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PARKERSBURG -- West Virginia University at Parkersburg has taken steps to address findings in an audit dealing with how financial aid is distributed to students, including having to pay back some money that was not given out under the correct guidelines.
Following an audit by the U.S. Department of Education into the university's financial aid practices for the academic years of 2017-18 and 2018-19, WVU-P has made changes in better informing students of what is expected of them at the university when they take financial aid, Interim President Torie Jackson said.
The changes also let students know how they remain qualified academically to keep receiving it through the Standards of Academic Progress (SAP), she added.
During the years of 2017-18 and 2018-19, the audit showed a total liability of $3,900,199 in regards to unofficial withdrawals and satisfactory academic progress which Jackson described as students being allowed to have aid that did not meet the SAP requirements.
For a student to remain in compliance with SAP, they need to maintain a 2.0 GPA, have a completion rate of more than 67 percent, and complete their program of study within 150 percent of the required number of hours.
"As a result, the federal government asked the university to reimburse a portion of those funds paid to students," Jackson said.
WVU-P reached a settlement with U.S. Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid to pay back $1,252,735 which the WVU-P Board of Governors recently agreed to pay in one lump sum to be taken from the college reserve funds to resolve the issue.
The university is also stepping up efforts to inform first-year students of these requirements to make sure they understand them through its College 101 classes.
"A student who cannot meet those requirements cannot receive assistance," Jackson said. "Earlier intervention also allows us an opportunity to help those who stumble recover in their warning semester, so they do not find themselves in suspension status."
Faculty also has to keep track of student attendance and participation in courses as part of the process, she said.
The university will also be hiring a financial aid compliance officer to oversee the WVU-P Financial Aid Department and keep the university leadership apprised of any changes on the federal level and to ensure that policies and procedures are current and in compliance with the U.S. Department of Education, Federal Student Aid Department.
"The resolution of this matter that has lingered since 2019 is relieving for WVU-P and a chance for us to move forward knowing that we have corrected the situation," Jackson said.
Brett Dunlap can be reached at bdunlap@newsandsentinel.com