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March 10, 2023
Sarah Sattelmeyer was interviewed by the team of Arnold Ventures about the lack of funding at Federal Student Aid (FSA).
Without additional funding, FSA could face challenges with daily oversight functions and programs. This could mean delays to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or student borrowers waiting for hours to talk with loan servicing representatives over the phone. This potential decline in essential services not only complicates the process of administering the student aid system for those at FSA, but it also jeopardizes the trust of students and borrowers, which can affect their experiences in school and in repayment on their loans.
Arnold Ventures sat down with Sarah Sattelmeyer, New America’s project director of education, opportunity, and mobility, to discuss the inadequate funding for the Office of Federal Student Aid and its negative implications on the Education Department’s and servicers’ program capacity, customer experience, and borrower trust.
Why was the Department of Education seeking more funding for Student Aid Administration (SAA) and how does it relate to the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA)?
Think of Student Aid Administration (SAA) as an account from which the Office of Financial Student Aid (FSA) receives funding for salaries and certain programs and activities. Ideally, every year, money is appropriated by Congress for that account with enough support for all of those activities. FSA has a lot on its plate, and the programs it administers touch every student, every school, and every borrower in the U.S. in some way: It implements the FAFSA, performs oversight of schools to hold them accountable for providing high-quality programs, runs the Direct Loan program, and manages student loan servicers, among other activities.
Read the full article here.