The Kentucky Association of Career Colleges and Schools recently announced their support and commitment to the Campaign to Create 5 Million Career Professionals in the decade ahead, led by Career Education Colleges and Universities (CECU).

Read more here:

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For regular updates on activity taking place in the Kentucky General Assembly, click here.

Fast and easy forgiveness of your student loans! Sound too good to be true? That’s because it is. Watch out for scams that entice student loan holders by claiming they can erase their debt.

How the scam works:

You see a post on Facebook or other social-media channels claiming that a company can erase your student loan debt. By using profile information on social-media channels, these scam artists target people who identify themselves as former college students or alumni, particularly younger individuals who are more likely to have student debt.

These con artists attract victims by marketing official-sounding programs, some of which don’t exist, or they offer “free” services that aren’t free at all. They often do this by providing a link from a sponsored Facebook or social-media post to a fraudulent or misleading website landing page.

Once they’ve “hooked” their targets on the website, the company asks for an upfront fee to negotiate with your student loan lender on your behalf. They often claim they’ve helped numerous other clients, but don’t believe them! Student loans can only be only be forgiven under very specific circumstances, which are not fast or easy.

These scammers will simply take your money and disappear. In another scam, con artists claim they can save you money by consolidating your loans, charging a fee for using a free government service. Other scams try to move your loans to a private lender with a higher interest rate.

Where can you find trustworthy information and assistance about student loan debt?

For reliable information on your student loan debt, contact Federal Student Aid, an office of the U.S. Department of Education. This website can answer questions you may have about your existing loans, offer information about your options, and point you to legitimate sources of information about student loan indebtedness. For additional information about these scams and loan-indebtedness assistance, visit the Federal Student Aid website at https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/about/announcements/debt-relief-message.

For updates on the current status of legislation relevant to KACCS members, click here.

March 4, 2013

The Kentucky Association of Career Colleges and Schools applauds the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities (APSCU) for their recent release of the “Report of the APSCU Blue Ribbon Taskforce for Military and Veteran Education,” which provides recommendations and suggestions for improving the educational experience of military and veteran students.  The taskforce’s recommendations come after a careful review of policies, processes and procedures employed by postsecondary institutions and corresponding services being provided to military and veteran students in higher education.  The Blue Ribbon Taskforce was composed of institutional leaders of campus military programs, state leaders and representatives of Veteran Service Organizations who served as special advisors. These recommendations will help military and veteran students   receive the proper training and skills necessary to succeed in the civilian workforce by leveraging the benefits they have earned through brave service to our nation while in uniform.

General James E. Shane (Ret.) of the Sullivan University System and the Blue Ribbon Taskforce Committee stated, “As a member of the APSCU Blue Ribbon Task Force, it was our goal to develop a set of guidelines which would not only assist the post-secondary institutions to develop and refine their programs for our military and veteran students, but to clearly demonstrate our commitment to assisting them in being successful in pursuit of their educational goals.  The taskforce members strongly felt that all young Americans who served our country deserve a quality education and every institution should be held to a standard which exemplifies our commitment to excellence.”

The recommendations in the Blue Ribbon Taskforce address: consumer information, enrollment and recruitment; institutional commitment to provide military and veteran student support; promising practices for ensuring military and veteran student success through student services; and establishing institutional research guidelines for tracking military and veteran student success.

Kentucky career colleges and schools have been and continue to be committed to the success of military and veteran students.  Sergeant Jason Stewart said of his experience as a student at National College, “It’s got deep military roots.  That was part of its appeal, as well – how friendly the staff and faculty and the school itself was to veterans.  The president is a veteran – Special Forces Vietnam.  He’s done and seen some incredible things.  They have an understanding of what it is to be a veteran and the sacrifices that come along with that.”  Jason is a Business Administration-Management and Office Technology Professional Programs major.

Current student, SPC James Fleig stated, “I decided to come back to school after my deployment as it was an eye opener.  I realized that by joining the military right after high school, I haven’t necessarily experienced one of life’s best offers. I spent three months doing research on colleges, trying to decide which would offer me the most in my education.  ATA College has been the best experience I could ask for from a college, ranging from flexible class times to making sure that every student has the best learning capability.  ATA College has worked with my military schedule and benefits with great expertise in their fields.”  James is enrolled in the Limited Medical Radiography Occupational Associates Degree program.

Jason’s and James’ educational experiences are only two shared by hundreds of military students enrolled in career colleges throughout Kentucky.

The recommendations proposed by APSCU’s Blue Ribbon Taskforce can be viewed here.