GUIDANCE FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

FAFSA ON THE WEB | AWARDING | VERIFICATION | ATTENDANCE
SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROCESS | RETURN OF TITLE IV FUNDS
TRANSFER INFORMATION | AUDITED COURSE/CREDIT BY EXAM

FAFSA ON THE WEB

FAFSA on the Web is an Internet application developed by the U.S. Department of Education that enables students to complete an electronic Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Using a supported web browser, students may complete and submit their FAFSA information directly to the U. S. Department of Education's Central Processing System (CPS). The Internet address is: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov .

When transmitting an application over the Internet, students may either mail a printed and signed signature page to the U.S. Department of Education or electronically sign on the Internet using a Personal Identification Number (PIN). The CPS will determine eligibility for financial aid after receiving the completed application. To apply for a PIN, students can go to www.pin.ed.gov . If the student is a dependent student as determined in Step 3 of the FAFSA, a parent signature is also required.

AWARDING

Once the FAFSA has been processed, the student will be notified of the results by the U.S. Dept. of Education. If the student designates RCC (federal school code #005447)as their school of choice, the Financial Aid Office will also notify the student of FAFSA results and/or additional requirements.

If verification is required, the student will be asked to follow the process described below under the heading, verification. At the time the student's financial aid file is completed, the Financial Aid Office then uses the needs analysis method to determine the student's financial aid package. If the student demonstrates a financial need, his/her financial aid package may consist of the following components: grants, scholarships, and/or Federal Work-Study. The Financial Aid Office issues a Financial Aid Award Notification to all eligible students.

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VERIFICATION

In applying for financial aid, the student may be selected for verification; or more clearly, will need to prove those items reported on the financial aid application. Documentation to verify financial aid forms will need to be submitted to the Financial Aid Office staff and each student will be informed as to what documentation is needed by mail. These documents should be submitted promptly, as a delay may hinder the financial aid process. If corrections are required as a result of verification, the Financial Aid Office will make those corrections to prevent any delay in completing the file.

NOTE: Should a student receive financial aid as a result of having reported incorrect information the student will have to repay any portion of the financial aid he/she should not have received.

All students selected for verification must, if filed, submit a signed copy of their 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ or 1040tel Federal Tax forms along with W-2 forms for the year indicated. Other documentation may be required in the verification process.

NOTE: The U.S. Department of Education has the authority to confirm federal income tax information with the Internal Revenue Service.

ATTENDANCE

Students who register for classes at RCC through deferment to Financial Aid, but who never attend their classes, are responsible for any charges made on their behalf.
Financial Aid recipients who are withdrawn from all courses either by the official withdrawal process or through the unofficial drop process may be responsible for repayment of Federal funds. See Return of Title IV Funds Policy for details.
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SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROCESS POLICY FOR FINANCIAL AID RECIPIENTS

Purpose

All financial aid recipients are required to meet satisfactory academic progress (SAP) according to Federal regulations and policies set by Randolph Community College (RCC). The intent of these policies is to insure that students who are receiving financial aid are making measurable progress toward completion of an approved degree, diploma, or certificate program in a reasonable period of time and within a reasonable number of credit hours attempted in their program of study.

Scope

Regulations require a student’s progress for financial aid purposes to be measured both quantitatively and qualitatively. In addition to a student’s cumulative grade point average, students are also required to pass a percentage of all attempted coursework, and to complete their program of study within the maximum time frame established by the institution. To reasonably measure a student’s satisfactory academic progress for financial aid, the student’s academic record will be evaluated including credit hours earned at other post-secondary institutions and transferred into the student’s program of study at RCC. This requirement applies to all students who apply for financial assistance from Federal, State and institutional aid.

Standards of Progress

To receive financial aid, the student must maintain satisfactory academic progress toward an eligible program of study. There are two standards in the Financial Aid Office’s standards of progress that students receiving financial aid must meet in order to maintain satisfactory academic progress:

Qualitative Standard

The minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) requirement the student must maintain to receive and/or continue receiving financial aid assistance is 2.0. This includes all degree, diploma and certificate programs.

Quantitative Standard - 67 % Completion Rate and 150% Maximum Time Frame

The student must maintain the minimums as listed below:

Completion Rate Requirement:

The student must successfully complete 67% of the cumulative credit hours attempted to meet the minimum requirement. Example: if the student attempts 60 credit hours during enrollment, the student must successfully complete 40 credit hours (60 hours attempted x 67% = 40 hours). Successful completion is defined as receiving a grade of A, B, C, D.

Maximum Time Frame:

The maximum timeframe for a student to complete a program is 150% of the published length of the program. Example: if 75 credit hours are required to complete a degree, the student may attempt a maximum of 113 credit hours before the student exceeds his eligibility for financial aid (75 credit hour program x 150% = 113). One academic year of credit (30 credit hours) may be added for required remedial coursework.

If a student is pursuing more than one program of study, maximum timeframe standards of 150% will be applied, toward each program, for all attempted hours. Students may only receive financial assistance for two programs of study while attending RCC. If the student should need additional periods of enrollment to complete the additional program(s) or if the student has a valid reason for pursuing an additional program of study, appeal procedures noted within this Satisfactory Academic Progress policy may be applied.

Treatment of Selected Grades:

Withdrawals: Credit hours in which a student receives a grade of “W”, “WF”, “FW”, or “AW” are included in the number of attempted hours, but do not count toward successfully completed hours. Students who withdraw may have difficulty meeting the satisfactory academic progress requirements.

Incompletes: Credit hours in which a student receives a grade of “I” are included in the number of attempted hours, but do not count toward successfully completed hours. Students with “incompletes” may have difficulty meeting the satisfactory academic progress requirements at the time of evaluation, but may request reevaluation upon completion.

Transfer Credit: Students transferring from another college will be considered making satisfactory progress at the time of enrollment at Randolph Community College. A student’s maximum time to receive financial aid will be reduced by the equivalent transfer of credit hours towards his/her degree.

Audit and No Show: An audit (Y) or no show (NS) grade is not considered attempted coursework. It is not included in the grade point average or completion rate determinations. A student cannot receive financial aid for courses that he or she audits or is considered a no show (Y or NS).

Proficiency (Credit by Exam): While credit by exam (X) is not included in enrollment status for purposes of awarding financial aid, the attempted and completed credits are counted in each component of the quantitative standard.

Repeat Courses: For financial aid purposes, all hours attempted will continue to be counted in the student’s cumulative total of hours.

Summer Session:

Credit hours attempted and earned during summer session will be included in the calculation of satisfactory academic progress, just as any other enrollment period.

Complete academic record:

In order to measure a student’s satisfactory progress toward degree, diploma, or certificate requirements, the student’s total academic record at Randolph Community College must be evaluated whether or not the student received financial aid for the entire time of enrollment. When students complete course work for more than one major, college and financial aid academic progress standards must be met to receive student financial aid.

Eligibility Status:

Satisfactory: Satisfactory status is achieved when all criteria explained above is met.

Probation Status: Students (who are not currently on probation) who do not have the required grade point average and/or have not successfully completed 67% of their attempted credit hours, will be placed on probation for the following semester. Satisfactory progress will be monitored at the end of the semester to determine if the student met the standards of progress and is eligible to continue to receive financial aid.

Suspension: Students on financial aid probation status who have not attained at least a cumulative 67% completion rate and/or earned the minimum required grade point average listed above will have their financial aid suspended at the conclusion of the probation period. Students who have attempted the maximum allowable credit hours for their program of study will have their financial aid suspended.

Notification of Financial Aid Probation or Suspension: The Financial Aid Office will send a warning letter to any student who is placed on financial aid probation/conditional status or a suspension letter to any student who is no longer eligible to receive financial aid.

Regaining Eligibility: Students who attend college (without federal financial aid) may regain financial aid eligibility by achieving a 67% completion rate and earning the required GPA based on hours attempted. A student may request reconsideration of eligibility for financial aid by submitting a written request to the Financial Aid Office once all requirements are met.

Students who exceed the maximum allowable timeframe to complete a program of study must appeal and provide a graduation plan signed by their academic advisor. If the plan is considered reasonable, the student may receive financial aid on probation for one or more semesters until the degree is completed.

Appeal of Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards: Students who have been disqualified from receiving financial aid may appeal the Financial Aid Office to waive the satisfactory progress requirements only where there are special circumstances. A student may submit written documentation to the Financial Aid Office that explains unavoidable circumstances that have affected academic performance. Supporting documentation must be presented. Circumstances may include, but are not limited to: illness of student, immediate family member or the death of a family member. If a student is allowed to continue based on mitigating circumstances, the student will be given an additional increment of time to meet the standard requirements.

Returning students are evaluated on a continuing basis from the first enrollment at Randolph Community College unless a mitigating circumstance is considered. Returning students who are previously enrolled under an academic progress policy other than the current academic progress policy will be required to meet the standards of the current policy upon returning.

Appeals:

A student not eligible for financial aid may appeal financial aid eligibility. The process for appeal is as follows:

A student may appeal in writing to the Director of Financial Aid explaining why satisfactory academic progress requirements were not met. Documentation of extenuating circumstances is required.

A student may appeal in writing to the Vice President of Student Services if they do not agree with the resolution from the Director of Financial Aid. If a student disagrees with the determination by the Vice President of Student Services, the standard grievance procedure in the College Catalog must be followed.


May 30, 2007 Policy Revised

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RETURN OF TITLE IV FUNDS POLICY

Students who owe overpayments as a result of withdrawals initially will retain their eligibility for Title IV funds for a maximum of 45 days from the earlier of the –

• date the school sends the student notice of the overpayment,

or

• date the school was required to notify the student of the overpayment.

There are three positive actions a student can take to extend his or her eligibility for Title IV funds beyond 45 days.

a. The student may repay the overpayment in full to the school.
b. The student may sign a repayment agreement with the school.
c. The student may sign a repayment agreement with the Department of Education

If the student takes no positive action during the 45-day period, RCC will report the overpayment to the National Student Loan Database System (NSLDS) and Borrower Services immediately after the 45-day period has elapsed.

Borrower Services is unable to respond to a student initiated request to negotiate a repayment arrangement until a school has referred the student’s account for collection. In addition, Borrower Services uses the information about the student in the NSLDS while conversing with a student. In order to ensure a student overpayment has been reported and referred to the Dept. of Education, when the school is communicating with a student about making repayment arrangements with the Dept. of Education, RCC will make it clear that the student should contact the school before contacting the Department of Education. Repayment agreements with the Department of Education will include terms that permit students to repay overpayments while maintaining their eligibility for Title IV funds.

There are exceptions to the recommendation that a school wait the full 45 days before reporting a student overpayment through NSLDS. If during the 45-day period a student indicates that he or she cannot repay his or her debt in full and wishes to negotiate a repayment agreement with the Department of Education, the school will immediately report the overpayment to NSLDS and refer the overpayment to Borrower Services. Likewise, if a student contacts RCC and indicates that he or she cannot pay the overpayment within the 45 days, the school will immediately report the overpayment to NSLDS and refer the overpayment to Borrower Services. So that Borrower Services will have time to receive and record an overpayment before a student contacts Borrower Services, RCC will tell a student to wait ten days before contacting Borrower Services.

After a school has reported and referred a student’s overpayment, RCC will provide the student with the phone number and postal address for Borrower Services. A student can contact Borrower Services by calling 800-621-3115 or by writing Borrower Services at the following address:

U.S. Department of Education
Borrower Services – Collections
P.O. Box 5609
Greenville, Texas 75403

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TRANSFER INFORMATION

If you transfer from one school to another, your financial aid does not automatically go with you. To receive aid at a new school, check with the Financial Aid Office staff to see what programs are available and what steps you must take

AUDITED COURSE/CREDIT BY EXAM

TITLE IV federal funds (Pell, FSEOG) will not be paid for audited courses or courses where credit-by-exam is given.