# Presentation: 490237

## Session #16

- Introducing the Student Loan Ombudsman Caucus:
- Facilitating Creative Solutions for Student Loan Problems and Issues
- Grace Bartini, American Student Assistance Corporation
- Debra Wiley, Federal Student Aid, U.S. Department of Education

## Background 

- Federal Student Aid Ombudsman
- 1998 - Federal Student Aid Ombudsman established by HEA Amendments
- 1999 – First case accepted (erroneous default)
- 2007 – More than 17,000 cases

## 	1999 - 2006

- Federal Student Aid Ombudsman and Agency Contacts
- 1999 - Designated High Level Contacts at Guarantor and Lender Agencies Assist With Case Resolution
- 2001 – First Annual Meeting of Ombudsman Contacts
- 2006 –Student Loan Ombudsman Caucus Charter
- 2007 –Caucus Operational

## A Student Loan Ombudsman 

**Caucus Emerges...**

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**1999**

**-**

**2006**

**Federal **

**Student Aid **

**Ombudsman**

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- Agency

- Contact

- Agency

- Contact

- Agency

- Contact

- Agency

- Contact

## A Student Loan Ombudsman 

- Agency

- Contact

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**Student Aid Industry: **

***Trends, Issues, Training, Outreach, and Communication***

** **

** **

**2007**

****

** ****Multi Directional Exchanges**

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** **

** **

** **

** **

**FSA Ombudsman**

** **

**Student Loan **

**Ombudsman Caucus**

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- Agency

- Contact

- Agency

- Contact

- Agency

- Contact

**A Student Loan Ombudsman **
**Caucus In Action...**

## Why a Caucus?

- Enhanced Student Aid Problem Resolution Network
- Promotes Consistent Use of Ombudsman “Best Practices”
- Targeted Training and Mentoring
- Improved Trends Identification, Analysis and Reporting

## How Does The Caucus Operate?

- Conference Calls
- Quarterly Meetings
- Committee Structure
- Members’ ListServe

## ...How Does the Caucus Operate?

- Caucus Members...
- Use all available information to recommend and promote areas of research
- Advise membership on areas of  mutual interest
- Utilize individual and collective reports to analyze potential for improvement

## ...How Does the Caucus Operate?

- Each agency ombudsman works to resolve problems identified through the Federal Student Aid Ombudsman or from within the agency
- As a Caucus member, the agency ombudsman participates in the discussion of student loan issues, feedback on student aid legislation, case trend analysis and recommendations for change

## How Do Students Benefit?

- Caucus Members Commit To:
- Serving as a voice for fair process
- Coordinating with student loan stakeholders and the government to promote positive change in the student loan industry
- Learning from complaints and problems that impact student loan borrowers, and prevent them when possible

## ....How do Students Benefit?

- Caucus members provide an in-agency escalation process for problems
- If problems remain, students call Federal Student Aid Ombudsman at 1-(877) 557-2575
- Federal Student Aid Ombudsman will work with the student **and** the agency
- Federal Student Aid Ombudsman and Caucus member will use the situation to inform change

## How do Schools Benefit?

- Additional resources to assist borrowers during enrollment, or after they leave your campus
- You, student, agency and Federal Student Aid Ombudsman work together to research and resolve an individual question
- Outcome on the individual situation informs the whole.   For example...

## Case Analysis and Reporting

- Trends Identification and Reporting = Collaborative Resolution = Change
- Federal Student Aid Ombudsman groups cases in 16 basic issue categories
- Cumulative and Individual Agency Reports Are Produced Annually
- Student Loan Ombudsman Caucus can concentrate on select issue categories, and compare agency experiences to Federal Student Aid Ombudsman data

## 
Account Balance
Bankruptcy
Closed School
Collection Practices
Consolidation
Credit Reporting
Default
Deferment/Forbearance

- Account Balance
- Bankruptcy
- Closed School
- Collection Practices
- Consolidation
- Credit Reporting
- Default
- Deferment/Forbearance

- FSA Assistance
- Loan Cancellation
- NSLDS
- Repayment Plans/Amounts
- Service Quality
- Student Eligibility
- Tax Refund/Offset
- Wage Garnishment

**For Example.....The Basic Categories Help Define Where Difficulties Arise**

## Top 5 Research Issues

- Initially, the top 5 issues accounted for about 60% of the Federal Student Ombudsman research cases.
- Now, the top 5 issues account for about 70% of research cases.
**Consolidation**
**Loan Cancellation/Discharge**
**Account Balance**
**Repayment Plans/Amounts**
**Default**

## Slide 16

## The Caucus Can Concentrate An Issue Review.............For Example

- Consolidation Is The Number One Issue for Federal Student Aid Ombudsman Cases in 2007
- Caucus Members Assist in Resolving Questions About Consolidation at Their Agency
- Collective Information Promotes Compliance and Corrective Action
- Caucus Members and Federal Student Aid Ombudsman Use Case Questions To Inform Student Consumer Information:
- 		 _[http://www.ombudsman.ed.gov/consolidation.html](http://www.ombudsman.ed.gov/consolidation.html)_

## The Caucus Can Commit to Effective Problem Resolution 

- Caucus commitment promotes....
- accurate, and consistent customer service
- common-sense approaches
- creative solutions
- collective review of outcomes

## For Example.......Reminders From a Caucus Member

- Let the customer tell the full story
- Try to understand the customer’s point
- Give the customer your undivided attention
- Explain circumstances in context of the customer’s specific needs
- Give realistic time frames for action
- Use the information to check internal systems and escalation processes

**For Example.......Reminders From a Caucus Member**

## Shall We Try It?Group Resolution of case samples

**Shall We Try It?****Group Resolution of case ****samples**

## What’s Next.....

## A Student Loan Ombudsman 

- Agency

- Contact

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**Student Aid Industry: **

***Trends, Issues, Training, Outreach, and Communication***

** **

** **

**2007**

****

** ****Multi Directional Exchanges**

** **

** **

** **

** **

** **

**FSA Ombudsman**

** **

**Student Loan **

**Ombudsman Caucus**

** **

- Agency

- Contact

- Agency

- Contact

- Agency

- Contact

**A Student Loan Ombudsman **
**Caucus In Action...**

## Will help encourage and promote:

- Multi-prong problem identification, resolution, and change recommendation
**Will help encourage and promote:**
- Resolution versus reaction
- Prevention instead of correction
- Systemic change

**Benefits Predicted from Caucus Activities.....**

## Contact Information

- We appreciate your feedback and comments. Contact us:
- Grace Bartini, Ombudsman
- American Student Assistance Corporation
- Telephone: (800) 999-9080 , ext 4512
- E-mail: _bartini@amsa.com_
- Debra Wiley, Ombudsman, Federal Student Aid, U.S. Department of Education
-  Telephone:  (202) 377-3800
- Facsimile:  (202) 275-0549
- Website:  _[www.ombudsman.ed.](http://www.ombudsman.ed.gov/)__[gov](http://www.ombudsman.ed.gov/)_
- E-mail:  debra.wiley@ed.gov