Campus Partners Update Newsletter
February 1, 2009
Holiday Closing: President's Day, February 16
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Inside Campus Partners Theresa Ehren
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At the end of December, Mike Carey, President and CEO of Campus Partners, sent a letter to campus decision-makers that summarized our investments in technology in 2008 and looked ahead at 2009. We have heard many favorable comments about the letter, and we wanted to share it as an attachment in this month’s Update newsletter. Please read on to learn more about all the good things that have been happening at Campus Partners.
Attachment:President’s Letter
HEOA Summary from ED
On December 31, the Department of Education released Dear Colleague Letter GEN-08-12, which provides a summary of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA). This 219 page document summarizes the changes made to HEOA that were enacted on August 14, 2008. The last 12 pages provide a useful chart that lists effective dates of the various provisions. Campus Partners is in the process of reviewing this guidance to determine its impact on the Federal Perkins program. Stay tuned to future issues of our Update for additional information. You may view this DCL at http://ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/GEN0812FP0810.html.
Negotiated Rulemaking Committees
ED published a Notice in the Federal Register on December 31 announcing its intention to establish five negotiated rulemaking committees. They include:
Team I – Loans – Lender/General Loan Issues
Team II – Loans – School-based Loan Issues
Team III – Accreditation
Team IV – Discretionary Grants
Team V – General and Non-loan Programmatic Issues
The negotiators will begin to prepare proposed regulations to implement changes made to the Higher Education Act by the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA). Let the negotiations begin!
House Economic Stimulus Bill
On January 15, House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-WI) released the details of the massive forthcoming stimulus package. In a press release, Obey stated, “Our short term task is to try to prevent the loss of millions of jobs and get our economy moving. The long term task is to make the needed investments that restore the ability of average middle income families to increase their income and build a decent future for their children.”
The package contains targeted efforts in:
• Clean, Efficient, American Energy
• Transforming our Economy with Science and Technology
• Modernizing Roads, Bridges, Transit and Waterways
• Education for the 21st Century
• Tax Cuts to Make Work Pay and Create Jobs
• Lowering Healthcare Costs
• Helping Workers Hurt by the Economy
• Saving Public Sector Jobs and Protect Vital Services
Efforts on the Higher Education front are listed below.
Higher Education: Tuition is up, unemployment is up, and as a result more people are choosing to go to school to upgrade their skills and more of these students need student aid. This investment addresses those short term needs while investing in our nation’s future economic strength.
- Pell Grants: $15.6 billion to increase the maximum Pell Grant by $500, from $4,850 to $5,350.
- College Work-Study: $490 million to support undergraduate and graduate students who work.
- Student Loan Limit Increase: Increases limits on unsubsidized Stafford loans by $2,000.
Student Aid Administration: $50 million to help the Department of Education administer surging student aid programs while navigating the changing student loan environment.
To view the full summary and press release visit http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/PressSummary01-15-09.pdf
Former Senator Claiborne Pell Passes at age 90
Former Senator Claiborne Pell died at his RI home on January 1, 2009. Pell was best known for devising legislation that created the program that has dispensed grants to tens of millions of poor and middle-class college students. He created the Basic Opportunity Grant, which was eventually renamed the Federal Pell Grant in his honor.
NSLDS Technical Update – HEOA Increased Loan Limits for Perkins
The NSLDS edits have been modified to accept the increased Perkins loan limits authorized through the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA). The HEOA allows for otherwise eligible students to receive the increased loan amounts beginning with any 2008-2009 award year payment period (where the first disbursement is made on or after July 1, 2008) that includes or begins on or after August 14, 2008 (the date of enactment for the HEOA). You may access this technical update at http://ifap.ed.gov/nsldsmaterials/PK200805TechUpdate.html.
2009-10 FAFSA Available
The 2009-2010 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is now available in English and Spanish at http://ifap.ed.gov/eannouncements/121608FOTWWksht0910.html. This PDF file requires you to use Adobe Acrobat, 4.0 or greater.
Important Nurse Faculty Loan Program Information
Updated Forms on the Web
Campus Partners has updated the Nurse Faculty Loan Program (NFLP) forms on our Web sites. The forms are available at http://www.campuspartners.com/forms2.html and https://www.mycampusloan.com/forms/index.html. These updates include the NFLP promissory note, deferment form, disability checklist, postponement/cancellation form, Employment Certification Form, and others as included in HHS 2008 Program Guidance. Campus Partners also created the NFLP Fact Sheet to assist you in conducting entrance and exit interviews.
HHS inadvertently omitted the in-school deferment benefit on the new NFLP promissory note. We brought the omission to their attention and were informed that they planned to “make the correction to the FY 2009 application guidance and include an “amended” Prom Note for the school’s use.”
Campus Partners also questioned the Nurse Faculty deferment form as it appeared that no certification was required under Part II of the form. Below is the HHS response:
“Regarding deferment as referenced on Exhibit J, although certification under Part II of the form is not required, institutions are required to request documentation (for the file record) from the borrower that provides ‘proof of the enrollment’ for a specified period before granting/approving what is considered in-school deferment.”
Below are the deferment options available for this program:
- NFLP borrowers who are ordered to active duty as a member of a uniformed service of the United States (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Corps, Peace Corps, or the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps) are eligible for deferment for up to 3 years. A borrower who voluntarily joins a uniformed service is not eligible for deferment, nor is a borrower who is employed by one of the uniformed services in a civilian capacity.
- NFLP borrowers who graduate and are employed and decide to return to a graduate nursing program to pursue a doctoral degree to further their preparation as nurse faculty may request deferment of payment for up to 3 years.
- NFLP borrowers who graduate and participate in post-doctoral programs may request deferment of payment for up to 3 years.
Making Adjustments to Nurse Faculty Loans
Campus Partners conducted a recent audit of the loans on our for this program and found that many had errors. In most cases, the errors were due to back-dating the borrower’s separation date. Interest begins accruing at 3% on the 91st day of the borrower’s nine month grace period. If the borrower does not submit an Employment Certification Form by the eighth month of the grace period, we change that 3% interest rate to the prevailing market rate as required by HHS regulations.
Campus Partners has checks and balances in place to make these adjustments as loans age from status to status. However, if you back-date the borrower’s separation date, many of the required steps will be missed. To avoid errors, please send any adjustments you may have to your Customer Service Representative. Campus Partners will be emailing a summary of Nurse Faculty Loan Program procedures to schools that are NFLP customers within a few days of the publication of this issue of the Update newsletter.
Link for 2008 Program Guidance
To view the latest program guidance from HHS for the Nurse Faculty Loan Program, go to http://www.hrsa.gov/grants/NFLP/.
Default on the Rise: More Borrower Support on the Way
Every news report these days seems to contain more and more news about home foreclosures and other types of consumer default. In fact, the credit industry expects consumer defaults to double in 2009, over already high default rates in 2008. It is not hard to project that student loan default rates will rise substantially in 2009 as well.
Jeff Gruwell, Vice President of Loan Operations for Campus Partners, sums it up well. “An education loan is at the bottom of the food chain with regard to what debts consumers will make payments on. The house payment keeps a roof over their head, the car payment gets them to their job, the credit card is still important as long as there is credit available because it can help them buy food and gas, but the education loan has nothing of immediate value to them since the money has already been spent and you can’t take the education away from them.”
Armed with this insight and his extensive background as a credit director for private student loans programs, Jeff and his team are ready to provide as much support as possible to keep your borrowers out of default. Jeff states, “Borrowers are already making more inbound calls, and we know we will be making more outbound collection calls and processing more forms. When we talk to borrowers, we work very hard to provide them with as much information as possible about payment options and deferment and forbearance benefits. We are working proactively to keep borrowers out of default.”
Early Intervention Program
With student loan defaults on the increase, customers may want to consider adding the Early Intervention Program (EIP) to their default prevention efforts. Designed to prevent delinquencies before they get out of control, the program offers an additional series of borrower contacts beyond federally required due diligence efforts. Past due borrowers are contacted as soon as they are 15 days past due, with additional calls or letters at regularly scheduled intervals up to 120 days past due. EIP features:
- Experienced loan counselors with extensive knowledge of deferment, forbearance, and special billing options
- Multiple payment choices
- Intensive telephone and letter campaign
- Skip tracing
EIP, which has proven results, offers an excellent return on investment because the cost of the program can be charged back to the borrower. To learn more about EIP, please call 1-800-458-4492, ext. 2270.
Advanced Telephony System Advantages
One of the enhancements touted in our President’s letter, highlights our advanced telephony system. Although we maintain a high touch call center, we also provide borrowers with automated telephone options both during and after normal office hours. Our Interactive Voice Response System (IVR) allows borrowers to make payments, hear payment due dates, obtain interest paid information for tax purposes, calculate payoff amounts, and more. The IVR is available at night and on weekends. During the day, borrowers can easily bypass the automated menu to speak to a customer service representative or they can use the IVR.
Approximately 15% of our transactions take place after normal working hours, which often leads to an automated payment, so our advanced telephone system is a real plus for your borrowers—and helps you recoup your payments.
Other benefits offered by our telephone system include:
- Skill-based call routing allowing the most experienced representative for the borrower’s loan type to get the call
- Ability to shift representatives instantly when there are spikes in call volume
- Call monitoring allowing managers to access performance and training needs
- Predictive dialer for outbound calls so representatives can focus on collections, not dialing
- Ability to customize calls for customers
With the most advanced telephone system in the industry, we offer the best of both worlds—premier customer service and unsurpassed tools for self service.
Imaged borrower documents are now easily downloaded from System 3i. Documents imaged within the last 30 days are immediately available, while documents dating from December 1, 2008 can be restored in a few seconds more. To help you get started using this convenient product, we are rerunning “How to Retrieve and Restore Imaged Documents” in this month’s Update.
Customer Satisfaction Survey to Begin Soon
We will conduct our annual Customer Satisfaction Survey during the month of February to help us evaluate how well we are currently meeting your needs and how we can improve our services in the future. The survey takes less than five minutes to complete, and your participation will be greatly appreciated.Your identity is completely anonymous, unless you provide contact information.
We will email a link to the survey to customers on February 2, 2009, and the survey will be available through February 27. After receiving the survey link, please feel free to forward the survey to other student loan administrators in your office. Look for survey results in future editions of the Update.
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“You’ve always been a terrific help to me. I appreciate your hard work and always prompt help. You make dealing with many issues so much better.” Pamela A. Wright (Email to Tomika Wallen, Customer Service Representative)
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Student Loans 101 and 202 Schedule for 2009
We are pleased to announce our 2009 Student Loan Workshop schedule, which is published below. This year we are offering two sessions of Student Loans 101 and one session of Student Loans 202. Student Loans 101 is perfect for new student loan administrators or administrators who are new to Campus Partners, while Student Loans 202 also offers a unique opportunity for advanced training. Our modernized training facility offers 20 computer workstations so you can get the most out of our personalized hands-on training.
Student Loans 101: March 5-6
Student Loans 202: April 2-3
Student Loans 101: July 9-10
Time: Day One: 8:30 AM- 4:00 PM Day Two: 8:30 AM - 1:00 PM
To register, fax a completed registration form to Debra Pitts at 336-607-2025.
Attachment:Student Loan 101 and 202 Flyer and Registration Form for 2009
To register, fax a completed registration form to Debra Pitts at 336-607-2025.
Sign up for Web Conferences !
Our Web Conference for 2009 schedule appears below. These webinars allow you to see the actual presentation and interact with our staff and other student loan administrators without leaving the office! The training is great and there is no charge--not even long distance charges--for the training.
To register for one or more training events, please contact Debra Pitts at dpitts@campuspartners.com.
2009 Web Conference Schedule
| Topic | Date |
|---|---|
Retention of Records: What's Required? |
Thursday, February 12 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
The Borrower Experience |
Thursday, May 14 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
FISCOP Reporting |
Thursday, June 11 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
Cohort: What is it and How Do I Manage it? |
Thursday, August 13 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
Where do I start? A Month to Month Guide |
Thursday, September 10 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
Open |
Thursday, October 8 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
Regulations Update |
Thursday, November 12 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
| Tips for Managing Delinquencies |
Thursday, December 10 2:00 to 3:30 Eastern |
Campus Partners staff will attend the following conferences during the first six months of 2009.
NACUBO will hold its 2009 Student Financial Services Conference on March 8-10 in Savannah, GA. For more information, visit http://www.nacubo.org/x10614.xml.
EARMA will hold its Annual Meeting on April 6-7 in East Brunswick, NJ at the Hilton Hotel. More information is available at http://www.studentabc.rutgers.edu/EARMA/.
PDG will present its National Conference for University Bursars, Cashiers, and Treasury Managers on April 19-22 in Austin, TX. More details are available at www.prodev.com.
CAASLAR will hold its Annual Meeting April 23-24 at the Lake Shore Lodge in Estes Park, CO. Please visit www.caaslar.org for more information.
KASRO will present its Spring Meeting at Barren River State Resort Park. More details are available at www.kasro.net.
Cutoff dates for January, February, March, and April are presented below:
Transaction
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Jan. 2009 |
Feb. 2009 |
Mar. 2009 |
Apr. 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Last day to receive collection payments |
1/27 |
2/24 |
3/24 |
4/27 |
Last day to receive regular payments |
1/28 |
2/25 |
3/25 |
4/28 |
Last day for online payments |
1/30 |
2/27 |
3/27 |
5/01 |
Date final post begins |
1/30 |
2/27 |
3/27 |
5/01 |
Report date used for final post |
1/31 |
2/28 |
3/31 |
4/30 |
Last day deposits created for deposit to bank account |
1/30 |
2/27 |
3/27 |
4/30 |
2009 Cutoff Dates
Month |
Last day to receive collection payments |
Last day to receive regular payments |
Last day for on-line payments |
Date final post begins |
Report date used for final post |
Last day deposits created for deposit to bank account |
December 2008 |
12/26/2008 |
12/29/2008 |
1/2/2009 |
1/2/2009 |
12/31/2008 |
12/31/2008 |
January 2009 |
01/27/2009 |
01/28/2009 |
01/30/2009 |
01/30/2009 |
01/31/2009 |
01/30/2009 |
February 2009 |
02/24/2009 |
02/25/2009 |
02/27/2009 |
02/27/2009 |
02/28/2009 |
02/27/2009 |
March 2009 |
03/24/2009 |
03/25/2009 |
03/27/2009 |
03/27/2009 |
03/31/2009 |
03/27/2009 |
April 2009 |
04/27/2009 |
04/28/2009 |
05/01/2009 |
05/01/2009 |
04/30/2009 |
04/30/2009 |
May 2009 |
05/26/2009 |
05/27/2009 |
05/29/2009 |
05/29/2009 |
05/31/2009 |
05/29/2009 |
June 2009 |
06/23/2009 |
06/24/2009 |
06/26/2009 |
06/26/2009 |
06/30/2009 |
06/26/2009 |
July 2009 |
07/28/2009 |
07/29/2009 |
07/31/2009 |
07/31/2009 |
07/31/2009 |
07/31/2009 |
August 2009 |
08/25/2009 |
08/26/2009 |
08/28/2009 |
08/28/2009 |
08/31/2009 |
08/28/2009 |
September 2009 |
09/25/2009 |
09/28/2009 |
10/2/2009 |
10/2/2009 |
09/30/2009 |
09/30/2009 |
October 2009 |
10/27/2009 |
10/28/2009 |
10/30/2009 |
10/30/2009 |
10/31/2009 |
10/30/2009 |
November 2009 |
11/20/2009 |
11/23/2009 |
11/25/2009 |
11/27/2009 |
11/30/2009 |
11/25/2009 |
December 2009 |
12/28/2009 |
12/29/2009 |
12/31/2009 |
12/31/2009 |
12/31/2009 |
12/31/2009 |
January 2010 |
01/26/2010 |
01/27/2010 |
01/29/2009 |
01/29/2009 |
01/31/2009 |
01/29/2009 |
