The purpose of these Student Financial Aid Appeal Procedures is to provide equitable and orderly processes to resolve financial aid appeals by students.
Procedures
For the purpose of these procedures, an “appeal” is a formal request by a student for a reevaluation of their financial aid eligibility or award. This includes appeals of a non-award, reduction, or denial of financial aid.
In cases that impact federal student aid, HEA Sec. 479(a) authorizes the financial aid administrator to make adjustments on a case-by-case basis to the cost of attendance or the values of the data items required to calculate the student aid index to allow for treatment of special circumstances of an individual eligible applicant. For student athletes, NCAA regulations impact their eligibility for athletic funding, and also afford them the appeal processes and timelines described herein (see NCAA Bylaw 15).
Appeal Process
Students must file any financial aid appeal within twenty (20) calendar days from when the student knew or reasonably should have known about the incident or issue they would like to appeal. Appeals must be in writing, and should describe all relevant facts, the date and person(s) involved, the previous attempts to resolve the situation, and the desired outcome for resolution.
Before filing an appeal, the student is encouraged to meet with a financial aid counselor, or in the case of athletic financial aid with the Director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships, to go over their situation and receive guidance on the appeal process. The appeal should be filed with the financial aid counselor assigned to the matter or the Director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships.
Step 1 (Review by Committee): The initial appeal is reviewed by the Financial Aid and Scholarships Appeal Committee, or in the case of athletic financial aid by the Athletic Financial Aid Committee. The appeal committee shall convene as soon as practicable and will send a decision in writing to the student within fourteen (14) calendar days from the date the committee meets. The Financial Aid and Scholarships Appeal Committee is composed of financial aid counselors. The Athletic Financial Aid Committee is composed of three committee members who serve at least one-year terms, including representatives from each of the following units: (a) Student Life (b) Financial Aid (c) Faculty, which may be the Faculty Athletic Representative.
If the student is not satisfied with the appeal committee’s decision, or if the student has identified additional circumstances that were not included in their original appeal, the student may file a written Step 2 appeal with the Director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships within fourteen (14) calendar days of the Step 1 decision. For athletic financial aid cases, the Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships compiles relevant records for the appeal committee to consider including any written materials from Athletics; the appeal committee’s written decision is also sent to the Athletics Compliance Office; and Athletics also has the opportunity to appeal any Step 1 determination within fourteen (14) days.
Step 2 (Review by VP or designee): The Step 2 appeal is reviewed by the Vice President of Student Services and Enrollment Management (SSEM) or their designee. For situations involving athletic financial aid, the designee may not be the Director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships. The Vice President or designee will send a decision in writing to the student within fourteen (14) calendar days from the submission of the Step 2 appeal. In Athletics cases, the written decision is also sent to the Athletics Compliance Office. The Step 2 Decision Maker shall determine whether the Step 1 decision was reasonable and supported by substantial information, considering the record below and any new information not reasonably available at the time of the Step 1 appeal. The Step 2 Decision Maker may meet with the student, if requested by the student, prior to issuing their decision. The Step 2 decision is final.
Confidentiality
To the extent possible, the university will protect the confidentiality of students filing an appeal and will share information only as permitted by university policy and applicable laws, including with other university employees who have a legitimate need to know or as required by the Department of Education. For purposes of public records requests and to the extent allowed by law, the university will treat all materials submitted as part of the student’s education record under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which is protected from disclosure. Materials are also protected according to the HEA Sec. 483(a)(3)(E).
Support Persons
Students must submit financial aid appeals on their own behalf but may be accompanied to any meeting or hearing by a single support person. All parties shall be responsible for the costs, if any, of their support persons. Support persons may be available at no cost to the student via the Student Advocacy Program. Support persons are not permitted to act or speak on behalf of the grievant, serve as a witness in the same matter, or disrupt any meetings. The Committee or Decision Maker may require a support person to leave a meeting or further conscribe their role if the support person engages in unreasonable, disruptive, harassing, or retaliatory behavior.
Withdrawal
Students may choose to withdraw their appeal at any time by submitting a written notice to the Director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships.
Extensions of Time
Time limits within these procedures may be extended by the Director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships when doing so will enhance the integrity of the process, for example if the student needs additional times to pull together documentation in order to submit a complete appeal. All parties will be notified in writing if there is to be an extension of the established time limits.
If a student fails to observe the time limits established for any step, or to appeal a decision within the specified time, the appeal will be considered resolved. If the university fails to observe the time limits established for any step including extensions, the appeal is considered denied at that level and the student may submit the appeal to the next step within the designated time limits of that next step.