Finding Text
Ensign College SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS for the year ended December 31, 2022 Section III ? Federal Award Findings and Questioned Costs Finding 2022-001 Enrollment Reporting (Significant Deficiency) Grantor: U.S. Department of Education Program: Student Financial Assistance Cluster Assistance Listing#: 84.268, 84.063 Title: Federal Direct Student Loan Program, Federal Pell Grant Program Award Years: 7/2021 ? 6/2023 Criteria 34 CFR 685.309(b): (1)Upon receipt of an enrollment report from the Secretary, a school must update all information included in the report and return the report to the Secretary - (i)In the manner and format prescribed by the Secretary; and (ii)Within the timeframe prescribed by the Secretary. (2)Unless it expects to submit its next updated enrollment report to the Secretary within the next 60 days, a school must notify the Secretary within 30 days after the date the school discovers that - (i)A loan under Title IV of the Act was made to or on behalf of a student who was enrolled or accepted for enrollment at the school, and the student has ceased to be enrolled on at least a half-time basis or failed to enroll on at least a half-time basis for the period for which the loan was intended; or (ii)A student who is enrolled at the school and who received a loan under title IV of the Act has changed his or her permanent address. 34 CFR 690.83(b)(2): An institution shall submit, in accordance with deadline dates established by the Secretary, through publication in the Federal Register, other reports and information the Secretary requires and shall comply with the procedures the Secretary finds necessary to ensure that the reports are correct. Condition Of the population of students who had a status change and received Pell and/or Direct Loans during the fiscal year, 60 students were selected for enrollment reporting testing of the campus-level and program-level records. Of the 60 students selected, one instance was noted in which ?status? information was incorrectly reported to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS). The student was incorrectly reported as less than half-time when the student had in fact withdrawn. Additionally, three instances of our sample of 60 resulted in incorrect program level information being reported to NSLDS. This is a repeat of finding 2021-001. Cause The one instance noted of the incorrect status being reported was a result of the College's policy to report students as "Less than half time" if they are expected to return in the following semester. If the student does not return, the College retains the "Less than half time" status until the subsequent semester, resulting in an incorrect reporting of status as this student should have been reported as withdrawn. This occurred in the winter 2022 semester. The three instances of incorrect program level information being reported to the NSLDS were a result of the College?s information system updating all program begin dates to the most recent program addition. Many students at the College are enrolled in multiple programs. In these instances, a student added an additional program to their enrollment and the information system updated the new program begin date for all existing programs that the student had previously been enrolled in. Two of the exceptions related to the spring 2022 semester and one related to the winter 2022 semester. Effect A student?s enrollment status determines eligibility for in-school status, deferment, and grace periods, as well as for payment of interest subsidies all of which are impacted by inaccurate reporting. Questioned Costs None Recommendation We recommend that the College update its policies to be in accordance with appropriate regulations and enrollment reporting guidelines, and once updated, continue to provide adequate training to the individuals responsible for updating students? electronic files to ensure status changes are accurately reported to NSLDS. We also recommend that the College update its configuration in PeopleSoft to ensure programs added to a student's enrollment do not update existing programs a student is already enrolled in. Additionally, we recommend that a review of student program changes (i.e., additions) occur to ensure the proper program level information is reflected in the information system and ultimately NSLDS. Management?s View and Corrective Action Plan Management?s response is reported in management?s view and corrective action plan included at the end of this report.