Finding Text
Finding 2023-001 - Return of Title IV Funds
Federal Program: Student Financial Assistance Cluster
Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education
Pass-Through Entity: Not applicable
ALN Number: 84.063, 84.268
Federal Award Number: P063P222121, PK268K232121
Federal Award Year: June 30, 2023
Criteria: 34 CFR 668.22 requires that when a recipient of Title IV grant or loan assistance withdraws from an institution during a payment period or period of enrollment in which the recipient began attendance, the institution must determine the amount of Title IV grant or loan assistance that the student earned as of the student's withdrawal date in accordance with Federal regulations and return the unearned portion of the grant or loan funds to the Title IV programs as soon as possible but no later than 45 days after the withdrawal date.
Condition/Context: The federal aid refunds for one of twelve students tested as part of our sample were not returned timely to the Title IV Program. For the one student not returned within the 45 days, the total award to be returned was $5,255. The sample was not a statistically valid sample.
Questioned Costs: None.
Cause: The College’s procedures for the return of Title IV funds were not followed consistently throughout the period.
Effect: The amounts refunded to the Department of Education were refunded late.
Recommendation: The College should continue to review and adhere to its procedures for refunding awards and implement a more thorough review process to ensure funds required to be returned within 45 days comply with the Title IV regulations.
Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions: On a weekly basis, the Registrar will download the Registration Status Report from the student information system and review the report for accuracy. A copy will be provided to the Director of Financial Aid and the Accounts Receivable Coordinator to ensure all withdrawn students have been communicated in a timely fashion and all R2T4s are processed timely.