Transcript Slide 1
Embracing Change: Institutional Eligibility, Compliance and Program Participation Val Meyers Associate Director Michigan State University As a financial aid professional, being a ‘change agent’ means more than just ‘being on board’ with change. From fire safety to textbook costs, there is a myriad of information required that doesn’t come from the financial aid office but has implications for continued eligibility to participate in federal aid programs. Learn how one school managed and coordinated their efforts with all the various offices to ensure that they were meeting all of the reporting requirements. ** *It is always ongoing. *The best way to know if you did it right is to survive a program review or audit. *No one has all the answers. The best you can do is to know who to ask for help. *Your colleagues at other institutions can help you most of all. The challenge of many of the regulatory changes (e.g., the Consumer Information requirements in HEOA) are that the financial aid office has responsibility, but often no control in meeting the requirements. Identify the information or actions needed Determine which unit is responsible Inform that unit of the requirement Ensure that it is met Difficulty scale = 1 of 5 This is probably the simplest step. There are a number of resources that list the requirements of the HEOA and related regulation and legislation. You can be proactive by watching the proposed legislation and the Notices of Proposed Rulemaking to see what might be on the way. IFAP (for QA schools, but anyone can use) ◦ http://ifap.ed.gov/qahome/qaassessments/consumerinformation.html FSA Handbook, Vol 2, Chapter 6 – “Providing Consumer Information” ◦ 2009-10 link http://ifap.ed.gov/fsahandbook/attachments/0910FSAHbkVol2Ch6Inf ormation.pdf National Postsecondary Education Cooperative – Information Required to be Disclosed under HEA ◦ http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2010831rev NASFAA web site, including Today’s News IFAP ◦ Dear Colleague Letters ◦ Federal Registers Regional and State association web sites Inside Higher Education Difficulty scale = 5 of 5 This is where you must involve higherlevel administration for assistance. You may have to email or phone your contacts on campus until you determine where the information resides (or who can best obtain it for you). Difficulty scale = 4 of 5 Very hard to do without help. The structure of reporting responsibilities in different institutions may make it hard for a financial aid office to convey the importance of these requirements. Difficulty scale = 2 of 5 Tedious, but often not difficult. You may have to do a lot of web browsing on your institutional web sites, making notes of URLs that comply. You may also need to keep copies of emails, catalogs and publications. Working up the chain of command, the compliance officer and director engaged with Assistant and Associate Provosts until the matter was assigned to a task force, headed by an Associate Provost, who pulled in needed officials and units for the task Units and officials included: • Registrar • Office of Planning (this office supplies data for IPEDS and other federally-required reporting) • University Counsel • Dept of Police and Public Safety • Athletics Textbook disclosure requirement Notice of Federal Aid penalties for Drug Law Violations Student Body Diversity Price of Attendance Registrar – took responsibility for implementing and publishing the textbook requirement as a part of online course enrollment When students enroll, they must be given the required books for the course and section and the approximate cost of those materials Registrar web site made part of Faculty web folder – each instructor is made responsible for his or her course(s) Or, the department or college may enter the textbook requirements for the instructor Registrar sends out email reminders of deadline each semester This information is on the FAFSA, but is it posted on your web site? Possession of Controlled Substance Ineligibility Period First Offense 1 year Second Offense 2 years Third Offense Indefinite Sale of Controlled Substance Ineligibility Period First Offense 2 years Second Offense Indefinite Most of this information is already assembled and published on your school’s website – you just have to know where At MSU, it is the Office of Planning & Budget ◦ Listed are Common Data Set Student Right to Know Graduation Rates (and Student – Athlete Graduation Rates) as well as graduation rate history, etc. A list is available here: http://dev.opb.msu.edu/msuinfo/index.asp?info Admissions COA may be different from Financial Aid’s listed COA (inclusion of travel, personal and miscellaneous costs, etc.) At MSU, the Office of International Students and Scholars also wanted average costs for support of dependents Also, don’t forget to include Student Accounts (Billing Office) It is important to link these offices’ published costs in some way so there is a consistent message. At MSU the four units developed a single information sheet ◦ http://ctlr.msu.edu/download/studentaccounts/SampleBudgets.pdf Academic Programs & Accreditations Alcohol & Drug Policy Campus Security Policies, Crime Statistics Copyright Infringement & Peer-to-Peer File Sharing Policies Federal Student Financial Aid Penalties for Drug Law Violation Financial Aid Information Graduation and Retention Rates Intercollegiate Athletic Program Participation Rates & Financial Support Data Missing Student Notification Procedure Placement of Graduates Price of Attendance Privacy of Student Records (FERPA) Refund Policy, Requirements for Withdrawal, and Return of Title IV Aid Services for Students with Disabilities Student Body Diversity Textbook Information/Required Course Materials Vaccination Policies Voter Registration ◦ http://www.reg.msu.edu/ROInfo/HEOAnotices.asp Once you have done the work, you can’t completely rest! ◦ Test web links annually ◦ Review IFAP for requirement updates and changes ◦ Watch proposed rulemaking = be proactive! Val Meyers Associate Director Michigan State University [email protected]