Audit 401965

– Student Financial Assistance – Return of Title IV Funds Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education Program: Student Financial Assistance Cluster Award(s) Federal Pell Grant Assistance Listing Number(s): 84.063 Award Year: 2025 CRITERIA: 34 CFR part 668 establishes rules governing the student withdrawal process including the return of unearned Title IV aid within 45 days of a student’s withdrawal. CONDITION: During our Return of Title IV Funds testing of a sample of 25 students, we noted the following exceptions: • For one student, the University calculated the proper amount for return, but did not return the calculated $732. • For eight students, the University did not calculate and did not return $15,474 QUESTIONED COSTS: $16,206 CAUSE/EFFECT: The Return to Title IV calculations rely on a manual report process by management. These students were incorrect excluded from the calculation. As such, the required return of funds was not calculated timely and the University was not in compliance with the Return of Title IV Funds requirements. RECOMMENDATION: The auditor recommends the University enhance its controls and incorporate multiple individuals in the process to ensure that Title IV refunds are calculated and made timely. VIEW OF RESONSIBLE OFFICIALS: Management concurs with this finding and will reassess controls, review these accounts and implement controls to ensure that timely calculations and refunds are made.

– Student Financial Assistance – Pell Grants Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education Program: Student Financial Assistance Cluster Award(s) Federal Pell Grant Assistance Listing Number(s): 84.063 Award Year: 2025 CRITERIA: Under 34 CFR 690.63 (Calculation of a Federal Pell Grant for a payment period), an institution must determine a student's enrollment status and use the appropriate Pell Grant Payment Schedule to calculate the correct award amount. CONDITION: During our recalculation testing of a sample of 38 students who received Federal Pell Grants during the award year, we noted the following three exceptions: • For two students, the University's financial aid system incorrectly locked the awards calculation. This resulted in one student being underpaid by $296 and the second student being underpaid by $920. • For one student, the University disbursed Pell Grant funds based on a full-time enrollment status, while the student’s actual enrollment was three-quarter (¾) time. This resulted in an overpayment of $367. QUESTIONED COSTS: $849 CAUSE/EFFECT: Management had a system issue in the spring of 2025 that caused Pell awards to calculate incorrectly on certain student accounts. As a workaround, the University locked the awards in the system and the above students were not calculated correctly, which resulted in $1,216 in underpayments and $367 in overpayments. RECOMMENDATION: We recommend the University (i) work with the financial aid software vendor to identify and resolve the system error causing student files to lock, ensuring all future calculations can be dynamically updated; and (ii) enhance controls to verify that a student's enrollment status in the registrar's system matches the enrollment status used in the financial aid module immediately prior to drawing down and disbursing funds VIEW OF RESONSIBLE OFFICIALS: Management concurs with this finding and will reassess controls, review these accounts and implement controls to ensure that timely and accurate calculations are made.

– Student Financial Assistance – Enrollment Reporting Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education Program: Student Financial Assistance Cluster Award(s) Federal Pell Grant Assistance Listing Number(s): 84.063 Award Year: 2025 CRITERIA: 34 CFR part 690 establishes rules governing the accuracy and timeliness of enrollment reporting to the National Student Loan Data System (“NSLDS”). Schools are required to confirm and report to the National Student Loan Data System (“NSLDS”) the enrollment status of students who receive federal funds. Enrollment information is used to determine the borrower’s eligibility for in-school status, deferment, interest subsidy, and grace period. Enrollment changes, such as a change from full-time to half-time status, graduation, withdrawal, or an approved leave of absence, are changes that need to be reported. The enrollment information is merged into the NSLDS database and reported to guarantors, lenders, and servicers of student loans. CONDITION: Through our Enrollment Reporting testing, we noted 2 out of 40 selections for which the students had a change in enrollment status but were not included in the enrollment reporting to NSLDS within 60 days of the change in enrollment. We also noted 1 out of the 40 selections that were not reported to NSLDS. QUESTIONED COSTS: None. CAUSE/EFFECT: The automated Banner reports that process student enrollment status changes in Banner and notifies the University of students to send to the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) for reporting to NSLDS did not include all students with changes in a timely manner. As such, the required enrollment reporting for these students was not performed timely and the University was not in compliance with the Enrollment Reporting timeline requirements. RECOMMENDATION: The auditor recommends the University enhance its controls and incorporate multiple individuals in the process to ensure that student enrollment changes are captured and reported timely. VIEW OF RESONSIBLE OFFICIALS: Management concurs with this finding and has taken steps towards the reassessment of controls, review these accounts and implement controls to ensure that timely reporting to NSC is performed.