E&I is seeking proposals for Financial Aid Management & Student Outreach for the purpose of covering the entire lifecycle of financial aid support: from educating students before they borrow, through the compliance processes during enrollment, to helping them successfully repay loans after leaving a member institution. The goal of this RFP is to help our members to improve student financial wellness and to assist with solutions to improve retention. Respondents are not expected to be able to provide all of the scope areas for this RFP and may provide a response for one or more of the following scope areas at their discretion: 4.1 Student Financial Success and Financial Aid Support Services 4.1.1 Financial Literacy Education Programs • Tools or services to educate students on personal finance, budgeting, credit, and loan management during college (to improve financial wellness and retention). • Programs should be interactive and tailored – for example, providing online modules or workshops on budgeting, credit, student loans, and investing, and targeting the content to student needs (freshmen vs. seniors, etc.). 4.1.2 Student Debt Management & Default Prevention • Solutions to help manage and prevent student loan debt, such as counseling for in-school students and outreach to delinquent borrowers to reduce default rates. • Use data to focus efforts on at-risk borrowers (those nearing default) such as deploying proactive communication (debt letters, repayment option info) and offering personal counseling for those struggling. 4.1.3 Loan Repayment Counseling • Services (especially for graduating or departing students) that provide one-on-one guidance on selecting repayment plans, avoiding default, and understanding loan obligations. 4.1.4 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Verification Services • Support for verifying student FAFSA information and resolving flagged discrepancies in aid applications. This may include online verification platforms that streamline document collection and review. • Solutions should ensure compliance with U.S. Department of Education requirements, protect sensitive data, and expedite verification turnaround times to not delay aid award...
