Did you know that Title IV consumer information findings happen to be one of the top audit findings during 2017? As financial aid professionals, balancing the ebb and flow of paperwork, completing verification, awarding first-year, transfer and continuing students, reviewing SAP appeals, and much more can distract our focus on other important Title IV requirements. If you are the Financial Aid Director on the program participation agreement, it is obvious that you might feel as though you are on the battlefield when it comes to monitoring and maintaining all the regulations associated with federal student aid.
- Did you know that there is a Health and Safety Exemption Requirement for your FERPA policy? Section 507 of the US Patriot Act amended the FERPA regulation to state that higher education officials may release student information without student consent if there is an imminent health or safety issue.
- Did you know that your consumer information policy must have a misrepresentation policy that informs students about the consequences and appeals process when information is provided to a college official that is factually incorrect? While many organizations have an honor code that must be followed, 34 CFR 668.71; 668.72; 668.73; and 668.74 provides further detail that encompasses a broader range of areas where a student could potentially misrepresent information.
- Finally, in this day of online coursework, where you are aware that you are required to explain a faculty members role regarding interaction with students for distance education courses? 34 CFR 668.6(b) indicates that this information can be presented to a consumer in a variety of ways; faculty contract, student handbook, job description, organizational policy, or training materials.
According to the most recent federal student aid program review guidance, there are roughly 59 disclosure requirements. The disclosure requirements are an important tool for potential consumers (a.k.a. students), and this information must be disclosure freely and timely. With the flurry of students returning to college campuses nationwide, the next few months is a good opportunity to evaluate if any areas can be improved to minimize new or repeat findings.
We recognize the strain that financial aid offices are under, especially in the months of July and August. So, even though the 2018-19 academic year has just begun, Title IV compliance must always stay at the forefront of everything we do. We also know that we need to pivot and start planning for the 2019-20 financial aid application cycle which stats October 1, 2018. CAS can help you tackle all tasks at hand for 2018-19 and what lies ahead in 2019-20. Our services include, but are not limited to:
- Student Consumer Information Review
- Student Life Cycle Review
- Banner, PeopleSoft, and PowerFAIDS support; which includes New Year Aid Setup and automatic packaging
- Pell and DL Reconciliation Review
- Interim Staffing at all levels from management to processors to conduct file review, federal verification, loan processing, etc.
If you are interested in services that CAS has to offer, you may contact Brenda Brown, Director of Business Development directly at (305) 815-1428 or by email at brenda@collegeaidservices.net.