Posted Date:February 13, 2014
Author: | Pamela Eliadis, Service Director, System Operations & Aid Delivery Management, Federal Student Aid |
Subject: Beta Test Volunteers Needed for EDExpress 2014-2015, Release 2.0
We are recruiting schools and servicers to participate in the beta test of EDExpress for Windows 2014-2015, Release 2.0. Beta testing is scheduled to run from March 3 through March 14, 2014.
During this beta test, participants will focus primarily on testing functionality in the Pell Grant module, particularly new CIP Code features and revised award calculations based on the 2014-2015 Federal Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules. Participants will also have the option of testing Direct Loan and TEACH Grant functionality, if time allows, although Release 2.0 users will need to carefully limit their use of both modules due to forthcoming enhancements.
During the beta test, participants download an in-development version of the EDExpress software and test documentation from an FTP site, replicate typical usage of the software in a mock-production environment, report any problems encountered, and submit a summary report detailing test findings and software suggestions for our analysis.
If you are interested in being considered as a beta test participant for grant and/or loan functionality, please send an e-mail to CPSSAIG@ed.gov with the subject line “Attention: EDExpress 2014-2015 Release 2.0 Beta Testing” and provide the following information:
1) School name and TG number
2) Primary and secondary testing contact names, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses
3) Windows operating system version(s) for PC workstations accessing EDExpress
4) EDExpress operating environment (network/standalone). If your EDExpress database is stored on a network, please identify the network type and version (Novell 5.1, Windows 2003 Server, etc.).
5) Do you use EDExpress in combination with a mainframe system or 3rd party software to process grant or loan data? If so, what type of mainframe system and/or 3rd party software do you use?
6) FTP download capability (i.e., can you upload and download files from an FTP server?)
We will select participants from a wide variety of processing environments to ensure a diverse and thorough testing of the software is performed.
We will contact all Release 2.0 beta test volunteers by February 26, 2014. If your school is selected for participation, further information will be provided by e-mail at that time.
We appreciate your interest in EDExpress 2014-2015, Release 2.0 and look forward to hearing from you.