Audit 370836

Student Financial Assistance Cluster Federal Pell Grant Program, Assistance Listing Number 84.063 U.S. Department of Education Program Year 2024-2025 Criteria or specific requirement – Eligibility – Pell must be awarded to all students who qualify. (34 CFR 690 Subpart F) Condition – A Pell-eligible student was under awarded Pell grants. Questioned costs – $881 Calculated as the difference between what was awarded and what should have been awarded in accordance with the regulations. Context – Out of the population of 4,164 students who received federal financial aid, a sample of 25 students were selected for testing. Our sampling method was not, and was not intended to be, statistically valid. One student was eligible for more Pell grants than they were awarded. The student added classes after the Pell grant was disbursed that made the student eligible for a higher Pell grant based on the student’s intensity. Effect – A Pell eligible student was under awarded. Cause – The University’s controls did not ensure changes in intensity were considered after Pell awards were made. Identification as repeat finding, if applicable – N/A Recommendation – The University should update their controls to ensure students with changes in intensity are properly awarded Pell grants. Views of responsible officials, reason for recurrence, and planned corrective actions – Management acknowledges and understands the finding associated with Eligibility. The student’s Pell awards has already been corrected and accepted by COD. Management is working with IT to automate the enrollment change report to be sent on a weekly basis to validate that all increases in hours have been appropriately updated and processed.