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ED Announces Upcoming FAFSA System Updates Related to OBBBA
March 11, 2026 - The Department of Education (ED) published an electronic announcement Monday, detailing upcoming changes to several Federal Student Aid (FSA) systems to support the expansion of Pell Grant eligibility for eligible workforce programs and revised limit... -
NASFAA Participates in Panel on New Professional Degree Definition
February 12, 2026 - On Tuesday, NASFAA’s director of policy analysis, Jill Desjean, participated in a congressional briefing hosted by the American Council on Education focused on the Department of Education’s (ED) negotiated rulemaking for the federal stude... -
ED Publishes Verification Requirements for 2026-27
November 26, 2025 - The Department of Education (ED) published the 2026-27 verification data elements and documentation requirements in the November 26, 2025, Federal Register. Overall, verification requirements remain the same as the 2025-26 award year, however, the no... -
ED Announces FAFSA Asset Calculation Issue and Resolution
November 24, 2025 - In an electronic announcement (EA) released on Friday, the Department of Education (ED) identified and resolved an issue preventing assets from being included in the student aid index (SAI) and Pell Grant eligibility calculations for certain applican... -
ED Details FTI and FAFSA Data Guidance
October 1, 2025 - The Department of Education (ED) published a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on Tuesday detailing its current guidance on the permitted access, disclosure, and use of Federal Tax Information (FTI), FAFSA data, and non-FAFSA data by institutions of h... -
NASFAA Submits Comments Regarding ED's NegReg Committees Focused on New Provisions Under the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act'
August 29, 2025 - NASFAA submitted comments on the Department of Education's (ED) notice regarding its intent to establish two negotiated rulemaking committees to address the significant changes to federal student aid programs initiated by the One Big Beautiful Bill A... -
ED Proposes Changes to Application for Federal Student Aid Program Participation
August 27, 2025 - On Monday, the Department of Education (ED) announced a series of proposed revisions to the Application for Approval to Participate in the Federal Student Aid Programs (E-App). ED's proposed changes aim to clarify language and reduce the administrati... -
NASFAA Publishes Updates to Data Sharing Decision Tree
August 26, 2025 - NASFAA is pleased to provide updates to its data sharing decision tree based on clarification received in conversations with the Department of Education (ED). Section 483 of the Higher Education Act (HEA) allows schools to use FAFSA data for the appl... -
ED Revises Prior Interpretation of Classification of Revenue Under 90/10 Rule
July 10, 2025 - The Department of Education (ED) announced in a July 7 Federal Register that it is revising its prior interpretation regarding the classification of revenue received by a proprietary institution under the “90/10 rule.” -
Trump Signs Sprawling Reconciliation Package Into Law, Here’s How it Impacts Higher Ed
July 7, 2025 - Republicans completed their months-long legislative effort to implement sweeping tax changes through the reconciliation process, with several provisions directly impacting higher education programs. President Donald Trump signed the bill into law on ... -
Diving into FAFSA Trends and the Outlook for Future Aid Cycles
June 26, 2025 - In a session titled, “FAFSA: The Numbers, The Process & The Partnership,” experts unpacked the latest national FAFSA trends, offering NASFAA National Conference attendees a candid look at recent challenges and an optimistic outlook fo... -
Department of Education Releases 2026–27 Federal Need Analysis Methodology
June 5, 2025 - The Department of Education (ED) released its annual updates to the Federal Need Analysis Methodology for the 2026-27 award year. This is the core formula determining a student's Student Aid Index (SAI), a key factor in student eligibility for federa... -
Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Recent Advocacy Pipeline Meetings
May 19, 2025 - As part of April’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted members in Washington, D.C. for in-person meetings with congressional staffers from California and New Mexico. Elizabeth Jacquez-Mador from the University of New Mexico, Jenny Garcia from... -
ED Announces SAIG Enrollment Functionality Moving to FSA Partner Connect This Summer
May 12, 2025 - The Department of Education (ED) released an electronic announcement last week announcing FSA Partner Connect will become the primary enrollment and user management service for FSA, meaning users will use FSA Partner Connect to enroll for access to F... -
NASFAA Members Reflect on Recent Advocacy Pipeline Meetings
April 29, 2025 - As part of March’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted members for virtual meetings with congressional staffers from South Dakota. During those meetings, our pipeline participant focused on the need to increase the federal annual and aggregate loa... -
How ED’s Revised Options for Gender on the FAFSA Will Impact the Correction Process
February 18, 2025 - The Department of Education (ED) announced via a press release its plans to revise the gender response options on the FAFSA in order to be consistent with President Trump’s executive order, which now requires the federal government to recognize... -
New CBO Projection: Pell Grant Program Faces Budget Shortfall
February 7, 2025 - The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) in late January released new projections for the Pell Grant program, indicating a possible funding shortfall in fiscal year (FY) 2025 of about $2.7 billion that would apply to the 2025-26 school year. By the end ... -
ED Publishes Verification Requirements for 2025-26
September 5, 2024 - The Department of Education (ED) published the 2025-26 verification data elements and documentation requirements in the September 4, 2024 Federal Register (FR) and Dear Colleague Letter GEN-24-10, which also provided suggested text for verification. ... -
Financial Aid Professionals Advocate for Improvements to Student Loan System and Robust Funding for Campus-Based Aid
July 23, 2024 - As a part of June’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted three members – Emmilee Mitchell from Mercer University, Tarik Boyd from Chattahoochee Technical College, and Melissa Donahue from Rhode Island School of Design – for meetings wit... -
Financial Aid Professionals Advocate for Pell Grant Increases and Highlight FAFSA Complications on Capitol Hill
July 17, 2024 - As a part of May’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted two members – Scott Skaro from United Tribes Technical College and Danielle Hayden from Carleton College – for meetings with congressional staffers from North Dakota and Minnesota. -
Strategies for Scholarship and Admissions Policies to Advance Access and Diversity
June 20, 2024 - Recent decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court have upended the landscape of higher education policies and practices. Last year’s ruling concerning the consideration of race, in both college admissions and scholarships, have raised significant qu... -
Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Their Most Recent 2023-24 Virtual Pipeline
February 20, 2024 - Last month, NASFAA hosted two financial aid administrators for its annual Graduate/Professional community Advocacy Pipeline. The NASFAA members — Melet Leafgreen from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and Calaundra M. Clarke f... -
NASFAA Releases Updated SAI Modeling Tool With New, Inflation-Adjusted Tables
February 1, 2024 - NASFAA is pleased to share an update to the Student Aid Index (SAI) Modeling Tool reflecting recent changes by the Department of Education to adjust several tables in the SAI formula to account for inflation, as required by the FAFSA Simplification A... -
NASFAA Shares Feedback with House Education Committee on College Cost Reduction Act
January 31, 2024 - On Friday NASFAA sent a letter to House Education and Workforce Committee leadership sharing feedback on its recent proposed legislation, the College Cost Reduction Act. NASFAA praised student-friendly provisions of the bill, elimination of originati... -
Part 3 Deep Dive: Foxx’s College Cost Reduction Act Includes Risk-Sharing Agreements, Transfer Student Support, and Regulatory Overhaul
January 23, 2024 - Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), chairwoman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, earlier this month introduced the College Cost Reduction Act, which seeks to address issues around college cost, accountability, and transparency. This art... -
Part 2 Deep Dive: Foxx’s College Cost Reduction Act Includes Changes to Pell, Campus-Based Aid, and Loans
January 22, 2024 - Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), chairwoman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, earlier this month introduced the College Cost Reduction Act, which seeks to address issues around college cost, accountability, and transparency. This art... -
Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Virtual Advocacy Meetings With Congress
December 21, 2023 - As part of November’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted two members – Kelley Christianson from Boise State University and Tim Wolsey from Chandler-Gilbert Community College – for virtual meetings with congressional staffers from Idah... -
NASFAA Members Reflect on Opening 2023-24 Advocacy Pipeline Meetings
November 14, 2023 - Last month, to formally kick off the 2023-24 Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted three members in Washington, D.C. for meetings on Capitol Hill. The participants — Charles Harper from Belmont University, Kayli Sampson from Iowa State University, a... -
NASFAA Members Increasingly Concerned About Rise in Borrower Defense Claims
October 4, 2023 - Since this Summer, NASFAA has heard from an increasing number of members that their institutions have received a growing number of borrower defense claim notifications, leading to significant confusion as to how schools should handle these filings du... -
NASFAA Members Advocate for Student Loan Simplification, the Importance of the Pell Grant, and PSLF Reform on Capitol Hill
July 7, 2023 - As part of May’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted three members in Washington, D.C. for meetings on Capitol Hill. The participants — Laura Biechler from Bridgewater State University, Amy Staffier from Simmons University, and Daisha Holmes... -
NASFAA Members Advocate for Improvements to the Student Loan System and Pell Grant Investments on Capitol Hill
June 1, 2023 - As part of April’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted three members for in-person meetings on Capitol Hill. The participants — Tara Verrico from Geneva College, Jessica Flogaites, FAAC® from University of Pittsburgh, and Mark Messingsch... -
NASFAA Members Advocate for Pell Grant Investments, Share Concerns with FAFSA Simplification Implementation on Capitol Hill
March 14, 2023 - As part of February’s Advocacy Pipeline, NASFAA hosted three members — Lucy Candal-Fernandez from Montclair State University, Emily Grant from Fairleigh Dickinson University, and Kimberley Willis from the College at Brockport State Univer... -
NASFAA Joins With Higher Education Organizations to Improve Student Aid Offers and Price Transparency
November 29, 2022 - In an effort to improve the clarity and consistency of student financial aid offers, NASFAA — along with 10 higher education associations representing college presidents, financial aid offices, enrollment managers, and admissions counselors &md... -
Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Opening 2022-23 Advocacy Pipeline Meetings
November 16, 2022 - Last month, NASFAA hosted three members in Washington, D.C., for in-person meetings with congressional staffers on Capitol Hill as part of the October Advocacy Pipeline. Participants in those Hill visits — Katy Weisenburger from the University ... -
House Democrats Share Plans for College Affordability Through Increased Pell Grants and Cheaper Student Loans
September 19, 2022 - Last Thursday, Democratic members of the House Committee on Education and Labor released the Lowering Obstacles to Achievement Now (LOAN) Act, which tackles college affordability through actions like doubling the Pell Grant and reducing the cost of s...