JB Pritzker, Governor, State of Illinois

2022-23 ECACE Scholarship Updates: Payment Implementation and Prequalification Reminders

08/19/2022

The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) is sharing the following information to assist colleges in the administration of the Early Childhood Access Consortium for Equity (ECACE) Scholarship Program. If you do not work directly with the ECACE Scholarship Program, please forward this message to the appropriate colleague(s) at your institution and encourage them to sign up for the "ECACE Administrators" e-Messaging subscription group.

Submit First-term Claims

Effective immediately, colleges may submit 2022-23 first-term payment requests (i.e., claims) via the ECACE component of the ISAC Gift Assistance Programs (GAP) Access portal.

  • Within the ECACE system, submit claims for individual ECACE Scholarship recipients via the "Student Detail: Payment" screen or in batches for a group of students via the "Payment Request Entry" screen.
  • The maximum award amount that may be claimed during the academic year populates in the "Max Annual Award Amount" field of the ECACE system as part of the prequalification process.
    • Colleges must determine the term award amount(s) based on other financial aid the student is receiving, keeping in mind that the ECACE Scholarship is last payer, is not need-based aid, and can be used for any cost of attendance component.
  • Applications with Timely New, Timely Renewal, Untimely New and Untimely Renewal designations are all considered complete and schools are encouraged to submit payment requests for these students as soon as possible.
    • The timely submission of payment requests allows ISAC staff to monitor program funding levels and ensure that available dollars are best leveraged to award as many scholarships as possible without exceeding the appropriation.
  • Submitting claims is a two-step process, which involves generating the request and then submitting the request.
  • By submitting a payment request to ISAC, a college is certifying that the student is enrolled and continues to meet all eligibility criteria.
  • Beginning next week, payment results will be available in the ECACE system each Tuesday morning (e.g., results for claims submitted through Monday, August 22 will be available in the ECACE system the morning of Tuesday, August 23).
  • Colleges are encouraged to regularly review the Payment Results/Exceptions report to see which requests, if any, did not process as expected.
  • The disbursement of funds is processed by the State Comptroller's Office, and payments are made on a monthly basis.
    • Allow four to six weeks for payment processing (i.e., from the date a claim is submitted until funds are received at the college).
    • Refer to the State Comptroller's Website page for information on how to track payment.

Access Prequalification Data via "Student List Eligibility: View" Screen

Colleges may access 2022-23 prequalification data via the ECACE system.

  • View a listing of students who have completed the 2022-23 ECACE Scholarship online application process by selecting the Student tab in the ECACE system, which will display the "Student List Eligibility: View" screen.
  • New for the 2022-23 processing cycle, prequalification results are available twice each week: on Wednesday and Friday mornings.
  • Data is displayed for applications that have been reviewed by ISAC staff and list the institution as the college the student plans to attend [i.e., complete, incomplete and ineligible (based on student-reported data) applications may be included].
    • If an applicant submits additional documentation for a previously-listed incomplete or ineligible application, that record will be removed from the "Student List Eligibility: View" screen until after ISAC staff has reviewed the new documentation.
  • A student's record is considered prequalified if they have completed the online application process – which includes submitting a complete ECACE Scholarship Program application to ISAC and completing a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) that results in a valid expected family contribution (EFC) – and they meet all initial program eligibility requirements (i.e., requirements other than those that must be verified by the college).
  • If an applicant already has a bachelor's degree, the school must indicate that they are ineligible by selecting the ineligibility reason of "Applicant holds a bachelor's degree."

Further details regarding the ECACE Scholarship prequalification process are provided in a July 26 e-Message.

Resources Available Online

More information is available at the following locations on ISAC's website:

GAP Access Data Protection and System Authorization

The availability of prequalified applicant data in the ECACE system provides a means by which this information may be shared with colleagues in other areas of the college who are working with prospective and current students. Reports listing ECACE applicants may be generated and edited, and then made available to other departments at your institution. All personally identifiable information (PII), such as an applicant's Social Security number (SSN), date of birth, and expected family contribution (EFC), should be removed from the report before the information leaves the financial aid office.

As a reminder, so that the proper level of security is maintained for administering ISAC programs, financial aid staff must have the appropriate level of access in order to view prequalification records, view payment request data, and/or submit claims. The school's primary administrator or a designated administrator is responsible for authorizing access levels.

ECACE Scholarship Applications Still Being Accepted

The 2022-23 ECACE Scholarship Program application continues to be accepted, even though the July 15, 2022 priority consideration date has passed. Complete applications – including the 2022-23 FAFSA – received after this date will continue to be considered for the ECACE Scholarship Program for as long as funding remains after all timely complete applicants have been awarded. Based on the fiscal year 2023 appropriation and projected application volume, ISAC anticipates that funds will remain to be awarded to eligible untimely applicants.

Join "ECACE Administrators" Subscription Group

If you work directly with your approved institution's administration of the ECACE Scholarship Program – or if you simply are interested in receiving general announcements and processing updates regarding the program – be sure to join the "ECACE Administrators" e-Messaging subscription group.

Existing e-Messaging subscribers may join this group by clicking on the "Unsubscribe" link that appears at the bottom of all ISAC e-Messages, selecting the "ECACE Administrators" group in the listing that appears, and then clicking on "Update Profile."

Individuals who may be interested in the "ECACE Administrators" group, but do not currently subscribe to ISAC's e-Messaging service, may sign up at the Financial Aid Administrators (FAAs) e-Messaging page.

You are receiving this message because you registered for ISAC's e-Messaging service through one or more subscription groups for FAAs.

If you have any questions regarding this e-Message, please contact ISAC's School Services Department by calling toll free at 866.247.2172 or sending an e-mail message to isac.schoolservices@illinois.gov.