you may be directed to a specific contact person or area; when this occurs, we will provide the appropriate information in the individual article or message.
Join Us to Learn about Repaying Your Federal Student Loans
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators, High School Counselors/Teachers, College Admission Counselors, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange High School Participants, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange College Participants, Community Organizations, and Public Libraries on November 30, 2023.
of your repayment plan!
Millions of federal student loan borrowers had their loans and interest payments automatically paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of October 1, federal student loan payments have resumed.
To help borrowers across the state of Illinois, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) is hosting free webinars on how federal student loan borrowers can navigate repayment. To register for a webinar, visit the Return to Repayment page.
Navigating Federal Student Loan Repayments
Join us on one of these dates in December to learn about navigating repayment, what repayment options are available, and how to stay out of default.
- Tuesday, December 5, 4-5 p.m. (CT)
- Thursday, December 14, 10-11 a.m. (CT)
- Tuesday, December 19, 9-10 a.m. (CT)
For questions, contact isac.borrowersupport@illinois.gov.
11th Annual Illinois Education and Career Success Network Conference
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators and High School Counselors/Teachers on November 29, 2023.
Moraine Valley Community College, Palos Hills, Illinois
Early Bird Registration Now Open – Register Today!
Awareness to Action: Promoting Equity in Education and Careers
Please join us and register today to attend the eleventh annual Illinois Education and Career Success Network Conference. From now through December 31, 2023, the registration fee is $40. Starting January 1, 2024, registration will increase to $50. This one-day event provides a variety of high-quality interest sessions and engaging learning opportunities for leaders from secondary and postsecondary education, local and state government, community-based organizations, policy advocates, grantmakers, employers, and other stakeholders interested in equitably increasing postsecondary attainment in Illinois. Visit the registration site for an overview of the conference agenda and interest sessions.
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Kenyatta Lovett
Kenyatta Lovett, Ph.D. serves as Principal of Postsecondary Attainment at the Education Strategy Group leading strategies to set goals and improve attainment, noncredit-to-credit strategies, adult attainment, and credit mobility. Previously Dr. Lovett served as the Managing Director for Higher Education and Workforce at Educate Texas, and as the Assistant Commissioner for Workforce Services at the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development. In 2016, he helped launch the nation's first education advocacy group focused on increasing postsecondary attainment, Complete Tennessee, serving as Executive Director. He has also served as an Assistant Vice Chancellor at the Tennessee Board of Regents and worked in different roles at Volunteer State Community College.
Don't delay, register today before the early bird registration rate expires!
The Illinois Education and Career Success Network (formerly the Illinois 60 by 2025 Network) is a growing network of communities in Illinois that are committed to advancing equitable postsecondary attainment. The Network was launched and is organized by: Advance Illinois, Education Systems Center at Northern Illinois University (EdSystems), and the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC).
Apply Now for an Incredible Opportunity!
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators, High School Counselors/Teachers, College Admission Counselors, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange High School Participants, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange College Participants, Community Organizations, and Public Libraries on November 29, 2023.
The below message is being sent on behalf of IACAC.
The Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling (IACAC) is an association comprised of individuals from high schools, colleges, and service organizations who work with students on postsecondary planning.
IACAC offers the High School Counselor Challenge by sponsoring three high school counselors in Illinois to attend the IACAC Annual Conference in Itasca, Illinois from April 24-26, 2024. This scholarship covers conference registration fees, lodging on Wednesday and Thursday night (covers half of the room fee, and membership to IACAC for the reminder of the 2023-24 membership year).
The application deadline is Friday, December 15, 2023, at 11:59 p.m. (Central).
For more information and to apply, visit the High School Counselor Challenge page.
For questions, contact IACAC at iacac@iacac.org.
Join ISAC for FREE Professional Development Webinars before the Holidays!
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators, High School Counselors/Teachers, College Admission Counselors, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange High School Participants, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange College Participants, Community Organizations, and Public Libraries on November 28, 2023.
We are excited to share the free webinars happening in December. Please share these offerings with colleagues and partners! All webinars below are in Central Time. To register, visit the Professional Development Webinar Calendar.
Professional Development hours and Continuing Education credits will be available. For questions, contact isac.outreachtraining@illinois.gov.
FAFSA® Preview: On the Web
Join us to prepare for the new FAFSA launching in December. We will be providing a screen-by-screen view of what a dependent student's path will be for the 2024-25 FAFSA.
Tuesday, December 5, from 10 a.m-12 p.m.
Tuesday, December 12, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
Financial Aid Application Completion Initiative
Join us on Wednesday, December 13, from 11-11:45 a.m. to learn how to access your students' financial aid application completion data through ISAC's Gift Assistance Program (GAP) Access portal. Through this free service to districts and schools, ISAC can share data on a daily basis to identify students who have not filed a financial aid application.
Supporting Student Populations: Undocumented Students
Undocumented students face an abundance of barriers when it comes to obtaining a postsecondary education. Join us on Tuesday, December 19, from 11–11:45 a.m. to learn about different immigration statuses, including who is eligible for financial aid applications. We will also discuss challenges these students face, opportunities within the United States and the state of Illinois specifically, and resources we have found to support students in their postsecondary planning journey.
2024-25 State Scholar Announced
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators and High School Counselors/Teachers on November 21, 2023.
Unless otherwise noted, links in this message are to corresponding pages at the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) website (isac.org).
ISAC is pleased to announce that nearly 16,700 qualified Illinois high school students have been designated as 2024-25 State Scholars. Information about the announcement process is below. You may either scroll through the remainder of this message, or click on the appropriate link(s) to go directly to a specific section:
| Generating Reports |
| Public Announcement of Scholars (Certificates of Achievement and Press Release) |
| Student Notifications |
| Illinois State Scholar Badges |
| Corrections |
| Appeals Due by January 31, 2024 |
Instructions for generating reports of the school's State Scholar Finalists and Non-Finalists in the SSP system are provided in the SSP Online Processing User Guide.
Public Announcement of Scholars
(Certificates of Achievement and Press Release)
- Remember that ISAC does not post the names of Illinois State Scholar Finalists on its website, due to the differences in policies among high schools regarding publishing student information online.
- High schools may generate the "Finalists" report in the SSP system by following the instructions provided on pages 14-15 of the SSP Online Processing User Guide.
- High school staff members that do not have access to the SSP system should contact the principal to obtain a listing of State Scholar Finalists at their school.
- Certificates of Achievement are being mailed to high schools that did not opt to download and print their own certificates as part of the early announcement process.*
- As a reminder, and as explained in a September 26 e-Message, high schools that downloaded their own certificates will not receive the ISAC-printed Certificates of Achievements.
- Counselors may distribute the certificates according to the preference of each school.
- For those schools presenting the Certificates of Achievement to State Scholars during a future high school honors ceremony, counselors are reminded to keep the certificates in a location where they can be easily accessed when needed.
- A sample press release, which can further assist schools in announcing State Scholars, may be accessed via the State Scholar Finalists page that is located within the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs area.
* Reminder Regarding Certificates of Achievement for Future Years
High schools are reminded that – beginning with next year's State Scholar processing cycle (i.e., for Illinois students who will be college freshmen during the 2025-26 academic year) – ISAC will no longer print Certificates of Achievement documents. Rather, all high schools will need to print Certificates of Achievement for their State Scholars.
As part of the early announcement process, ISAC has been mailing individual congratulatory letters directly to State Scholars as they have been named, with the last batch of letters having been mailed in mid-November. You may view a sample of the congratulatory letter in the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs area of the website.
Included in the congratulatory letter is information regarding a digital Illinois State Scholar badge issued by ISAC. The badge can be displayed on a State Scholar's online profiles and social media accounts, and shared with high school counselors, prospective colleges, employers, family members and others. Scholars may access their badges by visiting the ISAC Student Portal and then following the on-screen prompts. Complete instructions are available via the ISAC website at isac.org/SSPbadge.
Validating a Badge
Those with whom a Scholar shares their badge may wish to validate its authenticity. In order for them to do so, the Scholar will need to provide either a link (URL) to the badge or the badge ID.
- If the link (URL) has been provided: click on the link, which will launch the Badge Verification screen. The badge ID will automatically be populated, so they only need to click on "Check Badge ID."
- To verify a badge without the link (URL): the person will need to access the State Scholar Program Badge area (located within the Toolbox section of the ISAC Student Portal), click on "Badge Verification," enter the Scholar's badge ID, and then click on "Check Badge ID."
A validated badge will display "Badge ID is valid for: (FIRST NAME) (LAST NAME)."
- Corrections to already-submitted data must be submitted as follows:
- Changes (for example, correcting the spelling of a name, or reporting that a student was designated as a State Scholar in error) must be submitted in writing to ISAC's School Services Department via a fax to 847.831.8549, via an e-mail to isac.schoolservices@illinois.gov, or via regular mail to our Deerfield address.
Appeals Due by January 31, 2024
Counselors should carefully review the sixth-semester roster data they submitted to ISAC, in order to ensure there are no errors in the announcement of 2024-25 State Scholars. To assist in the review, details regarding the State Scholar Selection Process are provided within the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs area.
- If a high school counselor feels that a student should have been designated as a State Scholar and was not, ISAC must receive a letter of appeal from the student and/or high school on or before the appeal deadline.
- The deadline to submit 2024-25 State Scholar appeals is Wednesday, January 31, 2024.
- Details regarding the appeals process are provided on the Appeals page of the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs area.
- As you counsel students or parents with questions regarding the selection process, you may choose to share with them the student's GPA or class rank data that the high school submitted to ISAC, and explain how that information factors into the eligibility formula. An updated Formula Used to Determine State Scholar Eligibility resource may be accessed via the State Scholar Program page that is located within the Before College area of the Students & Parents section, under College and Career Exploration and Planning.
Session Materials are Now Available!
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators, High School Counselors/Teachers, College Admission Counselors, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange High School Participants, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange College Participants, Community Organizations, and Public Libraries on November 15, 2023.
The 2023 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) Symposium planning committee at ISAC thanks everyone who attended the fifth annual symposium, including the presenters for sharing their knowledge, expertise, and time.
We thank Illinois Central College and Moraine Valley Community College for their partnership in hosting the FAFSA Symposium!
We are pleased to share that session materials are now available on the FAFSA Symposium page.
To learn more about upcoming professional development opportunities, visit the Professional Development Opportunities page. For questions, contact isac.outreachtraining@illinois.gov.
First Gen Symposium - Coming Spring 2024
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators, High School Counselors/Teachers, College Admission Counselors, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange High School Participants, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange College Participants, Community Organizations, and Public Libraries on November 8, 2023.
Dear ISAC Partners,
While we are excited to host the first annual First Gen Symposium, due to unforeseen circumstances, we will no longer be able to host it this November. In the coming weeks, we will send out a "save the date" notification for spring 2024.
The First Gen Symposium will provide an opportunity for you to share and learn best practices for supporting first-generation students in postsecondary preparation and planning. We hope that the new date will give you more time to plan to join us and allow anyone interested in presenting to submit a session proposal. Call for proposals, registration, and more information will be available in early 2024.
For more information and updates, visit the First Gen Symposium page. If you have questions about the symposium, you can reach us at isac.outreachtraining@illinois.gov.
Thank you,
ISAC Training Team
isac.outreachtraining@illinois.gov
Don't Forget to Join Us for Free Events!
Sent to Principals/Superintendents/Administrators, High School Counselors/Teachers, College Admission Counselors, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange High School Participants, Illinois Electronic Transcript Exchange College Participants, Community Organizations, and Public Libraries on November 3, 2023.
Don't forget to join us in November and through January for our free in-person events for school counselors, college and career staff, and everyone who support students throughout the college-going process.
Illinois PaCE Training – Last Call
This is the last call to register for our first in-person Illinois Postsecondary and Career Expectations (PaCE) Training since Spring 2020! Join us for a full-day training that will take place on Thursday, November 16, 2023, at two locations:
- Oakton Community College (Des Plaines Campus) from 8:45 a.m. – 4 p.m.
- Rend Lake College from 8:45 a.m. – 4 p.m.
The registration deadline is quickly approaching! Registration will close at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, November 10, 2023! For more information and registration details, visit the In-Person PaCE Training page. For questions, contact isac.pace@illinois.gov.
Financial Aid Trainings – NEW Dates and Locations
We are excited to announce new dates and locations have been added for our in-person Financial Aid Trainings! We are looking forward to welcoming you to multiple locations across the state. These half-day trainings will focus on the key changes to the 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) and how to support students and families through this process.
To register and for more information (including the updated listing of dates and locations), visit ISAC's In-Person Trainings page. Advance registration is required; walk-in registration will not be available. For questions, contact isac.outreachtraining@illinois.gov.
October 2023 ISAC Communiqué
Sent on November 1, 2023
The October 2023 edition of the ISAC Communiqué is now available for your review, and may be accessed via the Partner e-Messages & Newsletters section of the e-Library for Partners at isac.org. This electronic version of ISAC's newsletter is a compilation of information provided to Counselor partners via ISAC's e-Messaging service over the past month.
Topics covered in the October 2023 ISAC Communiqué include:
- State Scholar Processing Reminders
(sent October 26, 2023) - Join Us to Learn about Repaying Your Federal Student Loans
(sent October 26, 2023) - Join ISAC for FREE Professional Development Webinars in November!
(sent October 24, 2023) - Join ISAC for Our Financial Aid Trainings!
(sent October 18, 2023) - State Scholar Early Announcements Have Begun
(sent October 17, 2023) - Upcoming Important Dates from ISAC
(sent October 13, 2023) - Only One Week Left to Register for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Symposiums!
(sent October 12, 2023) - Do You Send Paper Transcripts? Make the Switch to Electronic, It’s Easy!
(sent October 12, 2023) - Join ISAC for Our NEW Illinois PaCE Training!
(sent October 11, 2023) - Webinar: Lessons Learned from Learning Renewal Efforts
(sent October 5, 2023) - September 2023 ISAC Communiqué
(sent October 2, 2023)
Encourage Your Colleagues to Sign Up for e-Messaging
ISAC's e-Messaging service is our primary means of communicating information to Counselor partners.
Encourage your colleagues who have not done so to subscribe through the Counselors e-Messaging sign-up page at isac.org today, so that they won't miss future announcements or updates from ISAC.
