Finding 1170518 (2025-001)

Finding 2025-001: Federal Program: U.S. Department of Education: Student Financial Aid Cluster: Federal Pell Grant, Assistance Listing No. 84.063 Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, Assistance Listing No. 84.007 Federal Direct Loan Program, Assistance Listing No. 84.268 Criteria: The University must comply with 34 CFR Section 668.22. Condition: During our testing of 40 official withdrawals, we reviewed the calculation used by the University for the return of funds and noted eight students in which the calculation was improperly calculated. Our testing of 40 official withdrawals included five and three full-term students from the Fall and Spring semesters, respectively, for which the return of funds calculation was improperly calculated due to the University using various incorrect inputs. The incorrect withdrawal date was used for one student, incorrect institutional charges were used for five students, and incorrect total aid disbursed was used for two students. Cause: The University does not have a procedure in place to properly review the inputs used within return of funds calculations. Effect: The provisions of 34 CFR Section 668.22 were not followed and thus a total of eight students had incorrect return of funds calculations, however, four calculations resulted in questioned costs. The other four calculations were performed incorrectly, but students earned over 60% of aid. Questioned Costs: Known questioned costs total net $3,729 in Title IV aid that should have been earned as a result of our testing of 40 official withdrawals. Use of the incorrect withdrawal date resulted in one student who earned an additional $3,429. Use of incorrect institutional charges resulted in no additional funds needing to be returned, but did change the amount the students were responsible for returning. The University returned $600 that should have been the students' responsibility. Use of the incorrect total aid resulted in one student earning $300 less than they should have, if the proper aid had been used. The student attended more than 60% of the term, so no return was required. Recommendation: We recommend that the University review and revise their policies and procedures related to the return of funds calculation. Specifically, the University should:  Implement a review process to verify calculations before finalizing returns.  Provide training to relevant staff, including those outside of the student financial assistance department, on the proper calculation methods to enhance compliance and accuracy. Views of responsible officials and planned corrective actions: The University agrees with the auditor's finding and recommendations. The following corrective action will be taken: The University has awarded aid in the amount of $3,729 to students which represents student earned aid from an updated R2T4 calculation accounting for the proper use of the withdrawal date, institutional charges and total aid for 2024-25 academic year. The University will review, and revise policies and procedures related to the return of funds calculation. Specifically, the University will:  Update procedures to include a review of input items by AVP prior to finalizing returns.  Provide training to relevant staff, including staff outside of the Office of Student Financial Assistance, on proper calculation methods to ensure compliance and accuracy of R2T4 calculations. The University is exploring opportunities to automate partially or completely the R2T4 process to support accurate and efficient processing and enhance compliance.