Brian
Mesa,#2Consumer Suggestion
Thu, March 09, 2006
Tyrone, First, let me extend my apologies to you for your experience. It appears that you have been through a series of miscommunications. Based on what you have presented here, I can offer a likely explanation of what went on for you.... First, your Financial Aid. I can tell you have had some experience with FA in the past, but there are some areas that are unclear. You wanted to know why your PELL award was reduced, why you had to present your tax information for Verification, why you did not get as many disbursements, how the funding arrived to the school and was applied to your account. These are the items I will answer here first. The Academic issues I am going to look into. Those may be a problem due to FERPA regualatory issues... I first suggest that you download a copy of ALL FAFSA student aid reports that you have on file through the FAFSA web sitte (fafsa.ed.gov). After you download a copy of EACH transaction for the aid year in question (2005-2006?), you need to go to the comments section. This will tell you if you were selected by the Department of Education for Verification through a University (any one you may have sent the info to...) Financial Aid office. Verification is the procedure of checking to make sure that the data entered on a student's FAFSA matches the information on file with the IRS. If the verification process finds that the tax documentation DOES NOT match the correcponding spots on a FAFSA, then changes will be made to your FAFSA. Verification changes may/ may not alter your aid awards for PELL grants. PELL grant funding is based on Financial need established by the US Department of Education and corresponding rules for a given school's costs. For more info about how this works, please refer to www.studentaid.ed.gov. It also sounds like your Verification process was a bit messy. You should have been able to file part of your Verification Online and then faxed in copies of requires tax/ income documents to the Financial Aid Office. I suggest to my students that they copy me on this step just in case documents get lost. This is a bending of the rules due to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (apologies on the speling) dealing with financial documents, but I made certain that the materials reach the proper office for processing. Now, Financial Aid disbursements. When a student goes to a University or College that uses Title IV funding, the studnet is going to have to a*s through a process called Certification. A simplified summary of Certification is when the school verifies student attendance in approved programs to have Federal Financial Aid funding released. This typically occurs after 12 class days. This is why all Colleges and Universities are VERY icky about students being in class no later than the 12th calendar class day. Then there is a process that occurs to monitor continued attendance or completion of additional steps, such as D. of Ed. selection of FAFSA Verification, for Aid to be disbursed. FA is typically disbursed (at semester credit institutions) on a 12/12 schedule. That is, you have to complete 12 credits hours with a "C" or better to "earn" your aid. At Axia, this means the successful completetion of 2 blocks. Then your second disbursement is scheduled for release shortly after you make your attendance for your third block. If you do not meet the grade requirements, drop out, or exceed the 29-day non-attendance rule WITHOUT a "Leave of Absence Request" on file, you could have your funding returned to your Lender for loans and your grant money sent back to the Department of Education. PELL grant monies are disbursed TWICE an Aid Year and previous award totals are not allowed to go beyond the Aid Year switch on July 1. How funding is applied to your account. funding is applied to a student's account based on "First-come, first-applied". This is not always guaranteed to be PELL/ SEOG grants first. This applies to traditional schools as well. Often, but not always, Student Laon funding arrives at a College or University a few days/ weeks before grant funding. This is applied first. Anything else that arrieves lter shows as a credit on a student account and is snet as an Aid refund to the student. this refund is to be used on "school related expenses only". Books, fees, supplies, boarding... If you have "earned" your aid, I recommend to my students that they either save the excess for future school costs, or pay down any loans they have had applied to their account. I hope that this helps. I know this is long and detailed, but I have done my best from ten years experience as an Undergraduate student who attended four college (public) in texas and had his share of FA fun. Also, I provide this information along with the public sources for ALL of my students and those who ask.
Brian
Mesa,#3Consumer Suggestion
Thu, March 09, 2006
Tyrone, First, let me extend my apologies to you for your experience. It appears that you have been through a series of miscommunications. Based on what you have presented here, I can offer a likely explanation of what went on for you.... First, your Financial Aid. I can tell you have had some experience with FA in the past, but there are some areas that are unclear. You wanted to know why your PELL award was reduced, why you had to present your tax information for Verification, why you did not get as many disbursements, how the funding arrived to the school and was applied to your account. These are the items I will answer here first. The Academic issues I am going to look into. Those may be a problem due to FERPA regualatory issues... I first suggest that you download a copy of ALL FAFSA student aid reports that you have on file through the FAFSA web sitte (fafsa.ed.gov). After you download a copy of EACH transaction for the aid year in question (2005-2006?), you need to go to the comments section. This will tell you if you were selected by the Department of Education for Verification through a University (any one you may have sent the info to...) Financial Aid office. Verification is the procedure of checking to make sure that the data entered on a student's FAFSA matches the information on file with the IRS. If the verification process finds that the tax documentation DOES NOT match the correcponding spots on a FAFSA, then changes will be made to your FAFSA. Verification changes may/ may not alter your aid awards for PELL grants. PELL grant funding is based on Financial need established by the US Department of Education and corresponding rules for a given school's costs. For more info about how this works, please refer to www.studentaid.ed.gov. It also sounds like your Verification process was a bit messy. You should have been able to file part of your Verification Online and then faxed in copies of requires tax/ income documents to the Financial Aid Office. I suggest to my students that they copy me on this step just in case documents get lost. This is a bending of the rules due to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (apologies on the speling) dealing with financial documents, but I made certain that the materials reach the proper office for processing. Now, Financial Aid disbursements. When a student goes to a University or College that uses Title IV funding, the studnet is going to have to a*s through a process called Certification. A simplified summary of Certification is when the school verifies student attendance in approved programs to have Federal Financial Aid funding released. This typically occurs after 12 class days. This is why all Colleges and Universities are VERY icky about students being in class no later than the 12th calendar class day. Then there is a process that occurs to monitor continued attendance or completion of additional steps, such as D. of Ed. selection of FAFSA Verification, for Aid to be disbursed. FA is typically disbursed (at semester credit institutions) on a 12/12 schedule. That is, you have to complete 12 credits hours with a "C" or better to "earn" your aid. At Axia, this means the successful completetion of 2 blocks. Then your second disbursement is scheduled for release shortly after you make your attendance for your third block. If you do not meet the grade requirements, drop out, or exceed the 29-day non-attendance rule WITHOUT a "Leave of Absence Request" on file, you could have your funding returned to your Lender for loans and your grant money sent back to the Department of Education. PELL grant monies are disbursed TWICE an Aid Year and previous award totals are not allowed to go beyond the Aid Year switch on July 1. How funding is applied to your account. funding is applied to a student's account based on "First-come, first-applied". This is not always guaranteed to be PELL/ SEOG grants first. This applies to traditional schools as well. Often, but not always, Student Laon funding arrives at a College or University a few days/ weeks before grant funding. This is applied first. Anything else that arrieves lter shows as a credit on a student account and is snet as an Aid refund to the student. this refund is to be used on "school related expenses only". Books, fees, supplies, boarding... If you have "earned" your aid, I recommend to my students that they either save the excess for future school costs, or pay down any loans they have had applied to their account. I hope that this helps. I know this is long and detailed, but I have done my best from ten years experience as an Undergraduate student who attended four college (public) in texas and had his share of FA fun. Also, I provide this information along with the public sources for ALL of my students and those who ask.
Brian
Mesa,#4Consumer Suggestion
Thu, March 09, 2006
Tyrone, First, let me extend my apologies to you for your experience. It appears that you have been through a series of miscommunications. Based on what you have presented here, I can offer a likely explanation of what went on for you.... First, your Financial Aid. I can tell you have had some experience with FA in the past, but there are some areas that are unclear. You wanted to know why your PELL award was reduced, why you had to present your tax information for Verification, why you did not get as many disbursements, how the funding arrived to the school and was applied to your account. These are the items I will answer here first. The Academic issues I am going to look into. Those may be a problem due to FERPA regualatory issues... I first suggest that you download a copy of ALL FAFSA student aid reports that you have on file through the FAFSA web sitte (fafsa.ed.gov). After you download a copy of EACH transaction for the aid year in question (2005-2006?), you need to go to the comments section. This will tell you if you were selected by the Department of Education for Verification through a University (any one you may have sent the info to...) Financial Aid office. Verification is the procedure of checking to make sure that the data entered on a student's FAFSA matches the information on file with the IRS. If the verification process finds that the tax documentation DOES NOT match the correcponding spots on a FAFSA, then changes will be made to your FAFSA. Verification changes may/ may not alter your aid awards for PELL grants. PELL grant funding is based on Financial need established by the US Department of Education and corresponding rules for a given school's costs. For more info about how this works, please refer to www.studentaid.ed.gov. It also sounds like your Verification process was a bit messy. You should have been able to file part of your Verification Online and then faxed in copies of requires tax/ income documents to the Financial Aid Office. I suggest to my students that they copy me on this step just in case documents get lost. This is a bending of the rules due to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (apologies on the speling) dealing with financial documents, but I made certain that the materials reach the proper office for processing. Now, Financial Aid disbursements. When a student goes to a University or College that uses Title IV funding, the studnet is going to have to a*s through a process called Certification. A simplified summary of Certification is when the school verifies student attendance in approved programs to have Federal Financial Aid funding released. This typically occurs after 12 class days. This is why all Colleges and Universities are VERY icky about students being in class no later than the 12th calendar class day. Then there is a process that occurs to monitor continued attendance or completion of additional steps, such as D. of Ed. selection of FAFSA Verification, for Aid to be disbursed. FA is typically disbursed (at semester credit institutions) on a 12/12 schedule. That is, you have to complete 12 credits hours with a "C" or better to "earn" your aid. At Axia, this means the successful completetion of 2 blocks. Then your second disbursement is scheduled for release shortly after you make your attendance for your third block. If you do not meet the grade requirements, drop out, or exceed the 29-day non-attendance rule WITHOUT a "Leave of Absence Request" on file, you could have your funding returned to your Lender for loans and your grant money sent back to the Department of Education. PELL grant monies are disbursed TWICE an Aid Year and previous award totals are not allowed to go beyond the Aid Year switch on July 1. How funding is applied to your account. funding is applied to a student's account based on "First-come, first-applied". This is not always guaranteed to be PELL/ SEOG grants first. This applies to traditional schools as well. Often, but not always, Student Laon funding arrives at a College or University a few days/ weeks before grant funding. This is applied first. Anything else that arrieves lter shows as a credit on a student account and is snet as an Aid refund to the student. this refund is to be used on "school related expenses only". Books, fees, supplies, boarding... If you have "earned" your aid, I recommend to my students that they either save the excess for future school costs, or pay down any loans they have had applied to their account. I hope that this helps. I know this is long and detailed, but I have done my best from ten years experience as an Undergraduate student who attended four college (public) in texas and had his share of FA fun. Also, I provide this information along with the public sources for ALL of my students and those who ask.