Transcript Document

Insights from a Former Federal Auditor
Briget Biernat Jans
Director of Financial Aid Compliance
DePaul University
Who Does What, Where?
Washington, D.C.
 FSA headquarters
 Establish policies and
processes
 For regional offices, as well as
institutions
 Limited amount of
processing
 Office of General Counsel
Regional Offices
 School Participation Teams
 Carry out policies and
processes
 Ensure compliance
 Address complaints
 FOIA requests
 Other teams
School Participation Team
 Region V Staffing
 Area Case Director
 Managers
 Institutional Improvement Specialists
 Financial Analysts
 Institutional Review Specialists
 Administrative Staff
 Trainers
What’s In It for YOU?
 Trainers
 Institutional Improvement Specialists
 Assist schools that are
 new to FSA
that may be struggling with some
aspect of the regulations
 Technical Assistance Duty
 Ask questions – (312) 730-1511
The Hats Worn by
Institutional Review Specialists
 Commonly known as “auditors”
 Variety of tasks
 Eligibility Actions
 Method of Payment (MOP) Claims
 Audit Resolutions*
 Program Reviews
 Recently, restructured to be more specialized
Eligibility Actions
 New school approvals
 Re-certifications
 E-App updates
 Additional locations
 Adding new programs
 New leadership
 President
 Aid director
 Board members
Eligibility Actions
 No matter the eligibility action, always,
always, always send copies of:
 Institutional accreditation
 State authorization
 Signature page
 Make friends with academic affairs
 Keep copies for yourself
Method of Payment (MOP) Claims
 Review Specialists must review all claims
for payments for schools under the
reimbursement payment method.
 Schools pay student first
 Submit student-specific documentation of
eligibility
 Specialists review each student before
approving or denying payment
Audit Resolutions
 You submit via E-Z Audit
 Washington reviews for material completeness
 Assigns deficient audits to region
 Manager assigns to Review Specialist
 Not always same person from year to year
 Depends on workload
Audit Resolutions
 *Within the region, most likely reason to
lead to a federal program review
 Qualified opinion
 material uncertainty exists
 Adverse audit report
 Institution has significant financial
issues
Audit Resolutions
 Reviewer builds a case for recommending
a program review
 Presents it during the full-team meeting
 Team votes on whether need exists to do
a review
Audit Resolutions
 Keep deficient audits from becoming
program reviews:
 Avoid repeat findings at all costs.
 Prepare a thorough management
response to any findings.
 Discuss sample size with your auditors.
 10% error rate = full file review
Program Reviews
 Most reviews determined by Washington
 Usually focused on a particular concern
 Some come from regional concerns
 Typically from deficient audits
Program Reviews
 What to do when you’re selected
 Notify your President and other key offices
 Begin gathering requested information
IMMEDIATELY
 Call with questions ASAP
 Not meeting deadline = “lack of
administrative capability”
Program Reviews
 Make sure others understand importance and
need for speed
 Findings are typically addressed along the way
 Shouldn’t be any surprises at end of week
 If you can fix a finding on the spot, hop on it
 The goal is an “expedited determination
letter”
Questions???