Financial Aid

The primary purpose of financial aid is to provide assistance to students who, without such aid, would find it difficult to attend school. All students are encouraged to apply for financial aid. The purpose of this section is to inform prospective students and currently enrolled students of the financial aid assistance, which may be available to them upon enrolling at the Tennessee Technology Center at Covington (TTCC). This section also includes some of the policy and procedure students will need to know to maintain eligibility once they are receiving Financial Aid. If you have any questions, please see the Student Services Office.

Quick Links:

Responsibilities of the Student

Responsibilities of the Financial Aid Counselor

Rights of the Student

Financial Aid Checklist

Yearly Application Process

Students who wish to receive financial aid should submit an application and have a Student Aid Report (SAR) on file in the Financial Aid Office. All aid recipients must be enrolled in a regular eligible program and have all eligibility requirements for aid completed prior to disbursement. Please note that some students applying for financial aid may be required to verify the information submitted on the aid application. Students must be prepared to submit income documents to the Financial Aid Office. All requested documents must be turned in within 90 days or a student may forfeit eligibility to receive federal aid.

Application

Before filling out a financial aid application, the student must fill out an application for admission with TTCC. The TTCC uses the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to determine a student's eligibility for financial aid.

http://fafsa.ed.gov/

Deadline Dates

The federal student financial aid form has its own priority deadline date for application printed on the form. All students turning in a valid Student Aid Report to the school must be currently enrolled at that time or payments cannot be made. All Student Aid Reports turned in to the Financial Aid Office of the school must be turned in before the last day of classes for students during that school year.

Student Eligibility For Financial Aid

In order to receive financial assistance from Federal or State financial aid programs, a student must:

Have a high school diploma, GED, or be beyond the age of compulsory school attendance in Tennessee and have the ability to benefit from the education or training offered. Students without an approved high school diploma or GED must establish the Ability to Benefit from training by taking and passing an independently administered examination approved by the Secretary of the U. S. Department of Education.

Be enrolled as a regular student in an eligible program.

Be a U. S. citizen/national or an eligible non-citizen.

Show that he/she has a financial need.

Must make satisfactory progress in accordance with policy.

Must not be in default on a Federal Perkins National Direct Student Loan, any Federal Family Education Loan program, income contingent loan, or a consolidated loan, and must sign a statement to that effect.

Must not owe a refund on a Federal Pell Grant, FSEOG grant, Tennessee Student Assistance Award Grant, Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship, or a Byrd Scholarship and sign a statement to that effect.

Must have a signed statement or Federal confirmation statement including that he/she has registered with the Selective Service or that he/she is not required to register.

Must have signed a statement of educational purpose (saying that the student will use the money only for expenses related to attending the center).

Must have a signed statement of updated information (Student Aid Report).

Present the school with a current picture I.D. (driver license, under 21 identification card, or state identification card).

List any former post-secondary institutions you have attended.

Supply the Tennessee Technology Center with all verification documentation, if requested, within three months of the request by the school.

Must be in compliance with federal drug-free rules and laws for receiving financial aid.

Refile a new Free Application for Federal Student Aid each year.

Needs Analysis

Students must apply for all financial aid programs utilizing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This service allows students to apply for all types of state (TSAA & WNTSG) and Federal (Pell and FSEOG) Programs. The information received provides the necessary documentation to establish the financial need of the student. Need is determined by subtracting the amount the needs analysis figures you or your parents can contribute from the cost of the school. (School cost - Expected Family Contribution = Need)

Student Aid Report

The Student Aid Report (SAR) or Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR) indicates the eligibility of the student for a Pell Grant and provides information for analyzing need so the aid package of the student can be determined.

Verification

Some students will be selected for verification by the Title IV processor or by the school if discrepancies appear in the paperwork. Students being selected for verification may be asked to verify income, federal income tax paid, household size, independent or dependent status, number of family members enrolled at least part-time in post-secondary education, and certain untaxed income and benefits received. Other information and documents might also be required if deemed necessary by the Financial Aid Office.

Applicant Responsibility

Applicants selected for verification by the Secretary are required to provide requested information or documentation in order to be eligible to receive Title IV student aid funds.

If a Federal Pell Grant or campus-based program applicant's dependency status changes during the award year, or the original application was filed incorrectly, the applicant must make a correction reflecting the changed status unless the change results from a change in marital status.

Selected applicants must certify and/or update the household size and number in postsecondary education to reflect accurate data as of the date of verification.
NOTE: Students not selected for verification cannot update household size or number in college.

The applicant must return to Title IV any overpayment discovered during verification.

Time Period

Applicants selected for verification either by the Secretary or the institution must provide the requested information or documentation no later than three (3) months from the date of the verification letter.

If the institution will grant an extension of time, the extension will be on individual basis, and based on documented extenuating circumstances.

Consequences For Failure to Provide Documentation

The institution will not disburse any Federal Pell, Federal Perkins (NDSL), FSEOG funds, or FWS employment, or certify a FFELP application for applicants who fail to provide requested documentation within the time frame.

The institution will withhold the proceeds of a FFELP check and will return the check to the lender for applicants who are selected for verification after the FFELP is certified and who fail to provide the requested documentation within the specified time period.

Notification

The institution will inform the applicant of verification procedures and requirements through written and/or verbal communications.

The institution will notify the applicant of the results of verification through written and/or verbal communications.

Corrections will be made for all errors found during the verification process.

Award Letters

The Financial Aid Office at the TTCC will process students who apply for financial aid through FAFSA and receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) that shows the student eligible for financial aid. Once TTCC has received all of the student's financial aid information, the student will receive an award letter listing all of the financial aid programs available to the student. The student is asked to accept or decline each of the available programs, sign the letter, and return it to the Center within ten (10) working days.

Satisfactory Attendance And Progress For Financial Aid

Please see the current Catalog/Handbook.

Withdrawals

If the withdrawal results in the students not completing 90.3% of the scheduled hours for the term, the student will not receive financial aid the subsequent term of enrollment and the Return of Title IV Policy will go into effect (see below).

Return of Title IV

This policy will be used to determine what percentage of financial aid a student has earned if he/she terminates prior to completing their scheduled hours. There are worksheets that will be completed when a termination is given to the financial aid office. Copies of these worksheets will be given to a student ONLY at his/her request. After the calculation has been completed, the school will determine whether the student is due a post-withdrawal disbursement or if the student owes money back to TTCC and/or Title IV.

Post-Withdrawal- TTCC has 90 days from the date of withdrawal determination to make a post-withdrawal disbursement. TTCC will inform the student within 30 days of withdrawal in writing of funds in excess of tuition and fees. The student must respond to the institution what he/she wishes TTCC to do with the excess funds within 14 school days of notification being sent out. The student may call within the 14 school days, but written notification may also be required.

If no response is made within 14 school days, TTCC will NOT disburse the excess funds. If a terminated student is due a check, the check will be issued on the next disbursement date and NOT before that time.

Overpayment- If TTCC determines that the student was issued more funds than were earned, TTCC will notify the student that he/she was issued too much financial aid and he/she is required to pay it back. The student has 45 days from notification to either (1) repay the overpayment in full to the institution, (2) sign a repayment agreement with the institution, or (3) sign a repayment agreement with the Department of Education. If the student does not take one of the above actions during the 45-day period, the student becomes ineligible for Title IV funds on the 46th day. TTCC will notify NSLDS of any overpayments at the appropriate time.

Books will be considered an institutional charge when doing the Return of Title IV Calculation. TTCC does not refund bookstore charges. TTCC does not buy back or sell used books. FSEOG will be included in the calculation, including both the Federal Government amount and the amount that TTCC matches (government and TTCC money are commingled into one account).

Time Frames For Program Completion

In order to assure that a student completes his/her diploma within a reasonable period of time, time frames for completion are established. Students will not receive Federal Financial Aid for more than the length of the program.

Change of Program

A student may make two program changes and still be eligible to receive financial aid. At each program change, the student will establish a new time frame for completion of the program.

Financial Aid for Transfer Students

If you transfer from one school to another, your financial aid DOES NOT automatically go with you. You must follow the procedures necessary to continue receiving aid at the new school. If you are a transfer student, please see the Financial Aid Counselor to find out what programs are available and what steps you must take.

Financial Aid Transcripts (FAT)

Effective July 2001, FATs are no longer be requested on students wishing to enroll at TTCC. The financial aid office will rely on the NSLDS web site for previous financial aid history and information. If a student has attended another institution in the current award year, the financial aid office will check the NSLDS web site prior to enrollment and also no earlier than 30 days of the student's check disbursement date (the recommended time to check would be right before the Expenditure Report was sent to our Lead Institution).

Charging

Students will be able to charge books/supplies and tuition against their financial aid (TELS, Pell, scholarships or agency) on their first day of enrollment, if there is an eligible SAR on file and his/her financial aid folder is complete. TTCC would prefer they use their WNTSG for book purchases first, but realizes there will be certain situations where it will be more feasible to charge fees first. The decision of what to charge first will be made on an individual basis. Students will be encouraged to charge to TELS before charging to Pell.

Budgets

The school must establish new budgets of expenses each year. Please see the Financial Aid Office of the school for current school costs. School costs include tuition and fees, books, transportation, and living allowances. Adjustments will be made to tuition and books for less than full-time enrollment. Costs for child care, dependent care and cost related to a handicap may be added on an individual basis with documentation.

Independent And Dependent Students

For financial aid purposes, whether a student is independent or dependent depends on how he/she answers the questions in Step Three of the FAFSA. If a student answers “No” to all the questions, then he/she is dependent. If the student answers “Yes” to at least one question, then he/she is independent.

Professional Judgement

Please see the Financial Aid Office for more information.

Effective Fall 2011

Federal Financial Aid (Pell and FSEOG) is paid on a payment period schedule, which is based on your program length.

State funds (WNTSG & TSAA) are paid based on an academic term.

Payment Period Examples

Program Length (in months) Program Length (in hours) Payment Periods*

12 month program 1296 clock hours 648/648

16 month program 1728 clock hours 648/648/432

20 month program 2160 clock hours 648/648/432/432

*If a student receives previous credit (transfer credit), the program length and payment periods will be adjusted accordingly.

Each student’s financial aid award letter will show the beginning and ending dates of each payment period.

Disbursement Information

Because a majority of the payment periods are longer than our academic terms, each payment period will have multiple disbursements to best meet the needs of the student’s cost for tuition, fees and supplies each academic term.

Once a new student has enrolled, registration is completed, and their financial aid file has been processed, the Financial Aid Office will determine if a student is due a credit balance from financial aid. A student’s credit balance (check) will be issued as soon possible.

Please note that subsequent disbursements will be based on each individual student’s progression in their program. All financial aid checks will not be issued on the same day, but will be based on each individual student’s date of enrollment, program length, payment period, and program progression.

Satisfactory Academic Progress Information

To make satisfactory academic progress a student must:

1. Complete 77% of cumulative scheduled hours (pace of completion).

2. Must maintain a 77 (C) cumulative grade average.

B. Satisfactory progress will be evaluated at the expected end of a student’s payment period. If the student fails to make satisfactory progress, the student will be placed on financial aid warning for the next payment period. If the student fails to make satisfactory progress for the next payment period, financial aid will be suspended. There is no appeals process for financial aid satisfactory progress. In order to reestablish financial aid, a student must make satisfactory academic progress at the next evaluation date.

C. For online and evening students, Satisfactory Academic Progress will be evaluated at the point when the student has attended the scheduled clock hours.

Payment Period Progression

Meeting the standards established in the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy does NOT mean that you have progressed into the next payment period and are due another disbursement. In order to progress into the next payment period, a student must successfully complete all hours and weeks of instructional time in the payment period to progress to the next payment period.

Students will not receive more than 100% of their program length in Federal Financial Aid.

Please Note!

Our Institutional Academic Retention Policy has not changed. You are required to complete 90.3% of your scheduled hours each academic term and have a C average at the end of each academic term.

This section concerning financial aid is designed to be supplemented by the most current Federal Student Guide from the U. S. Department of Education. A copy of this guide may be obtained in the Financial Aid Office.

For further information on applying electronically, contact Amanda Heath at:
amanda.heath@ttccovington.edu or call (901) 475-2526.