FAC Explorer

Finding 59533 (2022-003)

Significant Deficiency
Requirement
N
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2022
Accepted
2023-03-28
Audit: 54887
Organization: La Roche University (PA)
Auditor: Baker Tilly US LLP

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: 25 students did not receive required notifications about loan disbursements, violating Title IV regulations.
  • Impacted Requirements: Institutions must inform students of disbursement details, cancellation rights, and procedures in writing.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Fix the software issue and establish a manual notification process to ensure compliance moving forward.

Finding Text

Finding 2022-003: Significant Deficiency Federal Program: Student Financial Assistance Cluster Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education Assistance Listing Number: 84.007; 84.033; 84.038; 84.063; 84.268 Federal Award Year: June 30, 2022 Criteria: Title IV regulations (34 CFR 668.165) states that institutions must notify students or parents in writing of (1) the date and amount of the disbursement; (2) the student's right, or parent's right, to cancel all or a portion of that loan or loan disbursement and have the loan proceeds returned; and (3) the procedure and time by which the student or parent must notify the institution that he or she wishes to cancel the loan. Condition/Context: 25 students in a sample of 25 were not given notifications that met the required criteria. Students were notified of awards throughout the academic year, but notifications did not meet the required criteria above. Additionally, the required information on the timing and procedures for canceling loans was made available to students on the University's website and financial aid office The sample was not a statistically valid sample. Questioned Costs: There are no questioned costs associated with this finding. Cause: The script written in the University's software to send these notifications broke during September 2021 and was not fixed timely. Effect: The students did not receive the required notifications. Recommendation: The University should correct the software error and create a contingency plan to manually notify students to prevent awarding Title IV funds without proper notification. Management Response: The University will correct the script error and implement better procedures to ensure compliance with notification requirements. Evaluation will be on-going as a best practice.

Corrective Action Plan

Finding 2022-003 Issue: The University utilizes an automated notification system to send an email message to students when federal loans are disbursed. The message includes (1) the date and amount of the disbursement; (2) the student's right, or parent's right, to cancel all or a portion of that loan or loan disbursement and have the loan proceeds returned; and (3) the procedure and time by which the student or parent must notify the institution that he or she wishes to cancel the loan. However, as a result of a technical issue the automated notification system stopped working in September, 2021. Corrective Action: As of March 10, 2023, the University corrected the technical system scripts that failed approximately 19 months ago; as a result, students are once again receiving automated email notifications when federal aid is posted to their accounts. Responsibility: Director, Student Accounts Contact: Dayna Tinkey, Director, Student Accounts

Categories

Student Financial Aid Matching / Level of Effort / Earmarking Significant Deficiency

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 59531 2022-001
    Significant Deficiency Repeat
  • 59532 2022-002
    -
  • 59534 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 59535 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 59536 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 59537 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 635973 2022-001
    Significant Deficiency Repeat
  • 635974 2022-002
    -
  • 635975 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 635976 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 635977 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 635978 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency
  • 635979 2022-003
    Significant Deficiency

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
84.268 Federal Direct Student Loans $15.28M
84.425 Covid-19 Education Stabilization Fund $2.47M
84.063 Federal Pell Grant Program $1.52M
84.038 Federal Perkins Loan Program $362,197
84.007 Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants $122,900
84.033 Federal Work-Study Program $89,031