Archive for the ‘Spark Notes’ Category

May 30, 2023 – Despite COHEAO’s letter and petition campaign asking the Department to extend the Perkins mandatory deadline date another year, the Department of Education (ED) announced late Friday, May 26 that they will NOT be extending the deadline. The announcement reiterates that schools are required to assign all Perkins Loans that are more…

With state legislatures in session over the last several months, many states have introduced or re-introduced measures that would prohibit colleges and universities from withholding transcripts due to unpaid debts. Withholding transcripts is a key tool in the process by which colleges and universities communicate with students about owed balances. COHEAO has been actively monitoring…

Over the last several weeks, COHEAO has contacted California institutions, and sent a letter to lawmakers about AB1160 – the Protecting Students from Creditor Colleges Act.  If passed and enacted in its current form, this bill would lead to the deterioration and loss of quality higher education in California. COHEAO has learned today that lawmakers…

Dear CA COHEAO institutional member,   As Executive Director of COHEAO, I am writing to inform you of and share concerns with a bill introduced by Assembly Member Blanca Pacheco in the State legislature, AB 1160 – the Protecting Students from Creditor Colleges Act.  This measure was introduced on March 16th and is slated to…

On Thursday, November 17, 2022, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a new policy on handling cases involving bankruptcy of student loan debt in cooperation with the Department of Education (ED).  DOJ released guidance to Department attorneys that handle bankruptcy cases outlining a new process for recommending the discharge of student loan debt to…

Dear COHEAO Member,   I am writing to share the following note from COHEAO’s Institutional Loan Task Force and attached document:   I hope your fall semester is off to a good start. I am pleased to announce that the COHEAO Institutional Loan Committee has developed suggested policy and procedures for managing an institutional loan…

On September 29th, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a report of Supervisory Findings on a number of topics, including institutions that offered institutional loans and transcript withholding policies. The report found that schools had improper blanket policies of withholding transcripts to force students to make payments that violate federal law.   COHEAO is…

September 16, 2022  Biden Administration Federal Student Loan Forgiveness FAQs The office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) recently released FAQs regarding the Biden administrations recent student debt relief announcement. The announcement from FSA is below: One-Time Student Loan Debt Relief On Aug. 24, 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a Student Debt Relief Plan that includes one-time student…

Over the past year, many states have introduced measures that would prohibit colleges and universities from withholding transcripts due to unpaid debts. Withholding transcripts is a key tool in the process by which colleges and universities communicate with students about owed balances.   COHEAO has been actively monitoring each state for new transcript withholding legislation…

You are Invited to Help Make Higher Education Possible for Our Students! In addition to an extensive list of sessions and speakers at the 2022 Annual Conference, COHEAO is pleased to announce our annual fundraiser/silent auction to benefit COHEAO’s scholarship fund.  This is our only fundraiser for this worthy cause.   With the money raised,…