Finding Text
Assistance Listing Number, Federal Agency, and Program Name - ALNs 84.063 and 84.268; Department of Education; Federal Pell Grant Program and Federal Direct Loan Program
Federal Award Identification Number and Year - N/A
Pass through Entity - N/A
Finding Type - Material weakness and material noncompliance with laws and regulations
Repeat Finding - Yes - 2022 002
Criteria - Federal Pell Grant Program: 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 (34 CFR Section 690.83(b)(2)).
Federal Direct Student Loans: Changes in student status are required to be reported to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) within 30 days of the change or included in a Student Status Confirmation Report (SSCR) sent to the NSLDS within 60 days of the status change (34 CFR Section 685.309(b)).
Condition - Shawnee State University did not report student status changes timely and accurately for certain students who withdrew during the year.
Questioned Costs - None
Identification of How Questioned Costs Were Computed - N/A
Context - Of the 25 students tested for student change status, 5 student status changes were not submitted within the required time frame and were not properly reported as withdrawn.
Cause and Effect - The University did not have a process in place in order to ensure timely and proper reporting for all student status changes. As a result, there were instances of reporting outside of the required time frame and instances where reporting was incorrect.
Recommendation - We recommend that the University put a control process in place in order to ensure all student status changes are reported timely and accurately.
Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions - Shawnee State University will perform a comprehensive review of financial aid procedures (including review of financial aid processing, personnel responsibilities, and system modifications) and make revisions to workflows to prevent future occurrence of this finding. A review of activity prior to implementation of revised procedures will be conducted, and any exceptions will be documented and corrected.