This week on a special episode of "Off The Cuff," Beth is joined by NASFAA’s new president and CEO Melanie Storey to answer questions submitted from NASFAA members. Melanie answers several questions, ranging from challenges with FAFSA simplification, the state of federal student aid, the current political climate, the future of the financial aid pr…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Maria is joined by Jill, Megan, and Nalia to discuss several issues impacting the world of higher education. First, Megan debriefs listeners on this week’s news that the Department of Education (ED) will resume the collections process for defaulted federal student loans. Then, Jill discusses the upcoming negotiated rule…

This week on "Off the Cuff," David and Maria discuss two topics associated with end-of-year issues, late disbursements and unofficial withdrawals. David kicks off the discussion on late disbursements by first going through some basic rules and then discussing different scenarios institutions may experience. From there, David and Maria discuss unoff…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Jill and Sarah discuss NASFAA's submitted comments on the upcoming 2026-27 FAFSA and an updated resource, NASFAA's R2T4 decision trees. Jill highlights several key points NASFAA made in its submitted comments on the 2026–27 FAFSA, including the importance of the intended use of FAFSA data, FA-DDX working for contributor…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Beth is joined by Jill and Hugh to discuss some of the latest headlines impacting student financial aid. Kicking things off on an exciting note, Beth provides some background on NASFAA’s new President & CEO, Melanie Storey, who will be joining the team on May 1. Jill then shares some breaking news concerning ED’s planne…

This week on “Off The Cuff,” David and Hugh are joined by Tonya to discuss consumer information. The team works through a number of checklists that institutions should be aware of and dives into some potential blind spots or commonly misunderstood compliance requirements. David and Tonya then walk listeners through administrative capability require…

This week on “Off the Cuff,” Beth is joined by Karen, Allie, and Hugh to dig into the Department of Education’s (ED) plan to lay off nearly 50% of its workforce and the potential impacts on student financial aid programs. The team discusses many questions raised by the action and what we’ve learned since Tuesday’s announcement. Karen and Hugh then …

This week on "Off The Cuff," Jill and Sarah discuss FAFSA updates concerning a new definition for Federal Tax Information (FTI) and 2026-27 guidance. Jill kicks things off by detailing the new FTI definition and its implications for data sharing policies. Sarah then walks through last week’s electronic announcement from the department outlining the…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Beth and Karen are joined by Megan and Jill to discuss multiple updates from the Department of Education (ED). Karen kicks off the episode by debriefing listeners on ED's Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) that directed institutions to cease using race preferences as a factor in admissions, financial aid, hiring, training, and…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Allie and Karen are joined by Megan and Nalia to discuss the latest news reports that President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order that would seek to dismantle the Department of Education. Karen and Megan debrief listeners on what NASFAA knows so far and walk through the complex roadmap that would be r…

This week on "Off the Cuff," David and Hugh work through some possible blindspots for standards for academic progress (SAP) and discuss how institutions can review their policies and procedures to ensure they are up to date with the latest regulatory requirements. David kicks things off with a walkthrough of qualitative and quantitative components …

This week on "Off the Cuff," Jill and Sarah discuss some last-minute actions from the Biden administration impacting NSLDS Postscreening Results and the upcoming gainful employment (GE) and financial value transparency (FVT) reporting process. Jill kicks things off with a recap of the NSLDS postscreening functionality along with a new report that i…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Beth and Karen are joined by U.S. Department of Education Under Secretary James Kvaal. With just a little under a week until a new administration takes over, James discusses ED's priorities over the past four years, including FAFSA simplification and student loan debt relief. The group also digs into the upcoming gainfu…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Beth and Karen are joined by Jeremy Singer, the president of College Board, who earlier this year was hired by the Department of Education (ED) to serve as FAFSA executive advisor for the launch of the 2025-26 FAFSA. During the episode, Jeremy reflects on his tenure at ED, which ended earlier this month, and answers que…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Jill and Sarah recap last week's Federal Student Aid (FSA) Virtual Training Conference and detail what could happen with Biden administration regulations under the incoming Trump administration. Sarah kicks off the conversation by highlighting important information folks may have missed at the FSA conference, including …

This week on “Off The Cuff,” Hugh and David are joined by Tonya Hsiung, NASFAA U Program Manager, to discuss and answer some common questions, misconceptions and topics that catch some members by surprise in various NASFAA U courses. Topics discussed include loan fees, cost of attendance (COA), professional judgement (PJ), the Pell Grant recalculat…

This week on “Off the Cuff,” Hugh, Jill, and Sarah discuss the latest news on Gainful Employment (GE) and Financial Value Transparency (FVT). Sarah kicks things off with a recap of recent updates to the reporting requirements and new announcements concerning draft completers lists and NSLDS reports. Sarah and Jill then walk through some common ques…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Beth, Jill, Rachel, and Nalia discuss FAFSA updates and how the 2024 election may shape financial aid policy for the next administration. Jill kicks things off by debriefing listeners on several fixes the Department of Education (ED) has made to issues in the 2024-25 and 2025-26 FAFSA cycles. Then, Nalia and Rachel lead…

This week on "Off the Cuff," David and Hugh discuss multiple updates with the 2024-25 FAFSA, starting off with the latest processing timelines for the 2024-25 paper FAFSA. David then debriefs listeners on how to handle conflicting information related to Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs). The team also talks about resources from the …

This week on "Off the Cuff," Sarah and Hugh discuss 2024-25 changes in documentation requirements related to Jay Treaty students and dig into the background of this guidance within the FSA Handbook. From there, Sarah debriefs listeners on several resources both NASFAA and the Department of Education (ED) have for institutions that were impacted by …

This week on "Off The Cuff," Beth and Karen are joined by Jon Fansmith, the American Council on Education's senior vice president of government relations and national engagement, to discuss new updates with the FAFSA and the appropriations process. Karen begins by debriefing listeners on the latest news surrounding the 2025-26 FAFSA, which began it…

This week on “Off the Cuff,” Hugh, David, and Sarah discuss all things concerning professional judgment (PJ). David provides some key background information on PJ, including details on terminology and policy considerations for institutions. Sarah then catches listeners up on what is new for PJ in 2024-25, along with updates made due to FAFSA change…

This week on “Off the Cuff,” Hugh and Jill discuss the latest news surrounding the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) repayment plan, and income-driven repayment (IDR) plans in general. Jill kicks things off with a background discussion on how the SAVE plan came to be through the negotiated rulemaking process and then catches listeners up on the…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Beth, Karen, Jill, and Hugh are joined by Jon Fansmith, the American Council on Education's senior vice president of government relations and national engagement, to discuss the latest news surrounding the 2025-26 FAFSA and the department’s planned “beta” period for the form. The team then discusses the department’s upc…

This week on a special edition of “Off the Cuff,” Allie, Beth, and Karen, are joined by 2024-25 NASFAA National Chair Kristi Jovell of Middlebury College and National Chair-Elect Heidi Carl of Purdue University to break down the latest development from the Department of Education (ED) concerning batch corrections and the 2024-25 FAFSA. The team div…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Karen, Jill, and Hugh discuss the latest news surrounding Gainful Employment (GE) and Financial Value Transparency (FVT) regulations, as well as NASFAA's advocacy campaign to request that Congress take action to require the Department of Education (ED) to delay upcoming institutional reporting requirements. The team the…

This week on a special episode of "Off The Cuff," Justin, Karen, and Allie are joined by former OTC podcast hosts, Stephen Payne, executive director of external relations at Muhlenberg College, and Megan Coval, interim president of Butler County Community College. Karen kicks off the episode by debriefing listeners on several NASFAA letters. The fi…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Hugh, Jill, and David discuss several regulatory changes that become effective on July 1, 2024. Jill begins by giving a deep dive on some of the confusing elements of transcript withholding and details the Department of Education's (ED) regulatory approach to the issue. David then provides a brief overview of additional…

This week, on the 300th episode of “Off the Cuff,” Justin, Karen, and Allie discuss the most up-to-date FAFSA news, and preview the unique sessions being offered at the NASFAA National and Virtual Conferences. Karen kicks things off with an update on the Department of Education’s (ED) FAFSA reprocessing work and outlines additional guidance that sh…

This week on “Off The Cuff,” Allie, Jill, and David talk about the latest news on school corrections and dive into a discussion on crossover periods. Jill kicks things off by recapping the most recent electronic announcement from the Department of Education concerning the timelines for school ISIR corrections and processing for paper FAFSA submissi…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin, Karen, and Rachel are joined by Jon Fansmith, the American Council on Education's senior vice president of government relations and national engagement, to recap a lengthy House hearing where Education Secretary Miguel Cardona sparred with Republicans over the department’s budget request and the secretary’s reco…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin is joined by Jill and Rachel to discuss this week's announcement from the Department of Education (ED) of a temporary FAFSA filing fix for applicants and contributors without a Social Security number. From there, Rachel debriefs listeners on Education Secretary Miguel Cardona's testimony at a Senate appropriation…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin and Karen are joined by NASFAA Executive Vice President Beth Maglione and Director of Research Charlotte Etier to discuss Justin's announcement this week that he plans to step down from his role as NASFAA’s president and CEO in June. From there, Karen debriefs listeners on more FAFSA updates, including where we s…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin and Karen are joined by Jon Fansmith, the American Council on Education's senior vice president of government relations and national engagement, to discuss the latest FAFSA updates of the past week, including news on the Department of Education's reprocessing of affected Institutional Student Information Records …

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin, Karen, Rachel, and Tim discuss Justin's testimony this week before the House Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development on the Department of Education's (ED) rollout of the 2024-25 FAFSA. Karen also debriefs listeners on the latest NASFAA poll asking members about which first-year undergraduate s…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin, Karen, and Tim discuss this week's news that the Department of Education (ED) identified three issues concerning tax data reported on FAFSA applicant records. The team dives into the details of those identified issues, and what the department is doing next — including the latest update to reprocess all affected …

This week on “Off the Cuff,” Allie, Karen, and Rachel discuss the latest adjustments to the rollout of the 2024-25 FAFSA, including a miscalculation in the SAI formula. The team covers a number of other possible FAFSA issues and outlines what updates they would like to see from the Department of Education (ED) as the rollout begins to ramp up. Rach…

This week on “Off the Cuff” Justin, Karen, Allie, and Tim are back with the latest news on the 2024-25 FAFSA with recent updates from the Department of Education (ED) about the delivery of Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs). The team dives into recent electronic announcements detailing updates, fixes, and troubleshooting issues impac…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin and Karen are joined by NASFAA Community Manager Tim Maggio to discuss the latest news surrounding the 2024-25 FAFSA, with a focus on the Department of Education’s (ED) planned rollout of Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs). The team walks through each of the steps ED detailed in its recent electron…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Allie and Karen are joined by Jon Fansmith, the American Council on Education's senior vice president of government relations and national engagement, to discuss an update to the Student Aid Index (SAI) formula from the Department of Education (ED), which allows the Student’s Contribution from Income (SCI) to have a neg…

This week on a special episode of "Off The Cuff," Justin and Karen are joined by Bill DeBaun, the National College Attainment Network's senior director of data and strategic initiatives, to discuss the 2024-25 FAFSA rollout. Bill debriefs listeners on trends found in NCAN's FAFSA Tracker, which tracks completion rates for the 2024-25 FAFSA cycle. J…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin and Karen are joined by Hugh to recap NASFAA's 2024 Leadership & Legislative Conference & Expo, and discuss the Department of Education's (ED) new "FAFSA College Support Strategy." Justin debriefs listeners on the new initiative, explains what NASFAA's partnership entails and how it will aim to help severely unde…

This week on "Off The Cuff," Justin and Karen are joined by Jon Fansmith, the American Council on Education's senior vice president of government relations, to discuss this week’s news that institutions and states will begin receiving Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs) in the "first half of March." The team breaks down the announceme…

This week in a special episode of “Off the Cuff,” the fun with FAFSA never stops! Justin, Karen, and Allie dive into the latest news surrounding the 2024-25 FAFSA timeline that is leading many higher education advocates and students to grow increasingly concerned about the impending time crunch for the annual aid cycle. The team digs into the Depar…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Allie, Jill, and David recap the latest negotiated rulemaking session that focused on a number of issues, including cash management, distance education, R2T4, and more. Plus, the team dives into reported issues stemming from the FAFSA soft launch, some fixes that have been made available to students and families, and wh…

This week on “Off the Cuff,” Justin is joined by Karen and NASFAA's Tim Maggio to discuss the biggest financial aid news so far in 2024 — the soft launch of the 2024-25 FAFSA. Justin and Karen discuss the current state of the launch, issues and outages that have impacted the form’s availability, and what updates they are looking for from the Depart…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Allie, Jill, and David discuss updates with the negotiated rulemaking process for student debt relief and unpack a new FAFSA term – family size. Jill kicks off the podcast by debriefing listeners on the latest negotiated rulemaking session on student debt relief, including which provisions the committee reached consensu…

This week on "Off the Cuff," Justin is joined by Karen and NASFAA’s Sarah Austin to recap Federal Student Aid’s (FSA) 2023 virtual training conference. The team discusses a number of sessions held throughout the four-day event and highlights their biggest takeaways from the conference, including updates on FAFSA simplification, the FAFSA partner po…

This week on a special episode of “Off The Cuff,” Justin is joined by Dr. Tisa Silver Canady, the founder and executive director of the Maryland Center for Collegiate Financial Wellness, to discuss student loan repayment, including some significant changes in the system that occurred in the past three years during the pause on federally-held studen…

This week on “Off the Cuff,” Justin is joined by Karen and Rachel to dig into the Department of Education’s (ED) latest announcement concerning the rollout of the 2024-25 FAFSA. The team discussed ED’s pledge to release the FAFSA by December 31 and highlighted how the delayed delivery of Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs) could impac…