Is there a risk of stressing students out over the obligation of their loans during class time if posters in regards to loans are posted in the classrooms?
I agree that this is an excellent strategy! Students may be lax in responding to letters or calls from financial aid, but they are less likely to ignore instructors, especially if faculty members exhibit trust and enthusiasm for the FA office. Pulling students directly out of class has also worked for some schools.
Nichelle,
It's great when you can get the faculty to realize the importance of keeping the students in contact with the Financial Aid office. They can assist in making sure students get to their appointments or allow Financial Aid a few minutes at the beginning or end of class to have a review of some of the basics. Faculty can also assist in helping keep up current contact information by reminding students to update any phone or address changes and having the necessary forms or cards there to complete if needed.
Cheryl Kesson
I interact wih both faculty and staff for this reason. We do not have a set rule and not all Financial staff do this. However it makes my ability to service students much easier and effective with we all work together. When I send a slip to class for a student I need to see the instructors seem to send them immediately and express importance of taking care of whatever I need in the path for success. Not sure why everyone does not do this.
Jessica,
It is great that your faculty is already engaged! Because instructors typically have more interaction with students than other departments, they are often the first to recognize warning signs such as attendance problems, sudden drops in performance, or even change in attitude or demeanor. Also, students may be more willing to engage with faculty on a personal level, since instructors can be part of students’ daily lives in a way that Financial Aid and Admissions may not be.
Kellee Gunderson
Jeffery,
Excellent point! Each department offers a unique service to the student, and every part contributes to both student and institutional success. If one department functions separately from the others, we miss out on all that department could have contributed toward our default prevention and student retention efforts.
Kellee Gunderson
Our faculty and admissions teams try to stay in constant contact with our students. This helps defaults because keeping students in contact will increase any questions they may have regarding their financial and and loans. I can't think of anything else they could do offhand. We try to keep them in the loop with everything.
Very very important ..... The students success from start to finish takes a team effort . Each department is important in their own right and the old proverb "the sum of the parts is greater than the whole" has never been more true.
I am glad to see that this strategy is working for you! I really appreciate your point about a central repository for student information and updates; the efforts of various departments could be wasted if there is not a clear procedure for capturing and sharing data across the organization.
Karolina,
Keeping up to date records all in one place is an efficient way to keep all staff updated with the most current information on the student. It's great that you have this portal for everyone to access and keep current so that it is always available when someone needs to reach the student.
Cheryl Kesson
Our faculty and admissions is awesome at providing support to the financial aid office. Admissions keeps in constant contact with our students before they start and the faculty picks up when they do start classes. We have a central portal that we all use to update each other on student status and progress. This portal has been really helpful in bridging the gap between departments.
Rebecca,
I think it's great that you have faculty so involved in helping you. They truly are the front line to your students and their cooperation can go a long way in keeping the lines of communication open.
Cheryl Kesson
Faculty are consistently helpful with getting students in our office when information is needed. We also will let program directors know when we need a specific student for updated information, and they can assist in getting that student in front of us. Many times, the program directors know the student's schedule better than the FA office, so they can be right there at the classroom when the student arrives, rather than the FA advisors trying to catch the student on break.
Todd,
Thank you for sharing your experience, your institution is setting an excellent example!
In other forum conversations, we have discussed various ways in which default prevention affects the entire school. For example, admissions and recruitment may be challenged by school’s poor reputation if the default rate is extremely high or if students feel lost and unappreciated. Student success, both academically and financially, is our primary goal.
Kellee Gunderson
Our leadership team understands that no one department can be truly successful unless all the department are successful. We have a weekly meeting with all of the campus leaders to discuss student outcomes. This way we can continue to see the big picture and work with the other departments to ensure that we focus on what is most important, "the student".
Samantha,
I am glad you were already able to find value in the suggestions from this course. While departments that have historically not been involved in default prevention (e.g. faculty or admissions) may find the concept daunting, it is helpful for them to know that they do not need to be versed in financial aid and they are not responsible for answering all of a student’s questions. Rather, they are responsible for knowing who to refer students to when they need help, and for helping identify students and situations that may signal potential personal or financial trouble. Everyone can find ways to help our institutions promote the goals of financial literacy and service to students.
Best of luck to your default prevention committee!
Kellee Gunderson
I am the Student Loan Repayment Advisor at an online private career college so the "out of sight, out of mind" mindset is extremely straining on our institution's default prevention efforts. We currently have a loan default prevention committee in place, and I conduct follow-up and offer resources to the students before and when they begin repayment. Consistency is the key here so getting all departments on board with the efforts will be extremely helpful. Some steps I will take after gaining this insight will be to confirm that the student's references get verified upon enrolling, that all contact information is updated regularly and confirming that accurate information about repayment is being given to the student's from all departments. I will also look into adding a life skills module to our career services program. I need all the help I can get! I'm excited about what other ideas I will learn from this course.
-Samantha
Everything that we advocate in this course, from smooth communication between departments to a professional and welcoming atmosphere, can contribute to this goal. When students see an institution has a well-organized staff and truly engaged faculty, they can have confidence in the school they have chosen to attend.
Also, making sure that someone is available when students needs help (be it tutoring, Financial Aid, or Career Services) will push them over the occasional speed bump and toward graduation or completion.
I agree!If we help them see that it is worth it, they will be more willing to go forward!
Alex,
Career Services can be of great assistance when trying to reach out to former students and I think it is a great practice to keep them updated on any students you may be trying to reach.
I like the idea of having someone from FA at Career Fairs to do some follow up with students. It's another way of touching base with your former students. It would be a good place to gather updated contact information as well.
Cheryl Kesson
