GSFC 411 e-newsletter [Feb. 2009]

Welcome to the Online GSFC411 Newsletter Archive
FEBRUARY 2009 Newsletter
GAcollege411 Partner Update The latest news about the GAcollege411 website. View Update
FAFSA Assistance during Financial Aid Awareness Month During the month of February, GSFC staff will offer assistance for all students and their families in need of completing the FAFSA. Read Full Article
Transcript Exchange Update The high school Transcript Exchange process for 2009 Preliminary HOPE GPA calculation is well underway. Read Full Article
February and March Training Sessions The Learning Resources Department is pleased to share upcoming academies, webinars, and classroom instructor-led courses available to you. Read Full Article
GSFC Hosts "College, Yes You Can" Day GSFC recently hosted "College, Yes You Can" Day that brought over 130 students and high school counselors to the State Capitol. Read Full Article
10 Million Loan Counseling Sessions Completed on Mapping Your Future Mapping Your Future recently reached a major milestone when a student completed the ten millionth Online Student Loan Counseling session on Mapping Your Future website. Read Full Article
Compliance Corner Compliance Corner features policies and procedures and frequently asked questions regarding Compliance reviews of GSFC's scholarship and grant programs. Read Full Article
Georgia Student Finance Commission 2082 East Exchange Place Tucker, Georgia 30084 (770) 724-9000 or 1-800-505-GSFC (4732) FAX (770) 724-9089

FAFSA Help during Financial Aid Awareness Month
For some students, financial aid is what determines whether or not they are able to continue their education after high school. During the month of February, our Client Services staff will offer assistance for all students and their families in need of completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). We will have staff available from 12 p.m. until 2 p.m., Monday through Friday at our facility in Tucker, Georgia. We will also accommodate evening appointments as requested. Filling out a FAFSA requires both the student's and parents' tax information; therefore it is extremely important that the family bring their 2008 Federal Income Tax information with them. If you have a family that would like to make an appointment for FAFSA assistance, please have them call Wanda Simmons at 1-800-505-4732 ext. 9071 or email at wandas@gsfc.org.
Georgia Student Finance Commission 2082 East Exchange Place Tucker, Georgia 30084 (770) 724-9000 or 1-800-505-GSFC (4732) FAX (770) 724-9089

Transcript Exchange Update
The high school Transcript Exchange process for 2009 Preliminary HOPE GPA calculation is well under way. The deadline for submission of the Preliminary HOPE GPA is February 15, 2009.
Out of 665 high schools and an estimated 100,000 senior students:
402 schools uploaded transcripts and received GPA calculations 116 schools verified their GPA results 75,722 senior students were uploaded and calculated 15,641 senior students GPA calculations were verified by their school
The HOPE Progress Report for ninth through eleventh grade students is also available. The service will allow students, parents and counselors to monitor a students' progress towards HOPE eligibility as early as the ninth grade. Underclassmen can now view and monitor their progress in the same manner that seniors access their HOPE GPA. Instructions on this process can be found at "How to view your HOPE GPA" under Latest News and Announcements on GAcollege411.
The 2009 Final HOPE GPA process will begin in early May, with a deadline for submission and verification of all results by June 30, 2009.
Georgia Student Finance Commission 2082 East Exchange Place Tucker, Georgia 30084 (770) 724-9000 or 1-800-505-GSFC (4732) FAX (770) 724-9089

February and March Training Sessions
The Learning Resources Department at GSFC is pleased to share our calendar for the months of February and March, and we invite you to register for the academies, webinars, and classroom instructor-led courses available to you. Click here to view the class announcement.
In addition, we recently completed our fourth New Financial Aid Officers Academy, which has been designed to provide newcomers to the world of student financial aid with intensive hands-on training in all the basics. A total of sixty-one financial aid professionals from all over the state of Georgia have attended the Academy.
These comments were made by attendees at our latest Academy, which was held in January 2009 at Central Georgia Technical School in Macon, GA:
"I found the training very fundamental. I gained a lot of knowledge and hope to return for additional training throughout my financial aid career." -Financial Aid Administrator
"I loved the workshop! What I learned will greatly benefit me in working with students in the program and with the financial aid offices of colleges. The instructors were fabulous - so knowledgeable and so personable. I'll probably send my assistant to the next academy." -Senior Program Manager, Non-Profit Scholarship Provider
Georgia Student Finance Commission 2082 East Exchange Place Tucker, Georgia 30084 (770) 724-9000 or 1-800-505-GSFC (4732) FAX (770) 724-9089

GSFC Hosts "College, Yes You Can" Day
The Georgia Student Finance Commission recently hosted "College, Yes You Can" Day that brought over 130 students and high school counselors to the State Capitol. During the event, students representing Chamblee High, Winder Barrow High, Hiram High, South Cobb High, South Gwinnett High and Pathway Christian School, learned more about the resources available to help them plan, apply and pay for a higher education. "The future success of our young people depends on the availability, quality, and accessibility to higher educational opportunities which ensures a well educated and highly trained world class workforce," said Tim Connell, president of the Georgia Student Finance Commission. To kick off the event, Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle encouraged the students to take advantage of the GAcollege411 website, and explore its many offerings such as: career options, apply for college admissions, and compare and select a Georgia college or university. He also read a proclamation declaring January 26, 2009 as College, Yes You Can Day. In addition, Susan Atkins, Assistant Director, Student Support Services, Forsyth County Schools and Bob Carnaroli, Head Counselor, West Forsyth High School; Mike Augustine, Director of Admissions, Georgia College and State University; and Pennie Strong, President, Georgia Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators shared the importance of planning for college, exploring financial aid options to pay for college, and taking advantage of all the services offered by the state of Georgia to help them fulfill their dreams of higher education. There were several computer stations available for students to plan, apply and pay for college, set up My 411 accounts and the newest computer station allowed students to ask questions about filling out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application. "As the state agency that connects Georgians to resources and services about college planning, we are pleased that students walked away from `College, Yes You Can' Day with great advice and direction on every aspect of pursuing an education beyond high school," added Connell.
Georgia Student Finance Commission Regional Representatives, Linda Attebery and Thomas Flythe speaking with a student about how to plan, apply and pay for college during College, Yes You Can
Day at the Georgia State Capitol, on January 26, 2009.
Georgia Student Finance Commission 2082 East Exchange Place Tucker, Georgia 30084 (770) 724-9000 or 1-800-505-GSFC (4732) FAX (770) 724-9089

10 Million Loan Counseling Sessions Completed
on Mapping Your Future
Mapping Your Future reached a major milestone on Monday, January 12, when a student from Blue Mountain Community College, Pendleton, Oregon completed the ten millionth Online Student Loan Counseling session on the Mapping Your Future website (MappingYourFuture.org).
"This milestone is more than just an accomplishment for Mapping Your Future. It represents the millions of students and families that have been helped with important student loan and money management information, " said Cathy Mueller, executive director of Mapping Your Future. "This milestone could not have been reached without the thousands of schools in the United States and around the world that participate in the loan counseling and the guaranty agencies and other financial aid industry organizations that make this free service possible."
Online Student Loan Counseling helps schools meet federal loan counseling requirements and student loan borrowers understand their rights and obligations. The interactive nature of Online Student Loan Counseling ensures students fully participate in learning about student loan management making Online Student Loan Counseling an important default prevention tool. In addition to enabling schools and students to meet federal loan counseling requirements conveniently, Online Student Loan Counseling does not limit student choice of lenders and/or guarantors. Currently more than 3,490 schools in the United States and around the world use Mapping Your Future's counseling services.
Mapping Your Future released OSLC in 1997 and today offers eighteen different counseling sessions:
Stafford entrance counseling (English and Spanish) Stafford exit counseling (English and Spanish) Perkins entrance counseling Perkins exit counseling Stafford and Perkins combined entrance counseling Stafford and Perkins combined exit counseling Federal Nursing entrance counseling Federal Nursing exit counseling Health Professions Student Loan entrance counseling Health Professions Student Loan exit counseling Grad PLUS entrance counseling Grad PLUS exit counseling Stafford and Grad PLUS entrance counseling Stafford and Grad PLUS exit counseling TEACH Grant initial and subsequent counseling TEACH Grant exit counseling
Online Student Loan Counseling is a free service for schools and borrowers, thanks to the support of Mapping Your Future's Sponsors and Friends. Visit the financial aid professional's page at http://mappingyourfuture.org/FAP/ for more information or to sign up to participate.
Based in Round Rock, Texas, Mapping Your Future is a neutral, non-proprietary, and non-commercial national collaborative, public-service organization of the financial aid industry--bringing together the expertise of the industry to provide services online. Since 1996, Mapping Your Future has received a number of awards, including recognition for its excellence in content and innovation in technology services.
Mapping Your Future provides step-by-step instructions on career, college planning, and financial aid. In addition, the site offers Online Student Loan Counseling, financial literacy information and tools, chat events on college planning topics, and online customer service for schools and their students.
Georgia Student Finance Commission 2082 East Exchange Place Tucker, Georgia 30084 (770) 724-9000 or 1-800-505-GSFC (4732) FAX (770) 724-9089

After the Compliance Review
A Compliance Review Team Process Preparing the Preliminary Report
At the conclusion of the on-site Compliance Review, the Review Team will return to GSFC to carefully examine all relevant documentation and prepare the Preliminary Report. The Preliminary Report is used to document the results of the on-site review and provide the institution with insight or guidance on how they may improve the administration of the scholarships and grants programs. The Review Team that conducted the on-site review is responsible for all activities associated with the review to bring the engagement to closure which includes writing the Preliminary Report.
Deficiencies, and associated liabilities, noted during the on-site review are listed as Findings on the Preliminary Report. However, there are several steps the Review Team utilizes as part of the preparation process to write the Preliminary Report. These preparatory and evaluation procedures are vital to ensuring that each institution receives an accurate and well documented Preliminary Report, and the correct interpretation of the regulations governing the State's Scholarship and Grant Programs.
The first step in preparing the Preliminary Report begins with a re-review and assessment of each deficiency by the Review Team, including a review of the documentation gathered during the on-site review and those submitted by the institution during the 10-Day Missing Documentation Grace Period. If the Review Team determines during the re-review that a deficiency does not exist for a particular Finding, the Finding will not be included in the Preliminary Report. The next step involves those Findings that may require further clarification. The Review Team does not rely solely upon the individual reviewer's interpretation of the regulations governing the state's scholarship and grant programs. When needed, the Review Team reviews Findings with the entire Compliance staff and GSFC Program Administration. During the Compliance Team's weekly staff meeting, the Review Team may collaborate with the entire Compliance staff in reassessing a particular Finding and related regulations. If there is a need for still further clarification the Compliance Team will request the assistance of Program Administration. These resources provide the added assurance that the Regulations are being interpreted correctly. If no further review is necessary, the Review Team will begin drafting the Preliminary Report. The report Findings are documented by the specific Compliance Officer that identified the deficiency during the on-site review. A draft Preliminary Report is created by each Compliance Officer. The lead Compliance Review Officer then combines the draft Preliminary Reports, creating the final version (of the Preliminary Report). The assisting Compliance Review Officer proofreads the Preliminary Report and if necessary, changes and/or corrections are made by the lead reviewer and submitted to the V.P of Internal Audit & Compliance for final review, signature and distribution.
The GSFC Compliance Team is committed to its partnership with our institutions in the administration of the State's Scholarship and Grant Programs, and is always available to assist them with all aspects of the Compliance Program Review process. Institutions may contact the GSFC Compliance Team at ComplianceTeam@gsfc.org or Richard Hawkshead, Vice President of Internal Audit & Compliance, at 770-724-9012 or Richard@gsfc.org.
Georgia Student Finance Commission 2082 East Exchange Place Tucker, Georgia 30084 (770) 724-9000 or 1-800-505-GSFC (4732) FAX (770) 724-9089