<p>I am going back to college at age 56. I already have a B.S. degree, so I was only eligible for what FAFSA calls Direct Ford Loans. I received notification that I was matched with a lender and approved for $6500. FAFSA has been great every step of the way.</p>
<p>Now, this brings me to the Houston Community College, a taxpayer supported community college in the Houston area and one of the largest community colleges in the country. It seems like once HCC got my money to distribute to me, the entire concept of “what are the rules and why” went completely out the window. To begin with, they keep changing the release date of the funds (or net refund) as they call it, which is the amount due to be disbursed to me for living expenses , etc,. Then they tell me that Ford Loan recipients cannot get credit at the bookstore. How am I supposed to get my books? Then they missed my 4/18 distribution date as a result of their own mistake, but say they cannot give me the money until next Thursday, because “that is the day they do these things”.</p>
<p>To top it all off, they then cut the amount of my refund by 2/3’s and said I would have to wait an add’l 30 days to get my remaining $3200. Everytime I inquire as to why things are being done a certain way, I am told that FAFSA requires this. When I check with FAFSA and they say this doesn’t make sense and then I get back to HCC, they change their answer and say “it is District Policy”. Nobody can tell me where any of this is written down, if at all.</p>
<p>I practiced law for 30+ years and NONE of this sounds right to me. This is my money and I am the only one charged with the responsibility to repay it, yet HCC has held 100% of it for going on 5 weeks now, all without paying a nickel of interest and even charging a loan processing fee! </p>
<p>Does anyone know where I can start some type of complaint process? It would seem to me to be FAFSA??? Somebody has to make a set of rules for all collegles to follow or there would be no base uniformity in the financial aid system, as there seems to be. I have a funny feeling that some schools like HCC have gotten to the point where they feel they can just make up their own rules as to how they handle MY LOAN MONEY, and I want to challenge this. I just need to know where to start. Seems like FAFSA has a general complaint system,but not sure if this is where to start.</p>
<p>Schools are permitted leeway on how they administratively handle the money. It has to fit in with the way their billing and Bursars departments are set up and they can differ widely. Many schools refuse to release the money until after the drop date of classes, for example, because then there is the hassle of refunds. As for giving you credit at the bookstore, what if something happened and the money did not go through? Colleges do not want to be in the position of being bill collectors. </p>
<p>From what I have gathered, if you ask questions about some of these things, you will be told that it is up to the individual schools as to how they handle the funds once they receive them.</p>
<p>Back a few years ago, I wanted to borrow through Direct Loans (PLUS) and the rules very clearly stated that one did not have to have filed FAFSA. But my son’s school had PLUS go through a servicing source that required it. Too bad, that the government rules did not require FAFSA, they did. And they were the ones who serviced that school. No way around it. So there are wide differences on how schools handle any number of things. I personally don’t think you’ll get to far, as there is no consistency on how billing, refunds, and any number of things with the thousands colleges in this country are handled. From day one, you can pay no app fee or a high one. And it goes right on from there. So when YOUR loan money is finally available to you is going to depend on the individual college’s accounting and disbursement services.</p>
<p>Thanks, but as the old Sunday cartoon goes “There Oughta Be a Law”. You are talking about hundreds of millions of dollars flowing around, all subject to the whim and fancy of any particular schools financial aid administrator. The money comes from the FAFSA system initially - they are the ones who match you with a lender. Each schools authority as to how they administer the loans must come from FAFSA also, in some form or fashion. Wile FAFSA may give the schools broad discretion, I doubt that it is unlimited. However, the schols all act like it is - with each doing what they darn well please. There has to be some kind of base code or rules in CFR that governs this. That is what I am looking for. Thanks for the feedback though.</p>
<p>You can ask Kelsmom as she has worked in financial aid offices. Financial aid officers are considered an extension of FAFSA agents, as they are allowed to correct the FAFSA and make professional judgement about a number of things. But they will usually tell you that the way the Bursar’s office operates is according to university rules and procedures and they don’t have any control or authority over that unless some outright mistake has been made. </p>
<p>Many schools do hold the funds until the drop date, and won’t lend out money for books on these funds. There has been abuse unfortunately, and schools are not collection agencies and do not want to get involved in those processes. They simply do not credit anyone with funds until they are fully there, and with government funds, they have to be returned if you drop courses before a certain date, which means the school has to return the money and try to get it from you at times. It results in a situation they do not want to enter.</p>
<p>jejones…According to HCC’s website, they disburse loans in at least two installments and won’t disburse funds until 30 calendar days after the start of classes. Does the 4/18 date they initially gave you fall anywhere close to the 30 day stated period for disbursement? I’m sorry for the issues you’ve encountered, but it does seem like they have at least some published criteria for disbursement. How closely they’re following them may be a different matter though. Good Luck to you. I hope everything works out.</p>
<p>Schools are bound by federal regulations surrounding disbursement and refund of federal money; these rules are contained in the Blue Book and in the FSA Handbook. Within the regulations, there is leeway for the schools to operate in ways that best suit their organizational needs. You can see a basic explanation here: [Receiving</a> Aid | Federal Student Aid](<a href=“http://studentaid.ed.gov/fafsa/next-steps/receive-aid]Receiving”>http://studentaid.ed.gov/fafsa/next-steps/receive-aid). </p>
<p>I used to work at a school that handled money in a particular way - it was a large school with the ability to fund a loan disbursement even if the money didn’t come in from the feds right away. Refunds were done automatically, and refund checks were automatically processed twice a week. If students dropped out & aid amounts changed, the school had to send the money back to the feds & had to collect it from the students. I now work at a very small school. Everything is manual, and there are many steps involved, each of which must go smoothly (some of it dependent on electronic records, which sometimes reject in the government system - and some of it dependent on government rules regarding minimum and maximum number of days between certain steps in the process). Depending on the day of the week the student requests the loan, it can take up to 2 weeks from loan request to refund check. If I go on vacation, students just have to wait. I am telling you about the two very different systems to illustrate the point that, while there are certain overall rules, there are constraints within individual systems that influence timing … and there are policies at individual schools that protect the school from losing money.</p>
<p>By the way, FAFSA does not “give” or “do” anything. It is a form used to collect information. Direct Loans is a resource students can use to ask questions, if necessary, but they do not have anything to do with refunds - they can just tell you if a loan has been processed. But ultimately, the school is the source of your answers. If you are not happy with the answers you get, schedule an appointment with a manager. Ask (nicely - if you want to be respected, you must give respect) about your situation - tell them that you are frustrated because you really need your money to live, and ask if there is something you can do or should do in the future to make sure you are able to get a refund in a timely manner.</p>
<p>You practiced LAW for 30 plus years…and you have NO savings to purchase your textbooks…and you are seeking a community college degree.</p>
<p>Maybe I’m missing something but this doesn’t make sense to me.</p>
<p>Me either.
A retired attorney, decides to borrow money to pay for not only community college classes but living expenses and is seeking advice how to deal with the bursar?
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