ISAC Update

October 26, 2016

Session Agenda • ISAC Programs

• E-Business

• News & Reminders

• Resources & Training

• Q & A

2016-17 Academic Year

• FY17 State Budget Status – The state budget for fiscal year 2017 (FY17) has not yet been

determined – The General Assembly is scheduled to reconvene

November 15 – ISAC will continue to move forward with internal planning

for the administration of our programs for the 2016-17 academic year

– Be sure to regularly visit the “Program News” section for each program for the most up-to-date information throughout the year

– A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page that addresses the impact of the state budget situation on ISAC-administered programs is available in the Students and Parents section of isac.org

ISAC’s Gift Assistance Programs

Program Acronym Type of Aid Annual Award Amount

Monetary Award Program MAP Grant

Need-based

up to $4720

Illinois Veteran Grant IVG Grant

Entitlement

Tuition & mandatory fees

Illinois National Guard Grant ING Grant

Entitlement

Tuition & certain fees

Grants for Dependents of Police,

Fire & Correctional Officers

PFC Grant Tuition & mandatory fees

Minority Teachers of Illinois

Scholarship Program

MTI Scholarship Up to $5,000

Golden Apple Scholars Program GAS Scholarship Up to $5,000

Illinois Special Education Teacher

Tuition Waiver

SETTW Waiver Tuition & mandatory fees

IL State Scholars Program ISSP Certificate of

Achievement

$0

2016-17 Monetary Award Program

• Maximum annual award is $4,720

• For all students who are not dislocated workers and whose initial 2016-17 FAFSA® was received by CPS on or after March 10, 2016, award announcements are suspended

• For independent student applicants who are dislocated workers and whose initial 2016-17 FAFSA ® was received by CPS on or after August 16, 2016, award announcements are suspended

2016-17 Monetary Award Program • Payment request functionality was made available on

October 11, 2016

• Schools can submit requests and make adjustments

• Fall term claim deadline date is December 16, 2016

– Claims must be submitted no later than 7 p.m. (CT) on December 16 to be considered timely

• Current GAP Access payment request functionality includes the ability to:

– Enter enrollment hours and claim amount

– Make adjustments

– Generate reports

2016-17 Monetary Award Program • Be sure to review the Payment Results/Exceptions report the day after

submitting MAP payment requests

• Even though ISAC is not currently processing requests for payment, pre-edits will indicate if there are any processing errors

• See the MAP Payment page in the FAA section of isac.org for a list of payment results and reject codes and/or the 2016-17 MAP File Specifications (also found in the Electronic Tools section of the E-Library)

Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) Program • Benefit request processing is done via My Zone or FTP

– Fall term processing began on September 16 and claims are due on or before January 15, 2017

– Spring term processing begins January 16, 2017 and claims are due on or before May 25, 2017

– Claim results are provided in My Zone

• Even if there is no appropriation to reimburse schools, claims must be submitted to track veterans’ usage of IVG benefits

• When students withdraw before the end of the school’s refund period, schools should adjust the benefit amount to the student so that the units are prorated

Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) Program • For veterans who are eligible for Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits at less than

100% and who use those benefits with IVG in the same term, the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits should be applied first (VA will be first payer), and any remaining eligible tuition and fee charges would be covered by IVG – The number of IVG units used will be prorated based on the percentage of the

charges that are covered by IVG

– Changes went into effect for the Summer 2015 term for courses that began or concluded after July 1, 2015

• For veterans who are eligible for 100% Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits and use those benefits with IVG in the same term, IVG would be applied first (VA will be last payer) – Other ISAC programs that cover tuition and mandatory fees (such as MAP) should also be

applied first when used with Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits

• In any scenario involving Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, a veteran can choose to not use their IVG benefits and use only the federal Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit

• A student veteran cannot decline IVG to use MAP

Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) Program • When IVG is used with the Post-9/11 GI Bill and IVG can be considered “last payer,”

IVG eligibility units will be prorated by ISAC based on the percentage of the tuition and fee charges being covered by IVG

• The percentage of charges to be covered by IVG will be multiplied by the number of credit hours the student is taking and the result will be converted to eligibility units using the standard units chart found in the program rules

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IVG Benefit Requests with Post-9/11 GI Bill

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• When submitting IVG claims for students who are also using Post-9/11 GI Bill, schools should enter in the In-Dist Amt Req data field the amount of tuition and mandatory fees being covered by IVG after Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits have been applied by the school • This amount may include charges not covered by the Post-9/11 GI

Bill program • For example, a class not eligible to be covered by Chapter 33 according

to VA rules, but is eligible to be covered by IVG • In these cases, schools should still report in My Zone the Post-9/11 GI

Bill eligibility level as confirmed by the VA • The approach should also be used for the ING Grant

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In the In-Dist Amt Req data field, schools should

enter the amount of tuition and

mandatory fees being covered by IVG after Post-

9/11 GI Bill benefits have

been applied by the school.

A drop down list includes percentage values, ranging from 40% to 90% • Schools should select the Post-9/11 GI Bill eligibility level confirmed by the VA • For ISAC purposes, the percentage is only used for the proration calculation to determine

the number of IVG eligibility units being used • It is not used to adjust the award amount

Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant Program

• Students must apply annually by application deadline dates:

– October 1– full year

– March 1 – 2nd semester, 2nd and/or 3rd quarter

– June 15 – summer term only

• Recipients who have completed less than 10 years of active duty ING service

may receive up to four years of full-time enrollment (120 units)

• Applicants with 10 years or more of active duty ING service may receive the

equivalent of six years of full-time enrollment (180 eligibility units)

• Reminders

– A student cannot decline the ING Grant to use MAP

– A student can choose to not use their ING Grant benefits and use only the federal Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit

Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant Program

• For students who are eligible for Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits at less than 100% and who use those benefits with the ING Grant in the same term, the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits should be applied first (VA will be first payer), and any remaining eligible tuition and fee charges would be covered by the ING Grant – The number of ING Grant units used will be prorated based on the percentage

of the charges that are covered by the ING Grant

– Changes went into effect beginning with the Fall 2015 term

• For Guard members who are eligible for 100% Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits and use those benefits with the ING Grant in the same term, the ING Grant would be applied first (VA will be last payer)

• In any scenario involving Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, a student can choose to not use their ING Grant benefits and use only the federal Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit

• A student cannot decline the ING Grant to use MAP

ING Grant System in GAP Access • Beginning with the 2015-16 academic year, ING Grant processing is done in

ISAC’s Gift Assistance Program (GAP) Access portal

– Processing was previously done in My Zone

• When a student submits an ING Grant application to ISAC, a record is added to the school’s database in the ING system

• Data will be added whenever there is a new or updated eligible record for the school

• It is recommended that schools check GAP Access at least once a week for new data that may have been posted

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Student Detail: Eligibility Screen

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ISAC’s Teacher Programs

• Minority Teachers of Illinois MTI

• Golden Apple Scholars GAS

• Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver SETTW

• Teacher Education Scholarship Programs TESP

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2016-17 MTI Program News

• Awards have not yet been announced to students or schools – ISAC must have a final appropriation prior to award announcements to

ensure that correct percentages are set aside for male recipients in accordance with program statute.

• Although the priority application consideration date was March 1, 2016, applications are still being accepted – Complete applications will continue to be accepted until funding has

been determined by the FY2017 state budget

– Encourage all minority students who meet the program's eligibility requirements to apply as soon as possible

• Schools should continue to complete and submit initial certifications throughout the year, in order to ensure that students will be included in all rounds of awarding that take place

• Payment processing will be available via the My Zone portal after the budget has been finalized and awarding has taken place

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2016-17 GAS Program News • Until the budget is final it is not known how much funding

Golden Apple will receive the current award year

• Once a final FY17 appropriation is received, ISAC will begin standard processing

• Schools should continue to complete and submit initial certifications throughout the year – An Initial Certification record is created in My Zone when the

Golden Apple Foundation provides complete application information to ISAC

– All Initial Certifications available in My Zone must be completed regardless of whether the school certifies a student as eligible or ineligible

– Only applicants with a complete and eligible certification record will be considered for an award

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SETTW Program News • Award Notifications and Rights and Responsibilities forms were sent to 250

eligible applicants on April 21, 2016

– Letters were sent to all other qualified applicants who were not selected

• Verification Rosters and Certification forms listing the students who were awarded in May were mailed to colleges on June 23, 2016

– Completed forms were due back to ISAC by September 30, 2015

• 2017-18 application will be available in mid-December

– Priority consideration date will be March 1, 2017

Program News for Grant Programs for Dependents of Police/Fire/Correctional Officers

• Announcements of eligibility are being made to students as applications for the 2016-17 award year are received and processed

• However, Certification of Enrollment for Payment Rosters will not be generated and colleges will not certify eligibility or request payment until a final decision is made on the FY2017 state budget

• For P/F/C Grant recipients who are also eligible for assistance under the MAP Grant, the P/F/C Grant must be factored into the financial aid package prior to receiving a MAP award – The student may, however, receive a MAP award to finance tuition and

mandatory fee expenses not paid by the P/F/C Grant program

College Illinois! • 2016-17 enrollment period for the College Illinois!®

Prepaid Tuition Program opens on November 1

2017-18 MAP • Student eligibility information may be accessed in GAP Access • 2017-18 (FY18) MAP start-up formula reduces all awards by 5% for a $4,720

maximum MAP award • Schools are required to:

– Announce MAP awards to eligible students enrolled at their institutions – Clearly identify the estimated awards on the award notification as:

State of IL MAP Grant (Est)

• ISAC provides specific language that is required to be included on or with the school issued award letters – Based on feedback from the financial aid community, the required award letter

language reflects some changes, including information that explains how MAP recipients can check the status of their MAP Paid Credit Hours via the ISAC Student Portal

– Additional information may be communicated about MAP in the award letter as long as ISAC’s required award letter language is included as written and the additional language does not conflict with it • For example, schools may provide students with the link to the MAP Rights &

Responsibilities form or direct them to the MAP section in the Students & Parents area of ISAC's website

• It is likely that the suspension of 2017-18 MAP award announcements will need to be implemented early in the processing cycle

• Will communicate to schools as early as possible

2017-18 ISAC Teacher Programs

• 2017-18 SETTW application will be available in mid-December

• Priority consideration date will be March 1, 2017

• 2017-18 MTI application will be available in mid-December

• Priority consideration date will be March 1, 2017

• Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois will accept applications until January 2017 for 2017 Scholars – Priority Application Deadline: December 1 (Decision

notification date for priority applicants is January 2017)

– Regular Application Deadline: February 15 (Decision notification date for this deadline is February/March 2017)

– http://www.goldenapple.org/apply

E-BUSINESS

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isac.org

studentportal.isac.org

ING Grant Status Example

Online Resources for College Selection

• ISAC has updated the following resources to reflect data for the 2016-17 academic year – Handbook of Illinois Postsecondary Institutions

– Map of Illinois Colleges

• These resources provide information to help students choose the college that's right for them

• These online tools are located within the Students & Parents - Before College area of isac.org

• The Handbook can also be accessed in the e-Library’s Manuals & Handbooks page and the Map of Illinois Colleges via the e-Library's Job Aids & Reference Materials section.

NEWS &

REMINDERS

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ISAC Grant Survey

• Thank you! … to the schools who have responded to the ISAC Grant Survey that was sent out on Monday, October 17 – Survey was sent to college presidents and a copy of the message was sent to financial aid

directors – Questions pertain to MAP and the Grant Programs for Dependents of Police/Fire/Correctional

Officers

• With the new school year underway and veto session coming up soon, we have received questions from students, policymakers, reporters, and school representatives regarding how institutions around the state are handling the budget delay

• Intent of the survey is to gain a better understanding of what is going on throughout

the state so that we can better respond to these inquiries

• If your school has not yet completed the ISAC Grant Survey, we would really appreciate your feedback by close of business on Friday, October 28

• Questions about the survey may be directed to School Services

ISAC Dates • November 3: College Changes Everything ... Continuing the Conversation

– Will be held in ISAC's Deerfield office.

– Half-day workshop to examine the importance and impact of students' attendance from Pre-K through 12th grade

– Details are provided in a September 15 e-Message

• November 18: Next Commission Meeting – Friday, November 18, 2016 in Chicago

– Agenda items will be available prior to the meeting via the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the About ISAC area.

– Visit the Commission Meeting Schedule page for information

• Holiday Schedule – ISAC offices will be closed on the following dates:

• Friday, November 11, 2016 (Veterans Day)

• Thursday, November 24, 2016 (Thanksgiving)

• Friday, November 25, 2016 (Day after Thanksgiving)

• Monday, December 26, 2016 (Christmas holiday observed)

• Monday, January 2, 2017 (New Year's holiday observed)

RESOURCES &

TRAINING

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ISACorps • Comprised of recent college graduates who serve as near

peer mentors

• Each ISACorps member is assigned to a community college district

• Each district has one to four members

• ISACorps members have been trained by ISAC to reach out to students and help them prepare for the college-going process

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www.isac.org/newsroom/media-kit/

ISAC Training and Professional Development Events

• College Access and Outreach Division – Financial Aid Certification Program & Professional Development

• FAFSA: A Scenario-Based Review

• What's Next After the FAFSA

– www.isac.org/FinancialAidCertification/ for information, dates and

registration

• Program Services and Operations Division – Financial Aid 101 & 201 Workshops

• Will offer again in March 2017 at upstate and downstate locations

– Monthly Webinars • Typically, the last Wednesday of the month, but schedule is sometimes

adjusted in November and December – October 26, 2 p.m. – ISAC Operational Update

– November 30, 2 p.m. – PFC and Teacher Programs

– December 14, 2 p.m. – Loan Repayment Programs

– E-messages will provide details and dial-in information

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ISAC Contact Information

• ISAC Call Center

– For student and parent inquiries, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. CST

– Phone: 800-899-ISAC (4722)

– Fax: 847-831-8549

– E-mail: isac.studentservices@isac.illinois.gov

• School Services Communication Center

– Exclusively for school inquiries, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. CST

– Phone: 866-247-2172

– Fax: 847-831-8549

– E-mail: isac.schoolservices@isac.illinois.gov

• Training Services

– Kim Eck, Training Coordinator

– Phone: 217-785-7139

– E-mail: Kimberly.Eck@isac.illinois.gov

Questions / Comments?

Thank you for attending today’s webinar!