Delivered
February 13, 2026
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) would like to share information which may be helpful to you and/or your students.
Links in this message go to ISAC's website (isac.org) unless otherwise noted.
You may scroll through this message, or click a link to go to a specific section:
2026-27 (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027)
2025-26 (July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026)
2024-25 (July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025)
General Information (Not Specific to One Academic Year)
2026-27 ACADEMIC YEAR
March 1: Illinois SETTW Priority Application Consideration Date
Remind your students who plan to pursue a career in teaching that March 1, 2026 is the priority application consideration date for the 2026-27 Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver (SETTW) Program . In order to complete the SETTW application, the student must log in to the ISAC Student Portal (if they have not already done so, they may create a profile here).
Complete applications received after March 1 will be considered only if available tuition waivers remain after all timely complete applicants have been awarded.
April 30: NES Applications Due
The Nursing Education Scholarship (NES) application period each year starts on March 1 and continues through April 30. NES applications for the 2026-27 academic year must be submitted no later than Thursday, April 30, 2026. In order for the application to be considered complete, the 2026-27 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) or Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid (Alternative Application) must also be submitted.
June 1: Budget Data Due
The annual reporting of postsecondary institutions' budget information is anticipated to begin in early April 2026. ISAC will notify colleges when this data is being accepted for the 2026-27 academic year. Colleges participating in the Monetary Award Program (MAP) and the Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) and Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant programs must then submit 2026-27 budget data to ISAC no later than Monday, June 1, 2026.
FAFSA and Alternative Application Remain Available
The 2026-27 FAFSA remains available online, and – if not already done – should be completed as soon as possible by students who will be attending college between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027. FAFSA results are used to determine eligibility for the MAP grant, as well as several other forms of federal, state and institutional financial assistance.
In addition, the 2026-27 Alternative Application is also available (in English and Spanish). Further details are provided at ISAC's Retention of Illinois Students & Equity (RISE) Act page.
Encourage your students to check out the Financial Aid Planning area for information regarding resources that are available to help them complete the financial aid process.
2025-26 ACADEMIC YEAR
February 16: Teachers of Illinois Scholarship Priority Application Consideration Date
Remind your students who plan to pursue a career in teaching that February 16, 2026 is the priority application consideration date for the 2025-26 Teachers of Illinois Scholarship Program . In order to complete the Teachers of Illinois Scholarship application f, the student must log in to the ISAC Student Portal (if they have not already done so, they may create a profile here).
In addition to the Teachers of Illinois Scholarship application, a 2025-26 FAFSA or Alternative Application (if applicable) must also be submitted by February 16.
Complete applications – including the 2025-26 FAFSA (or Alternative Application, if applicable) – received after February 16 will be considered only if funding remains after all timely complete applicants have been awarded.
Further details are available in the January 13, 2026 "Spread the News about the Teachers of Illinois Scholarship Program" e-Message.
March 1: PFC Spring-Term Application Deadline
March 1, 2026 is the spring- and summer-term application deadline for the 2025-26 Grant Programs for Dependents of Police, Fire, or Correctional Officers (PFC). Students complete and submit PFC applications online via the Program Applications & Status Checks area of the ISAC Student Portal. Applications received after March 1 will be considered for summer-term awards only.
March 1: Spring-Term Application Deadline for the Displaced Energy Worker Dependent Transition Scholarship Program
March 1, 2026 is the spring- and summer-term application deadline for the 2025-26 Displaced Energy Worker Dependent Transition Scholarship Program. Applications received after March 1 will be considered for summer-term awards only.
March 27: MAP Second-Term Claims Due
Colleges are encouraged to submit 2025-26 MAP claims for the second term (winter for quarter schools; spring for semester schools) as soon as possible, and no later than the March 27, 2026 claim deadline date.
Further details are provided in the January 5, 2026 "ISAC Accepting 2025-26 MAP Second-Term Claims" e-Message.
Reminders
- Late claims for the first (fall) term received from December 6, 2025 through (including) January 23, 2026 were released for payment in late January. First-term claims have since been released for payment through (including) February 10, 2026.
- ISAC continues to accept fall-term claims; however, initial claims and upward adjustment amounts for the fall term will be held as late, to be considered for payment later in the year.
- With data analysis reflecting decreases in projected claim rates, 2025–26 MAP award announcements for students who submitted an initial FAFSA or Alternative Application from June 6, 2025, through (including) July 1, 2025 were released from suspense status.
- The deadline date for submitting initial first-term claims for these released records, as well as second-term claims, is March 27, 2026.
- Announcements of 2025-26 MAP grants remain in suspense status for all eligible students with initial FAFSA or Alternative Application receipt dates on or after July 2, 2025.
March 30: Second-term Priority Claim Deadline for ECACE, Golden Apple, NES & Social Work Scholarship
ISAC is accepting payment requests (claims) for the second term (winter for quarter schools; spring for semester schools) for the 2025-26 Early Childhood Access Consortium for Equity (ECACE) Scholarship, Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois (Golden Apple), NES, and Post-Master of Social Work School Social Work Professional Educator License Scholarship (Social Work Scholarship) programs. The second-term priority claim deadline for these programs is March 30, 2026.
In addition, even though the priority claim deadline of December 31, 2025 has passed for the first (fall) term , ISAC is continuing to accept and pay first-term claims for the ECACE, Golden Apple, NES, and Social Work Scholarship programs through March 30, 2026.
Further details are available in the January 16, 2026 "Submit 2025-26 Claims and Benefit Usage Data for Second Term" e-Message.
Continue Submitting Benefit Usage Data for ING Grant and IVG
ISAC is accepting spring-term (second semester/second & third quarter) benefit usage data for the 2025-26 ING Grant and IVG programs.
In order to be considered timely:
- ING Grant data for the spring term is due Friday, May 29, 2026.
- IVG data for the spring term is due Friday, May 29, 2026.
- Even though the dates have passed by which summer- (for the IVG Program) and fall-term (for the ING Grant and IVG programs) data must have been submitted in order to be considered timely, colleges are still encouraged to submit benefit usage data for those terms as soon as possible.
Benefit usage data for the ING Grant and IVG programs is submitted to ISAC by colleges via the benefit usage functionality within each program's system, allowing colleges to report enrollment hours and dollar amounts for initial, in-district and out-of-district benefit usage by students, as well as adjustments to previously-submitted data. Even though ISAC may not be able to fully reimburse institutions for 2025-26 ING Grant or IVG awards, reporting of benefits used must still take place so that usage can be accurately reflected on students' accounts.
Further details are available in the January 16, 2026 "Submit 2025-26 Claims and Benefit Usage Data for Second Term" e-Message.
FAFSA and Alternative Application Remain Available
Although ISAC has suspended the announcement of 2025-26 MAP grants (for all students whose initial 2025-26 FAFSA was submitted to the federal processor or whose initial Alternative Application was submitted to ISAC on or after July 2, 2025), these 2025-26 applications remain available online. If not already done, an application should be completed and submitted as soon as possible by students who will be attending college between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026. FAFSA results are used to determine eligibility for other forms of federal, state and institutional financial assistance. The suspension of 2025-26 MAP award announcements does not impact any other financial aid programs.
2024-25 ACADEMIC YEAR
February 20: Enrollment Verification Data for ISAC-Administered Teacher Education Programs Due
ISAC is accepting 2024-2025 enrollment verification data for students who previously received funds from the following ISAC-administered teacher programs:
- SETTW Program
- Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship Program
- Optometric Education Scholarship Program (OESP) (as a reminder, OESP awards are available only for students attending the Illinois College of Optometry)
Further details and instructions regarding the enrollment verification process are provided in the January 21, 2026 "Teacher Program Enrollment Verification Update" e-Message, and via the resources listed below:
- Enrollment Status Verification
- Enrollment Status Verification for the Teacher Programs User Guide
- Program Service Requirements
GENERAL INFORMATION
Upcoming Webinars
ISAC will offer "Monthly Operational Update and Program News" webinars for financial aid administrators at 2:00 p.m. (CT) on the following dates.
- Wednesday, February 25, 2026
- Wednesday, March 25, 2026
- Wednesday, April 29, 2026
To participate, visit the Partner Training page in the e-Library on the day of the event to access the webinar link and presentation materials.
February 26: Success Network Conference
If you have not already done so, register today for the 13th annual Illinois Education and Career Success Network (Success Network) conference – Stronger Together: Creating Opportunity for Every Learner – being held on February 26, 2026, at Moraine Valley Community College in Palos Hills. Further details, including access to online registration, are provided in the February 11, 2026 "Register Now for Success Network Conference" e-Message.
March 9-11: ILASFAA Annual Conference
Be sure to register for the Illinois Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (ILASFAA) annual conference – Navigating the Upside Down – which is taking place March 9-11, 2026, at The Westin Chicago Lombard Center in Lombard.
April 16: Next Commission Meeting
The next meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission is scheduled to take place on Thursday, April 16, 2026. Further details, including a listing of tentative agenda items, will be available prior to the meeting via the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the About ISAC area.
Visit the Commission Meeting Schedule page for information regarding all meetings scheduled in 2026.
Holiday Schedules
ISAC staff will be unavailable for these holidays:
- Monday, February 16, 2026 – Presidents' Day
- Monday, May 25, 2026 – Memorial Day
- Friday, June 19, 2026 – Juneteenth
Staff will again be available the first business day immediately following each holiday.
Processing Schedules
All ISAC-administered program systems within the GAP Access portal remain available on holidays during regularly-scheduled hours. For MAP and other programs administered through components of the GAP Access portal, results for claims submitted from 5:00 p.m. (CT) the business day prior to the holiday through 5:00 p.m. (CT) the business day following the holiday will be available via the appropriate program's system on the morning of the second business day after the holiday.
For Assistance
Access the Financial Aid Administrators area anytime, or send an email message to Partner Services at [email protected]. We will review and respond to messages during regular business hours of Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (CT).