Designing and Implementing a Policy and Procedures Manual

1. NYSFAAA Conference October 20, 2010 Adams Mark Hotel Buffalo, NY Designing and Implementing a Policy and Procedures Manual

2. Provides Documentation of all that you do • Collects Documentation of all practices/policies/procedures in one place • Reference guide • Training manual • Evidence of administrative capabilities • “Because you has to!”(Not a regulation??) • Best Practice • Facilitates continuity if a staff member is not present for any length of time Why

3. 20 USC §1094(a)(3) 34 CFR §668.14(b)(4) 34 CFR §668.53 34 CFR §682.610 References

4. Develop a process to create, review, and update regularly • Creating it the first time is the most difficult part • Involve all staff • Gather what you have • Beg, borrow, steal –Be careful how you steal! • Develop a plan with timetable • Start small with easiest first • Fax procedures vs. R2T4 How

5. Yesterday! • Provide a timeline for stages of completion: • Each person’s individual procedures • Work group completion dates • Draft due date • Comment/Review period • Final draft and review When

6. Everyone • Appoint a project leader • Each member of the staff needs to provide detailed procedures of what they do • Establish working groups • Cross sectional • By function • Inter-office Who

7. Have a hardcopy version available for auditors, training, etc • Electronic Version • Web page? • Office/College server • Access for all staff • Link to web access/forms center Where

8. Create and compile individual task procedures • Work through the NASFAA Policy and Procedure tool or similar format • Mission statements / philosophies • Related school information • Catalog • Handbooks • Web What

9. You only have to do it once, but…. • The manual should be reviewed at least annually • Each staff member needs to be responsible for updating their information whenever there is a change • Have someone responsible for following up on this each year How Often

10. Suggested Content Based on NASFAA Policies and Procedures model www.nasfaa.org/publications/ppmanualindex.htm

11. Introduction • Mission (school/office) • Philosophy or purpose • Purpose of manual • Responsible parties Section 1

12. Administrative organization and office management • School structure • Role of Financial Aid • Inter-office connections • Records management • Sharing of records Section 2

13. Financial Aid programs • Eligibility to participate • Administratively capable • Fiscally responsible • http://ifap.ed.gov/qahome/qaassessments/fiscalmanagement.html • Administered programs • General student aid criteria Section 3

14. Consumer information requirements • List of information disclosures • How disseminated • www.ifap.ed.gov/qahome/qaassessments/consumer information.html • www.ifap.ed.gov/qadocs/ConsumerModule/ConsumerInfoAct6.doc Section 4

15. Applications and forms • School’s applications and forms • Deadlines • Routing procedures • Appeal procedures Section 5

16. File review • Verification policies and procedures • Collection and review of non-federal items • Database matching, reject and c-codes Section 6

17. Student budgets • Budgets and cost of attendance for various student populations • How budgets derived and updated • Additional costs and budget appeals Section 7

18. Awarding and packaging of aid • General packaging philosophies • Student population specific packaging criteria • Original and revised award letter notifications • Effect of appeals and enrollment changes • Enrollment verification • Appeal policies and procedures Section 8

19. Professional judgment • Who may exercise • Circumstances that may be appealed • Appeal procedures • Documentation requirements Section 9

20. Disbursement • Financial Aid role in disbursements and cash management • Cross reference policies and procedures of other offices involved Section 10

21. Section 11 • Satisfactory Academic Progress • Standards • Measurement time frame • Assessment procedures • Treatment of special courses • Remedial • ESL • Transfer • Consortium • Second degree • Incomplete • Withdrawn • Reported • Extenuating Circumstances appeal procedures

22. Return of Title IV funds • Policies • Procedures utilized to perform R2T4 Section 12

23. Institutional refunds • Policies and Procedures for Title IV • Refund policies for state and institutional funds Section 13

24. Fraud • Difference between academic and financial aid fraud with examples • Responsible individuals • Fraud procedures Section 14

25. Audits • Procedures and policies for audit • Federal • State (if applicable) • Institutional • Financial audit requirements Section 15

26. Institutional Policies and Procedures • Any institutional specific policies and procedures not covered above Section 16

27. Appendices • Forms • Correspondence • Resource documents • Other Section 17

28. NASFAA Tools • Introduction and Instructions • Template with sample • Table of contents • Formatting document • IFAP • Quality Assurance Program – Beginning-Intermediate-Advanced tools • www.ifap.ed.gov/qadocs/policiesand procedures/designprocessforpandp.doc • www.ifap.ed.gov/qahome/qaassessments/fiscalmanagment.html • www.ifap.ed.gov/qahome/qaassessments/consumerinformation.html • www.nasfaa.org/publications/ppmanualindex.htm Available Templates

29. What can we “borrow” from each other?

30. Discussion and Questions?