Press Release

February 3, 2000 Letter from the Clearinghouse President

February 3, 2000

Dear Colleague,

I am pleased to inform you that the U.S. Department of Education (ED) recently signed a multi-year contract with the Clearinghouse and is now receiving weekly electronic enrollment reports for Direct Student Loan borrowers. ED will issue a press release shortly and we will send it to you under separate cover. The partnership between ED and the Clearinghouse is an exciting milestone and puts us close to realizing a key component of our mission — acting as a single point of contact for student loan enrollment verification. Nearly 2,300 post-secondary institutions, representing 81% of the nation’s enrollment, are now reporting enrollment information to the Clearinghouse. We are reporting enrollment information on "matched" students to all of the nation’s guaranty agencies, all of the major FFEL loan servicers, and ED’s Direct Loan servicer, as well as completing SSCR’s from the NSLDS for all of our school clients.

While we have relieved you of the enrollment verification burdens associated with student loans, our mission is not complete. We think that it may now be appropriate to begin focusing attention on simplification of your remaining verification burdens. Many schools have asked the Clearinghouse to use the data they already provide to eliminate the verification workload caused by insurance and credit card companies as well as employers seeking degree verifications. We would like to hear from you-- are you interested in having the Clearinghouse verify enrollment for your students’ health and automobile insurance? Credit card verifications? Degree Verifications for employers?

Let us know your thoughts by e-mailing us at feedback@studentclearinghouse.org. If there is sufficient interest expressed by the school community, we will begin to conduct regional focus groups, establish an advisory council, and begin pilot activities. If you would be interested in being an "early adopter" by participating in the initial focus groups, helping to set the standards for these activities, or participating in the initial pilots, let us know in your e-mail.

Six years ago, the Clearinghouse set out to re-engineer the student loan enrollment verification process. We promised that your paperwork would be reduced, students would realize improved service, and student privacy would be protected. I trust that your personal experience with the Clearinghouse has demonstrated that we have delivered on that promise. Should your e-mail responses indicate support for a solution to the verification workload caused by insurance companies, credit card companies and employers, I am confident that the Clearinghouse will again deliver a service of the highest quality.

Sincerely,

Daniel R. Boehmer
President

Press Inquiries:
Kathleen Dugan
Marketing Director
703-742-4208
dugan@studentclearinghouse.org