Abstract: With the flagging economy hitting home for more and more families, local colleges are seeing an increased demand for student financial aid, a trend affecting institutions of higher learning across the country. Justin Draeger, vice president of public policy at the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, said the Obama administration is encouraging colleges and universities to help how they can when appeals arise.Institutions always had the authority to adjust financial aid packages because of hardship, Draeger said, and the message they’re getting is to "make sure students and their families are being taken care of."

The full article was originally published on 11/1/09.

Abstract: As high-school seniors’ college search kicks into high gear, many parents are fretting about how to pay. While an ideal college savings plan would have started years ago, it’s not too late to catch up. Here are some moves families can make during the next few months to boost savings in the right accounts and ease the financial-aid process. Financial aid insiders recommend that parents do the math with their children, to keep everyone’s expectations in check. "It’s important for parents to have realistic discussions about what they can afford," says Justin Draeger of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. This way, kids won’t fixate on out-of-reach and out-of-budget schools.

Aid officials should be willing to tell applicants the average amount students and families pay after federal, state and school aid. That figure "will really give [families] a more realistic depiction of how much they’ll be expected to pay out of pocket," Mr. Draeger says.

The full article was originally published on 10/30/09.

Abstract: Two decades after we were promised that telecommuting and other flexible work arrangements would be the norm, they’re far from it, Justin Draeger writes. He offers guidance for how to do it right.

The full article is available online.

Radio interview with College Connections on FAFSA simplification and the future of simplification.

The full audio is available online and the interview begins around 13:45.

The US House of Representatives passed legislation Thursday that will knock private lenders out of the student lending market while beefing up funding for Pell Grants and, the Congressional Budget Office reports, save taxpayers $13.3 billion between 2009 and 2014.

The short deadline and the significant increase in workload for the Department of Education has some worried that schools won’t be able to convert their systems in time, said Justin Draeger, vice president of public policy at NASFAA.

[A] plus, from the universities’ point of view, is that federal Pell Grants, offered to low-income students, will be pegged to the consumer price index plus 1 percent.

“That it’s indexed for consumer price increases ensures that we don’t have to fight the appropriations battle every year,” Mr. Draeger said.

The full article was originally published on Sept. 17, 2009.