Financial Aid Officials Continue to Call on Congress to Support the FFELP

RESTON, Va., March 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- In response to proposals in Washington to cut the private sector student lending program, financial aid administrators at colleges and universities across the country continue to voice their support of the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). These comments from financial aid officials in support of the private sector student lending program echo those issued in similar news releases by Sallie Mae. The FFELP currently serves 80 percent of all students who borrow to pay for college and plays a crucial role in the delivery of aid and benefits to students and parents.

Financial aid and school officials continue to speak out in support of the FFELP and called on Congress to support the private sector:

"The FFELP program is an exceptional example of the way more federal programs should be administered -- a federal-private partnership. This partnership has provided countless students the finances necessary to attain their dreams of higher education...the proposal to offer incentives to schools that switch from the FFEL Program to the competing Federal Direct Loan Program in the form of additional Pell Grant funds contradicts the very foundations of student aid -- providing grant assistance to students based solely on financial need. The healthy competition which has existed since 1993 should be fostered."

Gisele Joachim, Assistant Dean of Admissions & Financial Resource Management

  Seton Hall University School of Law
  Newark, N.J.

"We all know that the nation's loan providers cannot absorb cuts of this magnitude without compromising the kinds of benefits and services now provided to college students and their families. Such cuts could also stifle the technological innovation and investment that has revolutionized student aid delivery."

  Joyce A. Zaleski, Financial Aid Director
  McCann School of Business & Technology
  Scranton, Pa.

"My concern is that FFELP will fall by the way-side and Direct [Lending] will again be an administrative nightmare...we were Direct and it was a total nightmare to administer and was not at all friendly to the students...Leave the loan program as is -- FFELP default rates are at a far better stance than with Direct. After all, capitalism was the best injection into the loan program."

  Melissa M. Moser, Director, Financial Aid
  Orange Coast College
  Costa Mesa, Calif.

"Prescott College truly relies upon our FFELP lenders to assist us in making students' dreams a reality. Simply put, the private sector has the resources to allow us to do well by our students in ways that Direct Lending cannot."

  Terri Eckel, Director of Financial Aid
  Prescott College
  Prescott, Ariz.

"Giving correct information and processing students' loans as fast and accurately as possible is my mission. Lenders provide support to the staff and students. Without this support our school would be forced to increase staffing resulting in higher tuition and fees which would result in students borrowing more money."

  Rickey L. Eddie, Financial Aid & Scholarship Office
  University of North Texas, Dallas
  Dallas, Texas

"It is troubling that some leaders in Congress have suggested that the Federal Family Education Loan Program, the largest and most relied on source of federal financial aid, could be targeted for cuts. As you know, Congress slashed $12 billion from the student loan program last year. The overall effects of these have not yet materialized. Further cuts could easily destabilize the program and negatively impact the investments made by private lenders participating in the program."

  Steven Jorden, Director, Student Financial Services
  A.T. Still University of Health Sciences
  Kirksville, Mo.

"My experience working with the FFELP program has been extremely positive. The superb customer service provided by our lenders certainly enhances the borrower's experience with the FFELP program. This service begins when the loan is certified and continues through the repayment process. I am convinced that the servicing has been instrumental in maintaining a low cohort default rate."

  Penny J. Mitchell, Corporate Director of Financial Aid
  American Institute of Technology
  Phoenix, Ariz.

"Midstate College elected to stay with the FFEL Program rather than go to the Direct Loan Program because our students do have the freedom of lender choice and the benefits to the students during repayment are far better in the FFEL Program. I believe when lenders compete for their business, students win."

  Janet S. Ozuna, Director of Finance
  Midstate College
  Peoria, Ill.

To access this news release as well as previous news releases including higher education institution testimonials in support of the FFELP, please visit http://www.salliemae.com/about/news_info/newsreleases/.

SLM Corporation (NYSE: SLM) , commonly known as Sallie Mae, is the nation's leading provider of saving- and paying-for-college programs. The company manages $142 billion in education loans and serves nearly 10 million student and parent customers. Through its Upromise affiliates, the company also manages $15 billion in 529 college-savings plans, and assists more than 7.5 million members with automatic savings through rebates on everyday purchases. Sallie Mae and its subsidiaries offer debt management services as well as business and technical products to a range of business clients, including higher education institutions, student loan guarantors, and state and federal agencies. More information is available at http://www.salliemae.com/. SLM Corporation and its subsidiaries are not sponsored by or agencies of the United States of America.

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