Collaborating with the Office of the Connecticut Attorney General, Sacred Heart University and the other members of the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges have developed a code of conduct governing financial aid practices. The code provides a comprehensive set of principles and rules to guide their relationship with lenders while allowing them to continue their historic role of assisting students and their families.

Confirming the longstanding value of academic financial aid offices, the new code presents a number of standards to assure best practices and satisfactory outcomes while avoiding even the appearance of conflicts of interest.

Among its guiding principles:

• No university official or employee shall accept any compensation (with the exception of very small amounts) from, or on behalf of, a lending institution.
• No such person shall serve on a lender’s advisory board in any way related to financial aid.
• Neither the university nor any related organization may accept compensation or other benefits, such as computer equipment or printing, from a lender.
• So long as no preference is given to a lender as a consequence, colleges and universities may accept gifts and other financial support from lenders.
• As always, parents may select any lender of their choosing, whether on a university’s “preferred” list or not.

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