Finding Text
Finding 2024-002: Significant Deficiency – Enrollment Reporting
Federal Program: Student Financial Assistance Cluster
Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education
Pass-Through Entity: Not Applicable
Assistance Listing Number (ALN): 84.268
Federal Award Number: P268K242266
Federal Award Year: June 30, 2024
Criteria: Title IV regulations (34 CFR 685.309(b)) require that upon receipt of an enrollment report from the Secretary, institutions 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. Unless it expects to submit its next updated enrollment report to the Secretary within the next 60 days, an institution must notify the Secretary within 30 days after the date the institution 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 institution, 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 institution and who received a loan under Title IV of the Act has changed his or her permanent address.
Condition/Context: For 1 of the 28, students who were tested, the incorrect withdrawal effective date was reported to NSLDS. That student's status was also not reported to NSLDS within 60 days.
The sample was not a statistically valid sample.
Cause: The University's processes did not ensure accurate and timely reporting to NSLDS.
Effect: The accuracy of Title IV student loan records depends heavily on the accuracy of the enrollment information reported by institutions. If an institution does not review, update, and verify student enrollment statuses, effective dates of the enrollment status, and the anticipated completion dates, then the Title IV student loan records will be inaccurate.
Questioned Costs: Not applicable.
Context: Not applicable.
Recommendation: It is recommended that the University review policies and procedures in place to resolve reporting issues in a timely manner to facilitate compliance with Title IV regulations.
Management's Response: Although enhanced monitoring processes were in place to ensure integrity and punctuality of data reported to the National Student Data Loan System, the University experienced challenges in timely reporting due to staff turnover. The enhanced monitoring and reporting processes have been updated and documented and the University built redundancy into the staffing model to prevent future discrepancies.