NASFAAs Webinar Series Academic Competitiveness Grant ACG and National SMART Grants Student Eligibil

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NASFAAs Webinar Series Academic Competitiveness
Grant (ACG)and National SMART GrantsStudent
Eligibility Criteria April 3 ACG
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ACG Student Eligibility Criteria

• Agenda
• Modified general eligibility criteria
• Citizenship
• Enrollment status
• Eligible program
• Pell Grant eligibility and demonstrated need
• Rigorous secondary school program
• Prior enrollment
• Grade point average (GPA)
• QA

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ACG Student Eligibility Criteria

• General student eligibility criteria apply from
  34 CFR Part 668 subpart C (668.31 through 668.40)
• Examples regular student SAP not in default or
  owe a repayment registered for Selective Service
• Some existing eligibility criteria have been
  modified for ACG and SMART Grant
• Citizenship
• Enrollment status
• Enrollment in an eligible program
• Some unique eligibility criteria have been added
  for ACG and SMART Grant

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ACG Student Eligibility Criteria
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ACG Student Eligibility Criteria
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Citizenship Criterion for ACG/SMART

• Citizenship U.S. citizens only
• U.S. citizen includes naturalized citizens
• Non-citizen nationals are not eligible
• Permanent residents are not eligible
• Students who become citizens during award year
  gain eligibility for entire award year

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Enrollment Status for ACG/SMART

• Enrollment status Full-time only
• Full-time for non-standard terms Same
  calculation as for Pell Grant
• Enrollment status changes Use same policies and
  rules established for Pell Grant, including
  census date

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ACG Student Eligibility Criteria
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Enrollment Status

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Enrollment Status Changes
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Enrollment Status

• Must recalculate Pell Grant if
• Enrollment changes between payment periods
• Enrollment changes within payment period before
  student begins all classes
• If lt full-time, lose ACG or SMART
• May recalculate Pell Grant if enrollment status
  changes after student begins all classes
• If recalculate, may use census date after which
  no further changes are considered
• If redetermine ACG and SMART eligibility, must
  apply same policy as use for Pell Grant

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Enrollment Status

• Sequence of events
• Pell Grant calculated
• Census date passes
• Students enrollment status changes
• First determination of ACG eligibility occurs
• What enrollment status is used for 2006-07?
• What enrollment status is used for 2007-08?

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Enrollment Status
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ACG-Eligible Program

• Enrollment in an eligible program Narrower
  definition of eligible program
• Eligible programs for ACG
• Associate's degree
• Bachelor's degree
• Two-academic-year program acceptable for full
  credit toward a bachelor's degree
• Graduate degree program that includes at least 3
  academic years of undergraduate education

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Eligible Program

• ACG is for a students first two academic years
  of study in an ACG-eligible program
• A student who attends for a year in a certificate
  program has not used ACG
• A student is eligible for the grant level that
  corresponds to the academic year he is in
• The students transfer credits from the
  certificate program into an ACG-eligible program
  could make him a second-year student
• Taking into account the weeks of instructional
  time in an ACG-eligible program could make him a
  first-year student instead

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Pell Grant Eligibility

• Additional criterion for ACG and SMART Must be
  eligible for Pell Grant
• Eligibility based on receipt of Pell Grant funds
  during same award year
• Example
• Student received full Pell award in fall and
  spring
• Attends summer full-time
• Summer assigned to concluding award year
• Originally, student ineligible for ACG in summer
• Under revised policy, student is ACG-eligible in
  summer

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Pell Grant Eligibility

• Gain or loss of Pell Grant eligibility for award
  year results in gain or loss of ACG/SMART
  eligibility for award year
• Returning full Pell Grant award due to Return of
  Title IV Funds formula for withdrawn students
  does not cause loss of ACG or SMART eligibility

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ACG Student Eligibility Criteria

• Unlike Pell Grant, a student must have remaining
  need
• Cost EFC Estimated Financial Assistance
  Remaining Need
• Order of awarding in packaging process
• Overaward rules apply
• No overaward tolerances

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Rigorous Secondary School Program of Study

• First year ACG recipients must have completed a
  rigorous program after
• January 1, 2006
• Second year ACG recipients must have completed a
  rigorous program after
• January 1, 2005
• Dates will not change in the future

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Recognition of Rigorous Programs

• Rigorous programs must be recognized by ED
• Annually, ED must give SEAs and LEAs an
  opportunity to submit state-specific programs to
  be considered for recognition
• States are not required to do so
• ED must recognize at least one rigorous program
  in each state

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2006-07 and 2007-08 Definitions of Rigorous
Programs

• State-submitted programs recognized by ED
• An advanced or honors diploma established by a
  state
• A set of courses detailed in ACG regulations
• The State Scholars Initiative

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2006-07 and 2007-08 Definitions of Rigorous
Programs (cont)

• A secondary school program for a student who
  completes at least two AP courses and receives a
  score of 3 or higher on the exams
• A secondary school program for a student who
  completes at least two IB courses and receives a
  score of 4 or higher on the exams

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Selection by CPS as Potentially-Eligible

• CPS selects as potentially eligible for ACG
  students who are
• Eligible for a Federal Pell Grant
• U.S. citizens
• First or second year undergraduate students
• Twenty one years old or younger

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Information from CPS to Schools

• CPS provides information to schools about
  students who affirmed that they completed a
  rigorous program in 4 ways
• ISIR comment codes 268 to 270
• Separate message classes
• ACG data file showing ACG information for ISIRs
  received by the school that day
• FAA Access to CPS Online

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Documentation of Completion of Rigorous Program

• School must confirm and document that the student
  has successfully completed a rigorous secondary
  school program of study

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Documentation of Completion of Rigorous Program

• Documentation from cognizant authority may be
  provided
• by cognizant authority directly to the school or
• by student to the school
• If documentation provided by the student seems
  inaccurate or incomplete, the institution must
  collect documentation directly from cognizant
  authority

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Cognizant Authority

• A cognizant authority includes, but is not
  limited to
• A local educational agency (LEA)
• A state educational agency (SEA) or other state
  agency
• A public or private high school
• A testing organization such as College Board or
  state agency
• For a home-schooled student, students parent or
  guardian

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Home-Schooled Students

• Documentation for a home-schooled student must
  include
• A transcript or equivalent or
• A detailed course description listing secondary
  school courses completed by student

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Transfer Students

• School to which the student transfers may rely
  upon a prior institution's determination that the
  student completed a rigorous program based on
• Documentation provided by prior institution or
• Documented receipt of an ACG at prior institution
  (e.g., NSLDS record)

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Reporting Rigorous Program Data to COD

• Basic award data
• 2-digit eligibility/payment reason code
• For state-specific programs, a 6-digit, alpha
  numeric rigorous high school program code
• Codes are found in the July 13, 2006 Electronic
  Announcement

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Reporting Rigorous Program Data to COD

• Eligibility/payment reason codes are
• 01 for state-specific programs
• 02 for Advanced Placement/International
  Baccalaureate
• 03 for the coursework listed in regulation as
  similar to the State Scholars Initiative
• Rigorous high school program codes are unique to
  each state-specific program

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ACG/SMART Operational Issues

• NASFAA Webinar on April 25 with guest presenters
  from the Department of Education
• Stay tuned to Todays News for details

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Prior Enrollment for ACG

• For first-year ACG only, prior enrollment at a
  postsecondary institution disqualifies the
  student if the student was enrolled
• as a regular student,
• in an ACG-eligible program, and
• while the student was still in high school
• A regular student is one who has been admitted
  for the purpose of obtaining a degree,
  certificate, or other recognized postsecondary
  educational credential offered by that institution

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Prior Enrollment for ACG

• States have been establishing programs to bring
  qualified high school students into college early
• A student who took college courses but was not a
  regular student may still receive first-year ACG

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Grade Point Average (GPA)

• For second-year ACG only, student must obtain a
  3.0 GPA at the end of the first academic year
• GPA at end of first academic year applies to
  entire second year of eligibility
• Satisfactory academic progress (SAP) requirements
  also apply

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Grade Point Average (GPA)

• If appealed, ineligibility due to SAP or 3.0 GPA
  requirement must be reversed prior to end of
  payment period
• For transfer student, use grades from prior
  institution(s) for accepted coursework

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GPA Requirement

• The first year ends at the end of the term in
  which the student both accrues the credits and
  attends the number of weeks in the Title IV
  academic year
• Academic year 24 credits and 30 weeks of
  instruction
• Semesters are 15 weeks each
• Student A earns 12 credits in fall and 12 credits
  in spring (total of 24 credits)
• Student B earns total of 21 credits in fall
  spring, then 6 credits more in summer