Alumni and Friends Making an Impact

Nearly 44 million people will be resuming or starting their federal student loan payments this fall, marking the end of the federal student loan program that halted payments and interest accrual during the pandemic.

Although this is a federal program, it will affect former UD students and alumni who took out federal student loans. Flyers have a tradition of success, and their student loan default rate is only .5% (compared to the national average of 2.3%), and 84% of Flyers begin repaying their loans within three years of graduation (compared to 47% nationally).

To help Flyers continue their success at this unprecedented time for student borrowers, Flyer Student Services created a student loan repayment guide that brings a lot of resources together onto one easy-to-navigate page for Flyers who currently have federal student loan balances. Lifelong career services through Handshake is another way the University supports alumni.

“The fact that UD is reaching out to help alumni with federal student loans right now is a reminder of why I chose to attend UD in the first place,” said Phil Cenedella ’13, a financial aid adviser for the University of Colorado Denver. “That sense of family you feel when you’re on campus? It’s real, and it continues as an alum.”

After years in the private sector, Cenedella was drawn to CU Denver because of the mission-driven purpose of working in education. “Scholarships, financial aid and loans were definitely a part of my UD story, so to be able to pay that forward now is really rewarding,” he said.

Cenedella’s recommendation for any borrowers who have questions about their loans is to take action early by contacting their federal student loan servicer, like Sallie Mae or MOHELA. And, if you aren’t sure who that is, UD’s guide lets you know exactly how you can figure that out.

The guide provides information covering everything from retrieving your Federal Student Aid username and password, to tips for preparing for your loan repayment, and a list of resources and programs available that can help with student debt.

For Cenedella, it’s good to know the resources are there — even if you don’t need them.

With so many people restarting loan repayments after the three-year repayment pause, the federal government has warned people to watch out for scams. Using the information available on UD’s student loan repayment guide will ensure that you are connected to legitimate resources and sites.

“UD has my back,” said Cenedella. “Always has. Always will.”