FAA Message Board
The FAA Message Board is updated each week.
Join ISAC for the "Policies & Procedures Webinar about the Monetary Award Program (MAP)" on Tuesday, October 10, 2023, starting at 10 a.m. (CT). Further details, including how to participate in the webinar, are provided in an
October 3 e-Message.
Community-based organizations, first generation programs at colleges, universities, and others are encouraged to submit a session proposal for the First Annual First Gen Symposium! Further details are available in a
September 27 e-Message or by visiting
ISAC's First Gen Symposium page.
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announces that a newly revised Federal Student Aid Estimator has been released for the 2024-25 award year, which is a tool that calculates an estimated Student Aid Index (SAI), federal Pell Grant, direct loans, and work study eligibility. Further details are found at the
FSA Partner Connect website.
The
federal student loan payment pause has come to an end, and ISAC is hosting free webinars in October regarding how student loan borrowers can navigate repayment. Further details – including dates, times, and how to register – are provided in a
September 26 e-Message.
A
September 20 e-Message announces that ISAC has
suspended the announcement of 2023-24 Monetary Award Program (MAP) grants for applicants whose initial 2023-24 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) is received by the Central Processing System (CPS), or whose initial Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid is received by ISAC, on or after September 23, 2023. The suspension of award announcements is reflected in the
MAP system and appear in the MAP Eligibility File Extraction. Also, in order to be considered timely, 2023-24 MAP
payment requests (claims) for the first term must be submitted on or before December 8, 2023.
At its
September 21, 2023 meeting, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission approved the
2024-25 Monetary Award Program (MAP) start-up formula, which follows the 2023-24 recompute formula and – as necessitated by
FAFSA Simplification – replaces "Expected Family Contribution (EFC)" with "Student Aid Index (SAI)" and includes clarification regarding how to handle negative SAIs. Further information is provided in a
September 22 e-Message.
Due to the Columbus Day holiday, ISAC offices will be closed on Monday, October 9, reopening on Tuesday, October 10. Access the Financial Aid Administrators area at
isac.org anytime, or
send an e-mail message to the School Services Department for questions or inquiries.
A
September 21 e-Message announces that, effective immediately, colleges may
certify 2023-24 NES eligibility using the
NESP system. The message also highlights changes that will take effect when 2023-24 NES payment processing becomes available later this year (after awarding has taken place).
Remind your students and their families who are seeking ways to pay for college to beware of financial aid scams. Information is available at the
Scholarship and Financial Aid Scams page of the
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Consumer Information website and through a U.S. Department of Education “
Don’t Get Scammed on Your Way to College!” document.
Registration is now open for the
2023 FAFSA Symposium, which is being offered at two locations this fall: Illinois Central College (October 25) and Moraine Valley Community College (November 7). Space is limited and advance registration is required, so register as soon as possible and
no later than Wednesday, October 18, 2023. Further details are provided in a
September 13 e-Message.
Initial 2023-24
Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois payment request records are now available online via the
Golden Apple system, allowing 2023-24
Golden Apple payment processing to commence. In order to be considered timely, 2023-24 Golden Apple first-term payment requests must be submitted on or before Friday, December 29, 2023. Further details are provided in a
September 12 e-Message.
Effective immediately, and until further notice, awarding of available 2023-24
Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waivers (SETTW) and
Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarships will take place twice per week. Colleges are encouraged to check the
SETTW system and the
MTI system on Mondays and Wednesdays to see if any new awards are appearing for their students.
ISAC Student Portal
