An auditors dream a highly integrated electronic financial aid system

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The following is a presentation prepared for
NASFAAs 2006 Conference in Seattle, WAJuly 5-8,
2006
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An auditors dream a highly integrated
electronic financial aid system!

• Washington State University
• Jennifer Steffen, Asst. Dir, Systems Technology
• Chio Flores, Associate Director

2006, Seattle, WA
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Session Goals

• What is a highly integrated electronic system?
• Benefits
• Accurate, timely processing
• Customization
• Improved counseling efforts and services
• Clean audits and program reviews
• Ease of implementation
• Reporting options

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Session Goals, contd.

• Our system
• Features and characteristics
• Screen views
• Stimulate ideas thoughts

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Washington State University

• Who are we?
• 4 year public, Research 1, land grant institution
• Multi-campus system, including distance degree
  programs
• Main campus located in rural, Pullman, WA
• Total student enrollment 23,544

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Washington State University

• Financial facts for 2005-06
• Delivered 190 million, 32 million in
  scholarships
• 16,488 total recipients
• Other
• Mainframe (Enterprise Server)
• FFELP, Quality Assurance, Experimental Sites,
  Just in Time
• Staffing
• 25 total permanent FTE
• System team consists of 6 FTE
• 6 part-time graduate assistants

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The E-Aid Office 2005

• Key elements to a highly integrated system
• Auditing
• Packaging Awarding
• Cost of attendance
• Satisfactory Academic Progress
• Requirement Tracking
• Funds Management
• Aid delivery
• Processing flow
• NASFAA Monograph, June 2005, No., 16

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History and Philosophy

• 1992 Reauthorization
• Funding allocation and prioritization to create
  an internal systems team
• ITS relations and responsibility shift
• Involvement in key system information groups
• Technology upgrades for OSFA

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ITS Relations Structure

• Development
• OSFA responsible for new projects
• Support
• ITS maintains support of developed programs
• One joint project (i.e., Annual Maintenance)

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System Features

• Nightly Batch Processing
• ISIR data load, budget calc, tracking, SAP,
  NSLDS, awarding, award notification, loan
  certification, loan adjustments, COD and delivery
  of aid
• Daily Real-time Processing
• Budget calc, tracking, awarding, loan adjustments

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System Characteristics

• Inherent design elements
• Audit trails
• Functional, intuitive
• Ability to customize
• Growth, flexibility

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Screen ViewMNTBUD (Basis)
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Screen ViewMNTBUD (Component)
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Screen ViewMNTBUD (Summary)
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Screen ViewMNTTRKG
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Screen ViewMNTTRKG, contd.
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Screen View MNTAWD
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Screen View MNTAWD, contd.
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Screen ViewQRYAUDT
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Screen ViewQRYNOTE
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Screen ViewEXCEPT
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Screen ViewQRYSAP
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Screen ViewQRYFAT
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Screen ViewQRYFAT, contd.
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Benefits of a Home Grown System

• Customization
• Flexibility
• Innovation
• Ease in implementation
• Reporting - capability to interface with other
  systems (mainframe and PC)

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Program Reporting

• QA selection and analysis
• Experimental sites annual report
• Just in Time Pell payment
• FISAP
• State reporting requirements

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Institutional Reporting

• Mainframe data extract for use in MS Access
• Nightly batch processing
• Multiple year data storage
• Varied uses
• Lists by specified criteria
• Scholarship pooling matching
• Statistics
• Quality control

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The Downside.

• Customization comes with a price tag
• Institutional change may have wide impact
• Changes in the industry
• Development versus support
• Standards (i.e., language)

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Our Future..

• Re-write of Award Package system
• Electronic award acceptance
• Web design and content
• Automated scholarship processing and awarding
• Early aid estimator
• Real time aid delivery

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Wrap Up

• Financial aid professionals must position
  themselves to use technological innovations to
  effect positive change in the services provided
  to their students
• What will make a highly integrated system in the
  future?
• NASFAA Monograph, June 2005, No.,
  16

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Thanks for Coming!

• Chio Flores, Associate Director
• Washington State University
• PO Box 641068
• Pullman, WA 99164-1068
• 509-335-9720
• cflores_at_wsu.edu
• Jennifer Steffen, Assistant Director
• of Systems and Technology
• Washington State University
• PO Box 641068
• Pullman, WA 99164-1068
• 509-335-9725
• steffen_at_wsu.edu

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