
Student Service Updates 
U.S. Department of Education  June 2013 
Greetings, 
 
As we move forward in the first year of President Obama’s second term, we 
have a lot of leadership transitions to report here at the U.S. Department of 
Education (Department).  In this edition, we have information about the up-
coming Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) Program com-
petition; the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Pro-
grams (GEAR UP) Program national conference; programmatic updates; a two
-page special insert on the 2013 Higher Education Programs (HEP) Project Di-
rectors’ Meeting; as well as introductions of Departmental officials and several 
other changes that will be of interest to each of you. 
 
I am pleased to announce that Eileen Bland, Division Director, Student Sup-
port Services and the CCAMPIS programs, will serve as the acting Senior Di-
rector of Student Service while I serve as the Acting Deputy Assistant Secre-
tary for HEP.  As the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, I am now responsible 
for managing the day-to-day operations for all higher education programs.  
During this transition, Ms. Bland is available to assist you with any questions 
and/or issues that you may have that normally would require my attention. 
Dr. Debra Saunders-White served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for HEP until 
May 3, 2013.  We applaud her support in particular of the Student Service area 
and wish her much success in her new position as Chancellor of North Caroli-
na Central University.  We are pleased to share a message from Dr. Saunders-
White to the Student Service community on page 2.   
 
Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by the storm in Oklahoma.  
(Please see page 5 for more information from the Department.) 
 
Please continue to forward articles and photos highlighting your programs.  
This information has been very useful to us in profiling success stories. 
 
Thank you all for your continued faithful service in supporting our students!  
Have a wonderful summer!   
 
Sincerely, 
 
/signed/ 
 
Linda Byrd-Johnson, Ph.D. 
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary 
Higher Education Programs 
Letter from the Director 
In This Edition 
 
Farewell from  
Dr. Saunders-White 
2 
 
Leadership Transitions 
at the Department 
2 
 
FSA Updates 
3 
 
Dr. Maimer  
Keynote Address 
4 
 
GEAR UP  
College Savings Update 
4 
 
CCAMPIS Update 
4 
 
College Scorecard 
4 
 
GEAR UP  
Annual Conference 
5 
 
Resources Following 
Tragedy in Oklahoma 
5 
 
Update on New 
Awards, NCCs, and the 
Effect of Sequestration 
5 
 
EOC APR 
6 
 
Newsletters on the Web 
6 
 
Plus a Special Insert on 
the HEP Project  
Directors’ Meeting!