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Walla Walla Community College

Courses that are Not Eligible for Financial Aid Funding

The following courses are not eligible for financial aid funding:

  • Running Start
  • Continuing Education, Community Education, Quest, or Kids College
  • Certified Nursing Assistant
  • High School Completion
  • High School Equivalency Exam
  • Adult Basic Education
  • CDL Program
  • Programs that are less than two quarters in length
  • Any audited class

In addition, the credits from these courses will not count toward the minimum requirements to receive financial aid funds or towards completed credits for Satisfactory Academic Progress purposes.

Credit Load Requirement

In order to receive your financial aid each quarter, the number of credits you are registered for in the student registration system must match the enrollment level with financial aid. Financial aid awards are initially based on full-time enrollment of 12 or more eligible credits. Therefore, if you are registered for 12 or more credits, you do not need to do anything.

If you do not plan to enroll in 12 or more eligible credits for a quarter, you should notify the Financial Aid Office in writing after you have completed your registration for that quarter. If you do not notify our office at least 7 business days prior to the start of the quarter, you will experience a delay in receiving your aid.

For students taking less than 12 eligible credits, Federal Pell Grant, Washington College Grant and College Bound grant will be reduced proportionately to match the students’ enrollment level. However, in order to remain eligible for Federal Student Loans, you must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 eligible credits towards your degree. Students who enroll in less than 3 credits will not be eligible for any Financial Aid.

Financial Aid Enrollment Policies

Census Day Enrollment Count

Enrollment levels for all students who received financial aid (either financial aid paid tuition or fee charges and/or a financial aid disbursement was received) will be re-evaluated after the end of the 10th business day of the quarter. There are 4 enrollment levels: full-time (12 or more credits), ¾-time (9-11 credits), ½-time (6-8 credits), and less than half-time (3-5 credits). What does this mean for you?

If you increase your enrollment level on or prior to the 10th instructional day of the quarter, your financial aid grants will be revised, as appropriate by notifying the Financial Aid Office in writing. A revised award will be available to view on the Financial Aid Student Portal and emailed to you.

If you decrease your enrollment level on or prior to the 10th instructional day of the quarter, your financial aid grants will be revised, as appropriate, and a revised award will be available to view on the Financial Aid Portal. This will occur even if your aid has already been disbursed. If your aid was already disbursed, you will owe a repayment of aid to the college.

If your grant aid is revised in accordance with this policy, your number of “attempted credits” will be based on the number of credits you were enrolled in as of 11:59 pm on the 10th business day of the quarter.

Repeated Courses

Students can repeat courses for which they receive financial aid two times. Each time a class is repeated, whether or not financial aid paid for the course, the credits are counted toward the time limit requirement. Each time a remedial course (Math and English courses below the 100 level) is repeated, whether or not financial aid paid for the course, it counts toward both the time limit requirement and the 45 credit limit on remedial courses.

Change in Program of Study

Students who start pursuing a new program of study without completing their first program are considered to have changed programs. If the program of study is changed ONCE, the attempted credits from the first program will not be counted toward the credit limit requirement for the new program.

Students who change programs TWO OR MORE TIMES, however, may not be able to complete their new program within the maximum allowable time frame for financial aid. This is because when students change to a third program (or fourth, etc.); the attempted credits count will not start over. All credits attempted starting with the student’s 2nd program of study will be counted toward the credit limit requirement.

Financial Aid Student Complaint Process

The Higher Education Act (HEA) prohibits an institution of higher education from engaging in a “substantial misrepresentation of the nature of its educational program, its financial charges, or the employability of its graduates.”  20 U.S.C. §1094(c)(3)(A). Further, each State must have “a process to review and appropriately act on complaints concerning the institution including enforcing applicable State laws.”  34 C.F.R. § 600.9.  The Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) maintains a process to investigate complaints of this nature brought by community and technical college students in the State of Washington. For more information, contact the SBCTC Student Services Office at 360-704-4315.

Consumer Protection (Title IV) Student Complaint Process

National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS)

The National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) is the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED’s) central database for student aid.  Title IV federal loan information for student and parent borrowers will be submitted to NSLDS, and will be accessible by guaranty agencies, lenders, and schools determined to be authorized users of the data system.

Refunds

Financial aid grants, tuition waivers and loan funds that have been accepted will be disbursed to student accounts and used to pay outstanding tuition and fees approximately 1-2 business days before the first day of the term. Students who are enrolled less than full-time (12 credits) will need to complete an Enrollment Change Form to confirm their enrollment level and request to have their aid adjusted to their planned enrollment level before funds can be disbursed.

Any credit balance of financial aid funds remaining after payment of tuition and fees will be refunded to students after the start of the quarter. Walla Walla Community College does not issue financial aid refunds prior to the start of class.

We partner with BankMobile to deliver financial aid credit balance refunds. Funds are sent to BankMobile who in turn issues a refund according to the refund option selected by the student. Additional information can be found online at the BankMobile website.

For questions regarding refund of payments prior to disbursement and tuition balances, please contact the Cashiering Office.

Return of Federal Financial Aid Funds due to Withdrawal Policy

  1. If a student withdraws from Walla Walla Community College (WWCC), either officially or unofficially, the school, the student, or both may be required to return some of all of the federal and state funds awarded to the student for that period of enrollment.
  • Official Withdrawal – When a student contacts the Office of Admissions at WWCC and requests to withdraw from all of their classes in any given quarter of attendance. This request must be in person or via email. A student cannot completely withdraw online. It is the student’s responsibility to withdraw themselves from their classes, NOT their advisors nor instructors.
  • Unofficial Withdrawal – When the student ceased attending classes and did not begin the official withdrawal process or provide notification of their intent to withdraw to the Office of Admissions. The date that WWCC determined that the student withdrew would be the date the school became aware that the student ceased attendance. In most unofficial withdrawal cases, student’s will receive all F’s at the end of the quarter and the last date of attendance will be the date the instructor will provide to the Registrar’s office. If an instructor does not enter a date or there are conflicting dates, the financial aid office will contact instructors to determine the last date of attendance from each instructor and will use the latest date provided as the last date for R2T4 purposes. For online classes the last date of attendance would be determined by the student’s last login date. 
  • Leave of Absence – WWCC does not offer students leave of absences. If a student needs to miss their class(es) for an extended period of time they are encouraged to either take an Incomplete grade or withdraw for the quarter. If the student chooses to take an Incomplete grade, they will need to sign a contract for completion with their instructor(s), failure to complete the contract will result in the student receiving an F in that class. If the student chooses to withdraw or the student does not complete the class, they would go through the withdrawal process and could be subject to the return of Title IV aid that is laid out in this policy.
  1. Students who have received State aid (Washington College Grant, College Bound Scholarship, Passport, Bridge Grant) and change their enrollment level on the first day of the term, must have their state aid eligibility recalculated to reflect their enrollment status as of the start of the quarter, if they did not attend all of their registered classes at least 1 class session. The student who decreases enrollment status prior to the first day of the quarter will owe a repayment of the overpayment amount. Students who increase their enrollment status prior to or thru the10th day of the quarter may be entitled to additional funds for the enrollment status increase.
  2. We are required to calculate repayment of Federal Pell grant if you drop one or more classes (change in enrollment level) on or before the 10th day of the quarter. This repayment is the difference in award amounts based on your former and current enrollment level. If Pell Overpayment occurs, WWCC will reduce the student’s subsequent Pell payment as long as it is during the current award year. If a student ceases to attend, the next upcoming quarter and it is still within the same academic year, WWCC will return the overpayment back to the Department of Ed and the student will owe WWCC, the amount of overpayment. The student will be notified by mail, when this Pell Overpayment has occurred. If the student does not repay WWCC, the student will then be sent to collections after 120 days. You can avoid this repayment by attending all of your enrolled classes for the first 10 days of the quarter. You will not want to drop below your funding level by withdrawing from any class(es) the first 10 days of the quarter.
  3. If a recipient of Title IV funds withdraws from WWCC after beginning attendance, the amount of Title IV funds earned by the student must be determined. If the amount disbursed to the student is greater than the amount the student earned, unearned funds must be returned back to the Title IV program as soon as possible but no later than 45 days. If the amount disbursed to the student is less than the amount the student earned, and for which the student is otherwise eligible, they are eligible to receive a Post-withdrawal disbursement of the aid that was not received. Post withdrawal disbursements to their Bank Mobile account must be made to the student as soon as possible but no later than 30 days of the determination. *Please note, if a student has earned any Title IV grant funds that have not yet been disbursed to the student, WWCC will disburse the eligible funds as soon as possible but no later than 45 days to their Bank Mobile Account. Direct Federal loans, will be offered no later then 30 days, allowing the student 14 days to respond accepting or declining the offered eligible amount of Federal Student Loans.
  4. ALL post-withdrawal disbursements are applied to the student account first, paying any outstanding tuition and fees owing, before any resulting credit balance is handled. The credit balance on the account will be disbursedto Bank Mobile accounts as soon as possible, but no later than 14 days after the calculation of R2T4.
  5. Up through the 60% point in each payment period or period of enrollment, a pro rate schedule is used to determine how much federal funds the student has earned at the time of withdrawal. After the 60% point in the payment period or period of enrollment, a student has earned 100% of the federal funds and no return is required. Returns must be made no later than 45 days after the date of the withdrawal.
  6. WWCC is required to complete a federal calculation to determine if an adjustment should be made to the student’s Title IV aid. Federal calculations assume that a student earns federal financial aid awards directly in proportion to the number of days of the term the student attends. The portion of federal grants and loans a student is entitled to receive is calculated on a percentage basis by comparing the total number of days in the term to the number of days completed before the student withdrew. Once the percentage is found it is applied to the amount of federal aid the student received in conjunction to the charges the student incurred during that quarter. WWCC utilizes the Return of Title IV Funds on the Web tool on FAA Access to COD Online to determine the amount of money that will need to be returned. A copy of this worksheet calculation is kept in the student’s file and with our Business Office (only if money is owed).

    Priority of financial aid fund reimbursement for Return of Title IV Funds is asfollows:

    1. Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans
    2. Direct Subsidized Stafford Loans
    3. Direct PLUS Loans
    4. Federal Pell Grants
    5. Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG)
  7. After the school returns the correct amount of aid, any amount of the total unearned aid that remains becomes the student portion of the return. The student portion of the return is calculated by subtracting the amount of the school Return from the total unearned aid.Total Unearned Aid (subtract) School Return Amount = Student Portion of Return
  8. Depending on the remaining sources of aid after the school Return, the student portion of the return is distributed back to the aid program from which it was awarded. WWCC will return these funds on the students’ behalf and you will be responsible for reimbursing WWCC for this return.
  9. Grants do not usually have to be repaid. However, there are three reasons why you may have to repay part of a federal grant.
    • You did not attend all of your courses for which the grant was paid. The portion of Pell Grant you can receive each quarter is partially based on the number of credits you are taking. Pell Grant is awarded based on your enrolled credits for the quarter, but if you do not attend the courses for which Pell Grant was awarded, your grant will need to be recalculated based on the number of credits you attended.
    • The amount given to you was more than you were eligible to receive (this is called an over-award). This can happen if the school makes an error when calculating your eligibility for financial aid, or if an audit of your financial aid records reveals that some of the information you provided was incorrect (for example, your income was higher than you reported on your application for financial aid).
    • You withdrew early from the program for which the grant was given to you, and a Return to Title IV (R2T4) calculation must be applied.

Reference:

34 CFR §668.22(b), 34 CFR §668.22(c), 34 CFR §668.22(i), 34 CFR §668.22(b), 34 CFR §668.22(h), 34 CFR §668.22(a) (5) and (6), 34

CFR §668.164(j). https://studentaid.gov/

Student Rights and Responsibilities as a Financial Aid Recipient

A financial aid recipient has the right to:

  • access to accurate and timely information on financial aid deadlines and procedures.
  • access to personal financial aid records and information as defined by the Buckley Amendment of 1974.
  • the choice of accepting all or only part of the assistance offered with Federal Student Loans and/or Work Study if eligible.
  • ability to request a review of the award package should the student’s financial situation change by completing an Aid Adjustment and providing all the necessary documentation needed for such request.

Along with these rights, students have the following responsibilities:

  • to provide accurate information to be used in the aid process. Misrepresenting information is a violation of the law and could result in indictment under the U.S. Criminal Code.
  • to inform the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office of any significant changes to a student’s financial situation (scholarships, gifts, earnings, finding, ect.) in excess of $200 that were not listed in the FAFSA application, or any other change in circumstances, such as a change in student status or marital status, that may influence the award. Failure to report these changes can result in federal legal action to recover aid funds.
  • to understand the loan obligation. With a loan as part of the student’s package, future earnings are pledged to pay present school costs. Loan conditions should be read carefully; ask questions if they arise.
  • to maintain academic satisfactory progress and attendance toward the completion of your program of study.
  • to repay any financial aid received when students were not eligible.
  • to continue receiving financial aid, students MUST reapply each academic year. It is HIGHLY encouraged to complete by or before the Priority Deadline for each upcoming academic year.

Verification Process

Verification is a review process where the Financial Aid Office ensures the accuracy of information reported on the FAFSA. Students are selected for verification by the Department of Education at the time they complete the FAFSA. Documents required for verification may include: Income Verification Form, Household Verification Form, tax transcripts or copies of 1040 tax forms and schedules, W-2 forms,
verification of non-filing, and identity verification. Other documents may be requested as needed to resolve conflicting information found during verification.

Students who are selected for verification will be notified of the documents required through their “To Do” list in ctcLink. All required documents should be turned in by the priority processing date to complete your file. Financial aid funds will not be awarded until verification is completed.  Information found to be credibly fraudulent will be referred to the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Education by the Financial Aid Director or Asst. Director.

Forms and more details on what is required for each type of verification can be found on the Financial Aid Verification web page.

Washington State Aid Repayment Policy

  1. Students who fail to attend classes or who receive funding based on fraudulent information will be required to repay 100% of the funds received.
  2. Students who make enrollment status adjustments (up or down) after disbursement and after the start of the term will be subject to completion of satisfactory academic progress requirements outlined under 250-21-010 (12) (a-e). Enrollment status increases must include WCG awards based on that enrollment and may not exceed need. However, students may not receive more WCG than the cost of their tuition and fees. If a student’s enrollment is adjusted during the tuition refund period and tuition is reduced, the grant must be reduced to not exceed the cost of tuition and fees.
  3. Washington State funds are calculated using Grant Repayment Policy requirements as set forth by the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC). If a student’s last date of attendance can be verified and has attended all of their registered classes at least 1 class session, the state grant award is considered 100% earned and no state grant repayment will be due. If a student fails to attend one or more of their registered classes of which they were funded by state funding, WWCC utilizes the Grant Repayment Calculator on the WSAC portal website to determine the amount of money to return for each Washington grant program the student received.

Note: For this section, “state grant” refers to all state grant and scholarship programs.

Withdrawal Policy

  • Official Withdrawal – When a student contacts the Office of Admissions at WWCC and requests to withdraw from all of their classes in any given quarter of attendance. This request must be in person or via email. A student cannot completely withdraw online. It is the student’s responsibility to withdraw themselves from their classes, NOT their advisors nor instructors.
  • Unofficial Withdrawal – When the student ceased attending classes and did not begin the official withdrawal process or provide notification of their intent to withdraw to the Office of Admissions. The date that WWCC determined that the student withdrew would be the date the school became aware that the student ceased attendance. In most unofficial withdrawal cases, student’s will receive all F’s at the end of the quarter and the last date of attendance will be the date the instructor will provide to the Registrar’s office. If an instructor does not enter a date or there are conflicting dates, the financial aid office will contact instructors to determine the last date of attendance from each instructor and will use the latest date provided as the last date for R2T4 purposes. For online classes the last date of attendance would be determined by the student’s last login date. 
  • Leave of Absence – WWCC does not offer students leave of absences. If a student needs to miss their class(es) for an extended period of time they are encouraged to either take an Incomplete grade or withdraw for the quarter. If the student chooses to take an Incomplete grade, they will need to sign a contract for completion with their instructor(s), failure to complete the contract will result in the student receiving an F in that class. If the student chooses to withdraw or the student does not complete the class, they would go through the withdrawal process and could be subject to the return of Title IV aid that is laid out in this policy.