Finding Text
Finding 2024-001
Identification of the Federal Program
United States Department of Education
84.063 Federal Pell Grant Program
Criteria:
34 CFR 668.22
Condition:
Late Return of Title IV Funds (“R2T4”)
Cause:
No cause could be determined.
Effect:
Federal funds that would have been available to other eligible grant recipients and for relending were not available. Further, the United States Department of Education may have been subject to unnecessary interest and special allowance.
Questioned Costs:
$1,564 in 2023-2024 Federal Pell Grant program funds and $65 of potential interest owed to the United States Department of Education.
Description of the Nature and Extent of the Issues Reported:
The Institution had a total of eight thousand five hundred seventy five (8,575) students who withdrew during the audit period. We tested the files of twenty five (25) of those students. It was determined that one (1) R2T4 was not returned in a timely manner.
For student #5, the Institution calculated the correct R2T4 amount but failed to return the correct amount. The Institution should have returned $1,564 in 2023-2024 Federal Pell Grant program funds in question in G5 no later than March 22, 2024. The Institution’s failure to return the correct amount resulted in the Federal Pell Grant program funds being returned 385 days late. As a result of the late return, the Institution also failed to update COD within 45 days. COD was updated on April 11, 2025, 385 days late.
Subsequent to the audit, the Institution returned $1,564 to the Federal Pell Grant program on behalf of student #5. Additionally, the Institution issued a write-off of $1,564 on the student’s account.
The instance of noncompliance represents an error rate in the number of sampled items tested equal to 4% (1 of 25) from a population of 8,575 and in the dollar amount of the sampled items tested equal to 0.6% ($1,564 of $259,137) from a population of $90,206,452. This is not a statistically valid sample.
Repeat Finding:
This is not a repeat finding.
Recommendations:
The Institution needs to review and update its procedures to ensure that all returns from R2T4 calculations are made in a timely manner.
Views of Responsible Officials:
The Institution agrees with the finding and recommendation. Upon review, the Institution has found this to be an isolated incident due to human error. See Corrective Action Plan for more details.