Businesses and institutions that were able to retain employees throughout the difficult months of 2020 may be eligible for a beneficial tax credit created by the CARES Act and extended by further coronavirus relief legislation. But employers should pay special attention to recent IRS guidance that provides some key details…
On March 19, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) released long awaited guidance on the uses of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Funding (HEERF) grants included in the various coronavirus relief legislation passed over the previous year: the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which created the…
Along with wide-ranging overhauls and easy-to-implement changes to regulations surrounding Title IV programs, the Department of Education (ED) annually makes more subtle changes or additions that can pass under the radar. Big or small, any alteration to the Federal Student Aid Handbook matters. To that end, recently while we were…
NOTE: Following new guidance, we updated this article on March 17, 2021. Recently, we have been receiving questions from institutions whether electronic signatures are acceptable for the Statement of Educational Purpose (SEP). Under normal circumstances, students sign this document at an institution’s financial aid office or in front of a…
If your financial aid department had a New Year’s resolution a year ago, it’s possible you tossed it out the window not all that long into a 2020 that veered wildly off-course. We can’t blame you for it, but from an institutional standpoint, it’s important to stay on track during…
If you’re getting a sense of déjà vu, you’re probably not alone, as more coronavirus relief programs with some familiar names are top of mind for higher education institutions. That does not, however, mean the provisions behind the programs will remain the same. On January 14, 2021, the U.S. Department…
If you had any personal New Year’s resolutions a year ago, it’s possible you tossed them out the window not all that long into a 2020 that veered wildly off-course. We can’t blame you for it, but from an institutional standpoint, it’s important to stay on track during a challenging…
On December 27, 2020, the Consolidated Appropriation Act, 2021 (Act) was signed into law which includes relief funds for the COVID-19 pandemic. This Act is hopefully going to provide continued relief to individuals and our economy. The Act’s relief provisions included $81.88 billion for the Education Stabilization Fund and $23…
