AwardYear: 1997-1998 EnterChapterNo: 8 EnterChapterTitle: Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program SectionNumber: 2 SectionTitle: Payments to Students PageNumbers: 7-9 MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM AWARD AMOUNTS [[Enrollment for less than an academic year]] [[FSEOG for study abroad]] A school may award a Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) in an amount the school determines a student needs to continue his or her studies for an academic year. A student's minimum allowable award for an academic year may be reduced proportionately if the student is enrolled for less than an academic year. An FSEOG may not be less than $100 and may not exceed $4,000 for a full academic year unless the student has reasonable costs of study abroad that exceed the cost of attendance at the home school. The maximum amount of the FSEOG may be increased from $4,000 to as much as $4,400 for a student participating in a study-abroad program that is approved for credit by the home school. GENERAL DISBURSEMENT REQUIREMENTS [[Revised cash management provisions--34 CFR 668.164]] A school must disburse FSEOG funds to a student or the student's school account in accordance with the revised cash management regulations published in the Federal Register November 29, 1996 and effective July 1, 1997. The new cash management requirements that apply specifically to the campus-based programs are discussed in Chapter 5, Section 3. The new provisions that apply to all SFA programs are discussed in detail in Chapter 3, Section 3. If a student withdraws (officially or unofficially) or is expelled before the first day of classes, the school must return to the FSEOG account any funds that were paid to the student. A student who does not begin class attendance is deemed to have withdrawn. If a student drops out AFTER receiving his or her FSEOG but before the end of the payment period, the school determines the amount of any refund and repayment as discussed in Chapter 3, Section 4. FREQUENCY OF DISBURSEMENTS Beginning July 1, 1997, a school that is awarding an FSEOG for a full academic year must advance a portion of the grant during each payment period, EVEN IF IT DOES NOT USE STANDARD ACADEMIC TERMS. Previously, a school was required to advance a portion of an FSEOG during each payment period only if the school used standard academic terms. A school that did not use standard academic terms was required to advance funds at least twice during the academic year--once at the beginning and once at the midpoint. Thus, for the purpose of the frequency of FSEOG disbursements, the standardization of disbursement rules across the SFA programs represents no change for schools using standard academic terms. In general, to determine the amount of each disbursement, a school will divide the total FSEOG award by the number of payment periods the student will attend. The definition of payment period is in 34 CFR 668.4. For a school that measures progress in credit hours and has academic terms, a payment period is defined as a term (a semester, trimester, quarter, or nonstandard term). The definition of payment period for a school that does not have academic terms or a school that measures progress in clock hours is discussed in detail in Chapter 3, Section 3. A school may advance funds WITHIN a payment period in whatever installments it determines will best meet the student's needs. However, if the total amount awarded a student under the FSEOG Program is less than $501 for an academic year, only one payment is necessary. UNEVEN COSTS/UNEQUAL DISBURSEMENTS If the student incurs uneven costs or receives uneven resources during the year and needs extra funds in a particular payment period, a school may make unequal FSEOG disbursements. The school may also make unequal disbursements under the Federal Perkins Loan Program. For a discussion of uneven costs and unequal disbursements, see Chapter 6, Section 2. LATE DISBURSEMENTS [[Late payment conditions--34 CFR 668.164(g)]] Regulations regarding late disbursements of FSEOGs were removed from 34 CFR 676.16(e), and revised regulations for late disbursements of FSEOGs and Federal Perkins Loans are now in 34 CFR 668.164(g). See the Introduction to this chapter for an explanation of the FSEOG late disbursement requirements. FSEOG OVERAWARDS AND OVERPAYMENTS To determine if a student has received an FSEOG overaward or overpayment, a school must follow the procedures in 34 CFR 673.5. (New Part 673 of 34 CFR, published in the Federal Register November 27, 1996 and effective July 1, 1997, eliminates duplicate provisions and consolidates common provisions of the campus-based programs.) A list of resources and a discussion of overawards and overpayments are included in Chapter 5, Section 2, "Resources and Overawards." COORDINATION WITH BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS GRANTS To determine the amount of an FSEOG for a student who is also eligible for an educational grant from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), a school must coordinate the awards according to the provisions of 34 CFR 673.6, discussed in Chapter 5, Section 2, "Resources and Overawards." |