TITLE IV RETURN OF FUNDS

For students receiving Federal Pell grant funding who withdraw, drop, or fail to complete a payment period for which they have been charged and have received a Pell grant, a Return to Title IV Funds calculation will be processed. SWTC will calculate what, if any, return needs to be made. If the student is a Pell grant recipient, in many cases the calculation may require a return of a portion of the monies received by both the institution and the student to the Federal Title I Pell grant program. The calculation will be made using the U.S. Department of Education's Return to Title IV Funds worksheet. The regulation requires a calculation based on the actual percentage of the payment period the student was scheduled to attend.

An example of the worksheet can be found in the Financial Aid Policies and Procedures Handbook. An example calculation is demonstrated below. Other examples and calculations may be obtained in the Financial Aid Office. Refunds to students who are paying their own tuition or agencies that are sponsoring a student who withdraws or is dropped, may receive a refund according to the Institutional Refund Policy and as noted in the Withdrawal Process section of this handbook, the Student Handbook, the Financial Aid Policies and Procedures Handbook, and online at www.swtech.edu.

Examples of the application of the refund policy are available upon request. An appeals process exists for students who believe that individual circumstances warrant exception from the published policy (see the Appeals Process section in the Financial Aid Policies and Procedures Handbook in the Financial Aid Office or atwww.swtech.edu.

Official/Unofficial Withdrawal Date

SWIC keeps an official record of student attendance. A student that has notified SWTC of his or her intent to withdraw and completed a withdrawal form is considered to have officially withdrawn and the last date of attendance will be used for calculations of hours scheduled to attend. If a student does not return from an approved leave of absence or if a student quits attending class without notification, on the 5th day of non-attendance the student will be unofficially withdrawn and the last date of attendance will be used for calculations of hours scheduled to attend. If a student has unofficially withdrawn and SWTC does not become aware of this until records are checked at the end of an academic period, the withdrawal date will be determined within 30 calendar days of the

• the end of the payment period

• the end of the academic year, or

• the end of the student's educational program

Calculating Title IV Return of Unearned Funds and Repayment Formulas Used

A student receiving Title IV financial aid understands that:

• They must be making satisfactory progress to continue Pell eligibility, and that tuition, books, and or fees owed will be deducted from each Pell disbursement.

• Students must report any changes in enrollment that may affect their financial aid.

• If a student drops or withdraws from school prior to completion or ahead of schedule, they may be liable to pay back any overpayment of Pell funds received while attending SWTC. This means that if you withdraw or are dropped by the school for any reason after receiving the Federal Pell grant money, you may have to repay part of the grant money given to you. If you do not complete at least 61% of the hours in the payment period (subtracting all absences, even excused absences), it will be considered a grant overpayment and you will have to pay back a prorated portion of the grant money. You will be ineligible for any other Title IV aid from any school until you have paid it back.

• Students must report all financial assistance received to the financial aid office."

As a general rule, grants do not need to be repaid. However, a student may have to repay a certain amount if he/she withdraws or is dismissed prior to completing more than 60% of a payment period. When a student has exhausted all leave according to the attendance policy (see the Attendance Requirements and Attendance Policy for Students on Financial Aid in this handbook, in the Financial Aid Policies and Procedures Handbook, or at www.swtech.edu; obtain a hard copy in the Counselor's Office, the Chief Finance Officer's Office, the Chief Operations Officer's office, the Administrative/Business Office, or the Financial Aid Office), and a leave of absence has not been requested (or one has been requested but denied) on the 5* day of non-attendance the student will be unofficially withdrawn upon that day.

The calculation used is by payment period. A payment period consists of 450 clock hours and 15 weeks for programs of 900 clock hours or more or half the clock hours in the student's program for programs less than 900 clock hours. The last date of attendance is the date used as the calculation for scheduled hours for the student's attendance on the Return of Title IV Funds Calculation Worksheet. Institutional charges incurred by the student are tuition and fee charges for which the student was responsible that were assessed by SWTC for the payment period. The portion of a federal grant that the student is entitled to receive is calculated on a percentage basis by comparing the total number of hours in a payment period to the hours the student was scheduled to complete in the payment period upon the student’s last day of attendance. For example, if the student completes 30% of the payment period, he/she earns 30% of the assistance that he/she was originally scheduled to receive. This means that a percentage of the scheduled award remains unearned and must be returned to the U.S. Department of Education. Once a student has completed more than 60% of the payment period, he/she has earned all (100%) of the grant money for that pay period.

A Return of Title IV funds calculation will apply if the date that the student completes is before the end date of the payment period as in the case of a student that has completed the required competencies or work in less time than expected. The guidance for this decision can be found in the Federal Student Aid Handbook, Volume 5, Chapter 1 that indicates a student is considered to have withdrawn in the case of a program that is measured in clock hours if the student does not complete all of the clock hours and weeks of instructional time in the payment period that the student was scheduled to complete.

Once the amount of Title IV aid earned by the student and school is determined by the Financial Aid Office, the student will receive a certified letter stating how much Title IV aid was earned. The letter will also explain if the student has an outstanding balance that is owed to the school for tuition and fees. The student must realize that tuition and fees may be offset from the amount earned by the student.

Upon withdrawal, if the amount earned by the student is greater than the amount disbursed, then a postwithdrawal calculation is performed (see the Post-Withdrawal Disbursements section of this handbook).

If the amount earned by the student is less than the amount disbursed, then a Title IV Return of Fund calculation is performed. Current regulations specify a student does not have to repay a Pell grant overpayment of $50 or less. If the amounts earned and disbursed are equal, no further action is taken.

Example 1: A student receives a Pell grant in the amount of $3,048 for a payment period that is 4505 clock hours in length. As of the student's last date of attendance, the hours scheduled to be completed for the payment period are 400 of the 450 hours, which is 88.9%. In this case, neither the student, nor the school owe any money back.

Aid to Be Returned

If the student receives more Pell grant monies than the amount earned, SWTC or the student, or both, must return the unearned funds. When a return of Pell grant funds is due, both SWTC and the student could have a responsibility for returning funds. Whatever funds are not returned by the school must be returned by the student. The student's repayment obligation is determined after the school's earned/unearned funds are calculated. SWTC will return all unearned funds within 30 days from the date Financial Aid Coordinator determines the student withdrew. NecesFAFSA Submission Summaryy funds will be returned to the Federal Pell Grant Program by the business office by reducing the authorization drawn from G5 or by electronic transfer payment through the G5 system.

If a student owes a repayment to the Pell Grant Program, SWTC will notify the student by certified mail within 30 days that he/she must repay the overpayment. In the notification SWTC will inform the student:

• That the student owes an overpayment of Pell Grant funds

• That the student's eligibility for additional Title IV funds will end if the student fails to take positive action by the 45th day following the date the school sent or was required to send notification to the student.

There are two positive actions a student can take to extend eligibility for Title IV funds.

• The student may repay the overpayment in full to the school within 45 days

• The student may sign a repayment agreement with the Department of Education

If the student fails to take one of the positive actions during the 45-day period, the student’s overpayment will be reported to NSLDS and referred to the Department of Education for collection:

Mailing address: National Payment Center P.O. Box 105028 Atlanta, GA 30348

The student should contact the school to discuss his/her options.