FAA Message Board
The FAA Message Board is updated each week.
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July 23 e-Message announces that 2014-15 Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant Program announcement rosters are available online at My Zone. Details regarding the ING Grant announcement roster process, including important reminders, are provided at the
ING Announcement Roster page within the
ING Grant area of My Zone.
The FY2015 (2014-15) Monetary Award Program (MAP) recompute formula was approved at the
July 22 meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC). Details regarding the FY2015 MAP recompute formula are provided in
Agenda Item 5, which is available to download, view and/or print via the
ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission area of this website.
According to a posting from
The New York Times, the Institute for College Access and Success – an advocacy group focusing on college affordability – found that nearly one million community college students (or, about 9 percent nationally) cannot take out federal loans because their schools don’t participate in the federal program. The report indicates that the colleges don’t participate because they are concerned student borrowers may default on their loans, resulting in high default rates that could make the college lose eligibility to administer federal aid. Although most community college students don’t use loans to pay for their education, borrowing is necessary for some in order to complete their college degree.
Awarding for all qualified and eligible applicants has taken place for the 2014-15 Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship and Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois programs. Further details are provided in a
July 15 e-Message.
A new report from the U.S. Department of Education's National Center of Education Statistics –
Baccalaureate and Beyond: A First Look at the Employment Experiences and Lives of College Graduates, 4 Years On – is the subject of two recent articles. A
posting from Inside Higher Ed indicates that, despite the fact they entered the work force during the worst of the economic recession, approximately 80% of 2008 college graduates secured some form of employment within four years after completing their degrees. A
State Journal-Register article highlights the fact that what the college graduates studied seemed to significantly impact their employment status, with those earning degrees in math or science seeing the best results.
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July 9 e-Message announces that 2013-14 Monetary Award Program (MAP) late claims (initial payment requests received at ISAC after the applicable priority claim deadline) were released for payment on Tuesday (July 8). Results are now available in the MAP system, which is accessible through the GAP Access portal. All late claims received on or before July 8, 2014 have been processed.
The
2014-15 ISAC Administrative Rules have been posted for reference in the
e-Library, #3 Administrative Rules. The rules are accessible in alphabetical order by program name, or by program type (e.g., need-based programs). Rules references that appear in website content have also been updated.
Remember that the deadline to submit 2013-14 Monetary Award Program (MAP) cancellations, refunds, or reductions via the MAP system is July 25, 2014 at 7 p.m. (CT). The MAP component of the GAP Access portal will become available for only historical view during the month of August 2014. Details regarding use of the MAP system (including the MAP User Guide) are provided within the
MAP Electronic Processing portion of the
Processes area.
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has announced student loan interest rates that will be in effect for the period July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2015.
For undergraduate students, the interest rate on subsidized and unsubsidized Federal Stafford loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2014 is fixed at 4.66%.
For graduate students, unsubsidized Federal Stafford loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2014 have a fixed rate of 6.21% (graduate students are not eligible for subsidized loans).
The interest rate on Federal PLUS loans (for parents and for graduate/professional students) disbursed on or after July 1, 2014 is fixed at 7.21%.
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July 1 ED posting provides charts showing the variable interest rates applicable to the Federal Stafford, Federal SLS, Federal PLUS, and Federal Consolidation loan programs for the period July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2015. Included is an explanation of how the interest rates for these variable-rate loans are determined.
Further information may be found at the
Interest Rates page of this website.
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State Legislative Update, dated July 2, 2014, has been posted to the
e-Library. The Update provides an overview of higher education-related activity that took place during the Illinois General Assembly’s spring session prior to its May 31st adjournment, and has been updated to indicate the final approval of the state operations budget for fiscal year 2015.
The links below have information on topics that were previously listed on the Message Board.
MAP Advising Working Group final report2014-15 State Scholar AnnouncementsISAC State Legislative UpdateInformation regarding Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (for
colleges and
students)
Information regarding Employment Certification for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (for
colleges and
students)
Outreach Calendar/EventsFAFSA Completion InformationImportant Reminders calendar
Prepaid Tuition 
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