“Student lending giant Sallie Mae has spent millions on lobbying over the last year to oppose legislation that would make college more affordable, claiming that student loan reform would take away thousands of jobs in the middle of an economic recession,” Campus Progress reports. “But in at least one state, Indiana, Sallie Mae and its officials have provided seemingly differing pronouncements, in public and in private, about the impact of the legislation on jobs in the state.”

“A Lexington woman pled guilty to stealing someone’s identity to receive about $22,000 in loans to attend Limestone College in Gaffney [S.C.],” News Channel 7 reports. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office says [she] used the name and social security number of another person without their knowledge to apply for student loans. She received approximately $22,000 to attend Limestone College using the stolen information. Acting U.S. Attorney Kevin McDonald says she must be sentenced to a mandatory term of two years in prison under the federal aggravated identity theft statue. She could also be fined up to $250,000.”

“College students from poor families who don’t have the grades to qualify for the HOPE Scholarship could still get a small grant under legislation proposed by Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, whose own family could not afford to send him to college,” Rome News-Tribune reports. “Students who qualify for a federal Pell Grant could get this new, lottery-funded grant from the state, according to Sen. Jack Hill, sponsor of the bill … Georgia has drawn criticism from national education groups for not having a needs-based scholarship.”

“As college admissions season draws to a close, the spotlight has been on students’ getting a foot in the door,” New York Times reports. “Less attention is paid to how many of today’s high school seniors will emerge a few years down the line with diplomas in hand, and what might cause them to veer off track. East Bay College Fund [is part of a] small but growing number of Bay Area nonprofits that are beginning to make inroads in steering young, at-risk students to college, and also helping them through it. The fund’s method is to supplement financial aid with a carefully administered program of mentoring, peer-to-peer guidance and life-skills training. Experts in education say the program may provide a model for bridging the college completion gap.”

Unless otherwise indicated, the errata and updates are items that were amended after the initial PDF files were posted to the Web and before the Handbook went to print. For questions about the Handbook contents, you can contact the Schools Publications staff at: fsaschoolspubs@ed.gov

The 2009-2010 Federal Student Aid Handbook with Active Index is presented as a single PDF file. The page numbers in the index are active links that will take you directly to the cited page in the PDF file. The index appears at the beginning of the document (replacing the table of contents), followed by the Application and Verification Guide and the numbered volumes of the Handbook.

This is your last chance to nominate colleagues for 2010 NASFAA awards. Nominations must be submitted by Friday, April 2. The 2010 Awards Committee asks all states and regions to nominate colleagues who have gone above and beyond the call of duty for these awards. NASFAA has a wide range of awards to recognize financial aid professionals for their hard work, leadership, or special projects. Award winners will be recognized during NASFAA’s 2010 National Conference in July.

Tim Ranzetta founded Student Lending Analytics (SLA) in 2007 after doing some research for a nephew and niece who were getting ready for college. SLA provides an independent and analytical approach to provide services to schools and does not rely on funding from student lenders. In this interview, Ranzetta discusses FFELP lenders’ ability to make federal loans without ECASLA, complying with new preferred lender list regulations, and tips to minimize disruptions in loan access.

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan testified in front of the House Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Thursday morning to discuss the president’s FY 2011 budget proposal. “The fiscal year 2011 budget supports our cradle to career agenda,” Duncan told the committee. “The work of the Department of Education is more critical than ever,” said subcommittee chairman David Obey (D-WI) at the beginning of the hearing. But Obey went on to question whether the Administration and Congress were “on the same page” in some areas.

After several days of anticipation, Congress released substitute language for a budget reconciliation bill that would make significant investments in the Pell Grant and other student aid programs with savings from eliminating the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). The Health Care Education Affordability Reconciliation Act (H.R.4872) contains several provisions that NASFAA has been advocating for over the last several months. This includes dramatic increases in the Pell Grant, a strengthened income-based repayment program, the reinstatement of in-school consolidation, servicing contracts for state nonprofit agencies, and the preservation of the current Perkins Loan program. NASFAA has posted a summary of the student aid provisions in the bill.