Finding 1205159 (2025-003)

Material Weakness Repeat Finding
Requirement
N
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2025
Accepted
2026-03-31
Audit: 396825
Organization: Beacon College, Inc. (FL)

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: A student was under awarded a subsidized direct loan by $3,447 due to a lack of re-evaluation of loan eligibility after aid adjustments.
  • Impacted Requirements: Compliance with 34 CFR 685.203(a), which sets maximum loan amounts based on student status and education year.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: The College should improve its procedures for assessing loan eligibility before disbursement to prevent future under awards.

Finding Text

Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education Federal Program Title: Student Financial Assistance Cluster Federal Assistance Listing Number: 84.268 Federal Award Identification Number and Year: Various Award Period: 7/1/24-6/30/25 Type of Finding: Significant Deficiency in Internal Control Over Compliance, Other Matters Criteria or specific requirement: The Code of Federal Regulations, 34 CFR 685.203(a) outline the maximum subsidized loan amounts for students based on their dependency status, year of education, and other factors. Condition: One student was under awarded subsidized direct loan. Questioned Costs: $3,447 Context: During our testing, one student’s subsidized direct loan awarded and disbursed was less than the maximum amount they were eligible to receive. Cause: The College did not re-evaluate the student's account for additional loan eligibility after an adjustment to other aid was made. Effect: The student did not receive the maximum amount of eligible aid. Repeat Finding: No. Recommendation: We recommend the College evaluate its procedures around packaging and awarding students to ensure loan eligibility is reassessed prior to disbursement. Views of Responsible Officials: There is no disagreement with the audit finding and the College is in the process of implementing corrective procedures.

Corrective Action Plan

Recommendation: We recommend the College evaluate its procedures around packaging and awarding students to ensure loan eligibility is reassessed prior to disbursement. Explanation of disagreement with audit finding: There is no disagreement with the audit finding. Action planned/taken in response to finding: 􀁸 The College determined that this issue resulted from the absence of a consistent process to identify and reassess students whose transfer credits were added or revised after initial financial aid packaging, potentially affecting grade level classification and Direct Loan eligibility. 􀁸 To correct this, the College will revise its packaging procedures to require a mandatory review of Direct Loan eligibility whenever transfer credits are added or updated. The Financial Aid Office will work in coordination with the IT Department and the Registrar’s Office to develop automated reports or system alerts that flag students with transfer credit changes occurring after packaging. These reports will be reviewed regularly, and any impacted student records will be reassessed and updated as necessary prior to disbursement. 􀁸 In addition, the College will strengthen oversight by implementing monitoring controls such as requirements. These measures are intended to prevent future instances of under-awarding and to enhance internal controls within the financial aid packaging and awarding process. Name(s) of the contact person(s) responsible for corrective action: Stephanie Liebowitz, Director of Financial Aid Planned completion date for corrective action plan: April 15, 2026 – Procedures will be in place for the awards cycle of the incoming 2026-2027 class.

Categories

Student Financial Aid Eligibility Significant Deficiency Matching / Level of Effort / Earmarking Internal Control / Segregation of Duties

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 1205157 2025-004
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1205158 2025-002
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1205160 2025-004
    Material Weakness Repeat

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
84.268 FEDERAL DIRECT STUDENT LOANS $4.07M
84.063 FEDERAL PELL GRANT PROGRAM $1.00M
84.007 FEDERAL SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY GRANTS $136,956
84.033 FEDERAL WORK-STUDY PROGRAM $88,534