[ctcLinkfinaidsupport] FA Weeklyish Bulletin 02/28/2025

Fri Feb 28 16:33:18 PST 2025

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A Financial Aid Focus

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Even More Helpful Reconciliation Reminders

  *   The Direct Loan 23/24 close out deadline is Friday, July 31, 2025: Direct Loan Closeout Information for 2023–24 Program Year | Knowledge Center<https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/library/electronic-announcements/2025-02-20/direct-loan-closeout-information-2023-24-program-year>
  *   It is (always) time to load your pgas files!  Pgas files are the Pell Electronic Statement of Accounts which you should be using to reconcile the Federal Pell Grant program.  Note, you may receive multiple pgas files each month to aid you with tracking Net Accepted and Posted Disbursements.

From the FSA Handbook, Vol 4, Ch 5 – Reconciliation in the Pell Grant and Campus-Based Programs, on or around pg 6:<https://fsapartners.ed.gov/sites/default/files/2024-2025/2024-2025_Federal_Student_Aid_Handbook/_knowledge-center_fsa-handbook_2024-2025_vol4_ch5-reconciliation-pell-grant-and-campus-based-programs.pdf>
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Financial Aid Learning Opportunities

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Calendar invites with Webex log in information already sent out to the ctcLinkfinaidsupport list serv:

Session:  Student Financial Responsibility Agreement Q & A Session

When:  Monday, 03/03/2025, 10:00AM – 11:00AM or Wednesday, 03/05/2025, 1:00PM – 2:00PM

Audience:  Student Services College Staff

Presenters:  SBCTC Student Financials Team
The Student Financials team is implementing Enhancement Request 266 (Student Financial Responsibility Agreement) in production in March 2025. The implementation of a global Student Financial Responsibility Agreement (SFRA) is essential to ensure compliance with state and federal laws, mitigate institutional financial risks, and provide a consistent framework across all community and technical colleges (CTCs) in Washington. This enhancement will ask students to agree to a global set of terms and conditions either via ctcLink or via a paper form once per academic year. Please visit the QRG<https://ctclinkreferencecenter.ctclink.us/m/96102/l/1900381-student-financial-responsibility-agreement> for the Student Financial Responsibility Agreement for more information.
QRG:  Student Financial Responsibility Agreement<https://ctclinkreferencecenter.ctclink.us/m/96102/l/1900381-student-financial-responsibility-agreement>

Session:  Fin Aid Training:  ISIR Processing Refresher

When:  Tuesday, 03/18/2025, 9:00AM – 10:30AM

Audience:  New Financial Aid Staff (and staff who need a refresher) who are responsible for ISIR processing in the 25/26 AY

Presenters:  Kelly Forsberg, FA Functional Trainer

Objectives:

  *   Understand how to set/update User Defaults for the new AY
  *   Understand the steps in ISIR Processing
     *   Upload/download process
     *   FA Inbound
     *   Process Imported ISIRs
  *   Understand how to load ISIRs using the File List Driven process and the Single File process

Session:  Fin Aid Training:  ISIR Correction Fundamentals

When:  Tuesday, 03/25/2025, 9:00AM – 10:30AM

Audience:  New Financial Aid Staff (and staff who need a refresher) who are responsible for ISIR processing and file corrections in ctcLink for the 25/26 AY

Presenters:  Kelly Forsberg, FA Functional Trainer

Objectives:

  *   Understand how to make ISIR Corrections on specific scenarios
     *   Making Corrections on an Alien Registration Number
     *   Processing Dependency Override/Homeless Youth Determinations
     *   Processing Special Conditions/Special Circumstances/EFC Adjustment Request
  *   Understand how to Process ISIR Corrections in ctcLink using the following steps:
     *   Process ISIR Corrections
     *   Create Federal Data File
     *   Upload/Download File Process

Session:  Fin Aid Work Session:  EdConnect Show & Tell

When:  Thursday, 03/27/2025, 1:00PM – 3:00PM

Audience:  Only Financial Aid Staff with EdConnect access, geared towards newer users

Presenters:  Guest Speaker: Lorena Saucedo, Assistant Director of Financial Aid (Tacoma Community College) & Kelly Forsberg, (SBCTC) ctcLink FA Functional Trainer

Session Description:  Join your community colleagues to learn from our valued FA community member, Lorena Saucedo from TCC in a FA community Show & Tell on how to send/receive files in EdConnect, how to identify varying message class files, what to look for and just general functionality in a system YOU in FA need to perform your jobs.

Did you not receive a calendar invite?  As a reminder, you can go to the SBCTC Calendar<https://www.sbctc.edu/calendar> (filter by Calendar ctcLink Learning Opportunities > Financial Aid) to get the information and block out your own calendar for this time.

Calendar invites forthcoming:

Session:  Fin Aid Training:  Intermediate Reconciliation Queries Review

When:  Tuesday, 04/08/2025, 9:00AM – 11:00AM

Audience:  FA Staff responsible for account reconciliation

Presenters:  Kelly Forsberg, FA Functional Trainer

Objectives:

  *   Understand how to work examples in the reconciliation queries in the Fund Management Business Processing Guide
  *   Understand how often these should be worked and impacts to not running them in a timely manner

Session:  Fin Aid Training:  Intermediate WCG Interim Error Report Review

When:  Tuesday, 04/22/2025, 9:00AM – 11:00AM

Audience:  FA Staff responsible for account WCG Reporting and reconciliation

Presenters:  Kelly Forsberg, FA Functional Trainer
Objectives:

  *   Understand how to work error examples in the WCG Interim Error Report

SAVE THE DATE | Session:  Cross-Pillar Training FA/SF/FIN: Reconciliation End-to-End

When:  Monday, 05/05/2025, 1:00PM – 3:00PM

Audience:  FA, SF & FIN Staff responsible for reconciling federal and state funding

Presenters:  Kelly Forsberg, FA Functional Trainer
Objectives:

  *   (TBA – Objectives in development)

Session:  Cross-Pillar Work Session:  Reconciliation Show & Tell

When:  Thursday, 06/05/2025, 1:00PM – 3:00PM

Audience:  FA, SF & FIN Staff responsible for reconciling federal and state funding

Presenters:  Bellevue Staff: Financial Aid Director - Christine Taylor, Associate Director of Student Center-Financial Aid - Jennifer Fetters, and Finance Manager - Jennifer McMillan
Session Description:
Join us for a cross-pillar work session as SBCTC hosts our esteemed colleagues from Bellevue College in a Webex on the hot topic of reconciliation!  Guest speakers Financial Aid Director, Christine Taylor, Associate Director of Student Center-Financial Aid, Jennifer Fetters, and Finance Manager, Jennifer McMillan, walk through their local business process on reconciliation for Pell, Direct Loan, and state funds.  This session emphasizes the importance of interdepartmental communication during monthly reconciliation processes and reviews key steps unique to Bellevue College in their local reconciliation business process.

Session:  Fin Aid Training Workshop: (Header Colleges Only) Loan Set Up for Schema 5.0c and 25/26 Loan Processing

When:  Tuesday, 06/17/2025, 9:00AM – 12:00PM

Audience:  Header College Financial Aid Staff responsible for Direct Loan Origination and Outbounding

Presenters:  Kelly Forsberg, FA Functional Trainer
Agenda:
Updating/checking Loan Fee Set Up
Updating/checking Loan Fee in Item Types Set Up
Updating/checking the Loan Fee in Create Loan Types pg
Updating the Process Loans Run Control ID parameters to 2025 AY

  *   Break from 10:30AM – 10:45AM

Updating the EY Summer Include & Summer Exclude Run Control ID parameters to 2025/2026 dates and AY.
Updating the EY Process Loan Dates Run Control ID to 2025 AY.
Updating the Schema to 5.0b on the EY Generate Direct Loan Data pg.
Updating and/or creating EY Run Control IDs for your Direct Loan Reports

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Just for Fun!

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The sun came out today in the PNW!  Who wants to do some spring cleaning in the next few weekends?

  *   Day 1: Start with easy tasks like decluttering and organizing.
  *   Day 2: Clean the blinds or windows.
  *   Day 3: Dust and vacuum.
  *   Day 4: Clean the bathroom and kitchen.
  *   Day 5: Wash windows and clean the floors.
  *   Day 6: Finish up by tidying up the living room and bedroom.

Spring Cleaning Checklist - 30 Items to Spring Clean - Clean and Scentsible<https://www.cleanandscentsible.com/spring-cleaning-checklist-30-items-to-spring-clean/>

I don’t know about you, but my brain just works better when my environment (work/office/home/car) is tidy and organized 🤗

TGIF,

~FA Support & Training

[Title: SBCTC logo - Description: Compass]
Kelly Forsberg
ctcLink Functional Trainer | Financial Aid
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
kforsberg at sbctc.edu<mailto:kforsberg at sbctc.edu> • o: 360-704-1066
sbctc.edu<https://www.sbctc.edu/>

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