"With student-loan lenders dropping at a fast pace over the past six months, many financial aid offices are dropping them to deal directly with the federal government," The Baltimore Examiner reports. "Universities all across the country have been switching to the Direct Loan Program to receive loans directly from the government, rather than a private lender. DLP loans come directly from the federal Stafford loan or other federal programs to the university or college, which then passes it along to the student. That stability is persuading major universities - Penn State, Michigan State and Indiana universities, for instance - to make the switch."