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WINOOSKI — Registration is under way for the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation’s 9th annual College Pathways program, a free day of college planning workshops for high school sophomores and juniors and their parents.

In order to accommodate as many families as possible, VSAC hosts College Pathways in three locations on the following Saturdays:
• March 13 at Saint Michael’s College in Colchester
• March 27 at Castleton State College in Castleton
• April 10 at Lyndon State College in Lyndonville

The program enables each student and parent to choose up to five workshop topics from more than a dozen available, and includes a free bag lunch. Topics include how to find the right college, applying to college, college application essay writing, paying for college, scholarship search, two-year college options, resources for students with learning disabilities, playing intercollegiate sports, and admission to highly selective schools.

The event begins with registration at 8:30 a.m. and concludes at 3 p.m. Families are encouraged to register early, because workshops fill fast. For more information or to register, visit www.vsac.org.

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• For 40 years, VSAC has provided Vermonters with individual counseling through TRiO, a group of programs that use a combination of federal and VSAC funds to help low-income, first-generation, college-bound students prepare for and succeed in education or training beyond high school.
• Ten years ago, Vermont was among the first states to receive funding through GEAR UP, another federal-VSAC partnership serving disadvantaged students. GEAR UP was created by former U.S. Sen. James Jeffords of Vermont.
• It was also 10 years ago that VSAC launched the Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan, the state’s official “529 college savings plan.” By providing federal and state tax incentives for families to save for higher education, the plan aims to reduce dependence on borrowing and make college more attainable.

Two members of Vermont’s congressional delegation, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Peter Welch, joined other dignitaries — as well as participants, alumni, and staff of VSAC’s college planning programs — at a gathering to underscore the importance of these services to Vermont.

Rep. Welch recently went to bat for VSAC during U.S. House action on a bill that would dramatically alter VSAC’s ability to continue offering comprehensive college planning and financing assistance to Vermonters. The bill has moved to the U.S. Senate, where Sen. Sanders, a member of the committee overseeing education matters, will play a pivotal role in the legislative outcome.

In remarks at the event, Sen. Sanders thanked VSAC for its “exemplary service,” and noted that college access programs such as VSAC’s result in low-income students enrolling in college at rates that exceed the average for all students. He promised to lead efforts in Washington to ensure that nonprofits like VSAC can continue to do their important work.

Rep. Welch said in “story after story,” the delegation in Washington hears from Vermonters who value the services VSAC provides, not just in helping people finance college but in the career and college counseling arena as well. He said it’s important for Congress to “restrain the bad behavior” among a few education loan providers elsewhere while rewarding nonprofits like VSAC “that have been doing it the right way.”

John Tracy, representing the office of U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, and Vermont Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, speaking on behalf of state legislative leaders, added their words of support. Shumlin said the VSAC model is an example for the whole country, and shouldn’t be discarded as part of national reform efforts.

Don Vickers, president and CEO of VSAC, noted that VSAC’s participation in TRiO and GEAR UP has resulted in nearly 50,000 Vermonters a year receiving a wide array of career and college planning information and advice. Likewise, by offering the higher education investment plan, VSAC helps thousands of Vermont families to create a better foundation for their children’s futures.

With the number of high school graduates in the state expected to decline during the next decade, the state has set a goal of dramatically increasing the number of Vermonters pursuing education or training beyond high school. Without the college planning programs VSAC offers, Vickers said, that goal will be more difficult to achieve.

Vickers’ comments were echoed by several individuals who attended the event to speak about the ways VSAC’s college planning programs had helped them. One participant, a single mother who had previously been on public assistance, talked about the help she received to not only achieve a bachelor’s degree but to earn a master’s and then put her own children through college. “The process seems hard,” she said, “but VSAC takes away all the uncertainty and provides hope and confidence.”

Linda Shiller of Bristol, director of career and education outreach for the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation, was recently honored with an award of excellence from the National College Access Network.

Shiller has been with VSAC for 27 years, initially serving as a counselor. She oversees several federal programs serving low-income and first-generation college-bound students, as well as career and college planning services available to all Vermonters.

She is active in college access efforts at both the state and federal levels, and has distinguished herself in working to increase opportunities for Vermont youth in foster care.

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The number of VHEIP investment options has expanded from three to six to provide families a wider range of choices with varying strategies and degrees of risk. Investors may choose options that range from conservative to aggressive, selecting those that best fit their college savings objectives and investment philosophy.

In addition, program management fees have been restructured to help account owners put more of their investments toward their college savings goals. Of particular note, fees have been reduced for the Managed Allocation Option, a popular choice for many families because the underlying investments automatically adjust as the student beneficiary ages.

As of September 30, the investment lineup is as follows:

• Managed Allocation Option — fees decrease from 80 to 53 basis points (50 basis points equals one-half of a percent)
• Interest Income Option — continues as a zero-fee option
• 100% Equity Option — fees remain at 80 basis points
• Equity Index Option (new) — fees set at 53 basis points
• Balanced Option (new) — fees set at 70 basis points
• Fixed Income Option (new) — fees set at 78 basis points

 Effective November 30, two options will change:

• The Interest Income Option will be renamed the Principal Plus Interest Option with a guaranteed principal investment strategy — continues as a zero-fee option
• The 100% Equity Option will be renamed the Diversified Equity Option with an active management strategy — fees increase to 89 basis points

 In addition to those changes, plans are under way to make managing a VHEIP account online much easier. Account owners will be able to view electronic quarterly and annual statements online, rebalance existing assets to new or existing investment options, and make withdrawals to the bank account on record.

Vermont Higher Education

The Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan launched in December 1999 and has grown to an asset value of $100 million in about 9,600 accounts. VHEIP is the only 529 plan for which Vermont taxpayers can claim a state income tax credit of up to $250 per taxpayer per beneficiary (up to $500 for married couples filing jointly) on contributions in each taxable year. Also, contributions and any earnings grow free from federal and Vermont income taxes; withdrawals remain tax-free as long as they are used for qualified expenses, including tuition, room and board, books, and fees at most colleges nationwide and some abroad.

A VHEIP account can be opened for as little as $25 per investment option, and individuals can make periodic or regular contributions to the account with a minimum of $25 (or $15 per pay period by payroll deduction, if offered).

The program Web site — www.vheip.org — provides complete information and online enrollment. Information and applications can also be obtained by calling toll-free 1-800-637-5860. There are no income or residency restrictions on who can open an account.

VSAC is a public, nonprofit corporation established by the Legislature in 1965 to help Vermonters plan and pay for education or training beyond high school. TFI, a national leader in managing 529 college savings plans, is part of the TIAA-CREF group of financial services companies, the leading provider of retirement services in the academic, research, medical, and cultural fields.

Spencer Wright has served on the VSAC board since 2006. He is currently an analyst for Phase One Equities, a commercial real estate brokerage. He spent the previous eight years working for Canus Goat’s Milk Skin Care Products of Waterbury, helping to develop markets for the Canadian start-up in North America and Mexico. Spencer also worked in the Boston area as senior vice president of Lehman Brothers, debt and investment manager for MWRA, and vice president of Bancboston Securities. In addition to his service to VSAC, Spencer is active in Assistance Dogs of the West and the Realty Restoration Gift Foundation and was a founding board member of the Stark Mountain Foundation. Spencer holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of New Hampshire.

Jeb Spaulding, a resident of Montpelier, has been on the VSAC board since he assumed the elected position of Vermont state treasurer in early 2003. As treasurer, he also serves on the boards of the Vermont Economic Development Authority, the Vermont Housing Finance Agency, the Vermont Municipal Bond Bank, and several other state-sponsored entities. He is the president-elect of the National Association of State Treasurers. Jeb represented Washington County in the Vermont Senate from 1985 to 2000. During that period, he chaired the Appropriations, Joint Fiscal, and Education committees as well as the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. Jeb was founder and general manager of WNCS-FM in Montpelier and a partner in Precision Media, Inc., which operated radio stations in New England. He also served as director of career and workforce development at the Vermont Department of Education, director of the Vermont Academy of Science and Technology at Vermont Technical College, and an adjunct instructor at Norwich University. He has been involved in many community organizations. Jeb holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Vermont.