Students must meet the following requirements to be eligible for Federal Financial Aid:

• Be admitted to an eligible program of study (degree or certificate program)
• Maintain satisfactory academic progress
• Be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen
• Be registered with Selective Service, if required (see www.sss.gov for more information)
• Must not owe the U.S. Department of Education a refund on a federal grant or be in default on a federal education loan
• Must not have any drug convictions; or meet the eligibility criteria of the drug conviction worksheet
• Have a valid social security number

To maintain eligibility, students must successfully complete a minimum percentage of their required degree credits (see below). Students earning an associate’s degree must complete the minimum credits listed in the catalog and may receive funding for up to 150% of the average credits (typically about 90 credits). Students will not receive financial aid for credits exceeding 90 credits unless an extension due to special circumstances has been approved by the Financial Aid Office.

Changing Degree Programs or Additional Degrees

If a student changes his or her degree program or graduates and requests a second degree, his or her transcript will be evaluated by the Dean of Instruction and the new advisor to determine what portion of the requirements for the new program has been satisfied. Provided that the student has not yet received a higher degree, she or he may be eligible for Federal Aid.

After a degree audit has been completed, a new count of credits attempted will be determined based upon the credits completed that satisfy requirements in the new degree program. For example, if a student has attempted 60 credits but only 30 credits (including transfer credits) will satisfy requirements in the new program, then the count of the attempted credits, for Federal Student Aid purposes, will be reset from 60 to 30. The student will have a new maximum of 60 additional credits to complete the new degree program.

A student who receives an adjusted count of credits attempted due to a degree program change will have a maximum of 120 credits attempted (or four years’ full-time equivalent) to complete two associate’s degree programs at the college. This will count all credits attempted in any program at this college including remedial courses.

Student Appeals

A student who has lost his or her financial aid eligibility may wish to appeal that status if he or she believes that there are mitigating circumstances. Examples of mitigating circumstances would be medical problems or curriculum changes. A student may submit an application for appeal to the Financial Aid Office. The Financial Aid Office will review the student's mitigating circumstances. The student will receive notification by mail stating whether she or he has been granted reinstatement of Federal Financial Aid.

If the loss of aid eligibility was due to lack of satisfactory academic progress, the appeal will be submitted to the Financial Aid Appeals Committee.

SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS FOR FINANCIAL AID

To maintain their eligibility for federal financial aid, students must maintain satisfactory academic progress. Satisfactory academic progress is based on attempted credits which include all credits enrolled in at the end of the drop-add period. Progress will be monitored each semester and has two components:

1) Satisfactory grade point average, as described below:

2) Satisfactory degree progress, which means successfully completing 67% of credits attempted.

Failure to meet the satisfactory academic progress for one semester will result in a warning.

Failure to meet the satisfactory academic progress the next semester enrolled will result in financial aid probation. Students on financial aid probation are still eligible for Federal Student Aid.

Failure to meet the satisfactory academic progress during a semester on financial aid probation will result in financial aid suspension. Students on financial aid suspension are not eligible for Federal Student Aid.

Reinstatement of Federal Student Aid may occur when:

• Enough credits have been completed to achieve satisfactory academic progress using alternative funding.
• Taking a semester or more off from college and petitioning for readmission. Readmission requests must be made in writing to the Faculty Council and must outline the steps the student plans to take to improve his or her academic performance.
• Immediate reinstatement is petitioned for based on extenuating circumstances. Petitions must be made in writing to the Financial Aid Appeals Committee and must explain the extenuating circumstances and outline the steps the student will take to regain satisfactory academic progress.

Students may be required to supply additional information before a decision is made on their readmission or reinstatement petitions. Students who are readmitted or reinstated will be on probation status. Petition denials will include an explanation, steps for students to take, and the length of time before students may re-petition.