Policies and Procedures Manual

Agency Structure

The Higher Educational Aids Board is a part-time independent policy-making board composed of eleven members appointed to serve at the pleasure of the governor. The Governor appoints one member from the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System; one member from the State Board of the Wisconsin Technical College System; one member who is a trustee of an independent college or university to represent such independent institutions; one student and one financial aid administrator each from within the University of Wisconsin System, Wisconsin Technical College System and independent institutions; one citizen member to represent the general public; and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

The Executive Secretary of HEAB is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the Governor. The Executive Secretary makes policy recommendations to the Board; carries out policy directives from the Governor, Legislature and Board; and is responsible for initiating and carrying out all administrative direction and responsibilities of the agency. The Deputy Executive Secretary serves outside the classified service at the pleasure of the Executive Secretary. All other permanent agency staff are in the classified service. During the 2001-2003 biennium, total agency staff did not exceed 12 individuals. The attached organizational chart of the agency reflects the most recent structure.

Agency Functions

The agency's major operational responsibilities fall into four distinct categories, which include grants/scholarship programs, student loans, reciprocal agreements and tuition capitation programs. First, the administration of the state's student grant/scholarship programs includes the expenditure of over $123,744,300 during 1999-2001. All of these funds were secured from General Purpose Revenue tax funds (except for $1,409,498 in federal funds). The majority of these programs are based upon the federally determined student and/or parental contributions, and hence the financial need of the student recipients. Total awards exceeded 109,000 from over 355,000 Wisconsin undergraduates who applied for assistance last year.

HEAB continues the collection of outstanding loans for the following programs: Independent Student Grant (Loan); Minority Teacher Loan; Nonguaranteed Loan; Nursing Student Stipend Loan; Paul Douglas Scholarship (Loan); Teacher Education Loan; Teacher of the Visually Impaired Loan; and the Wisconsin Health Education Assistance Loan (WHEAL).

In addition to student grants/scholarships and the collection of loans, HEAB's third major function continues to be the administration of the Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity Program in conjunction with the Minnesota Higher Education Services Office. Over 12,000 Wisconsin residents participated in 1999-2001 by enrolling in Minnesota public institutions.

Two tuition capitation agreements comprise the last major operational responsibility of the agency. The Board has tuition capitation agreements with both the Medical College of Wisconsin and the Marquette University School of Dentistry. These agreements provide funds to the two institutions to train Wisconsin residents as physicians and dentists. During 1999-2001, the total appropriation on behalf of the Medical College was $8,210,200 and $2,334,000 for the School of Dentistry.

Present Board Policies

In 1968, a rational policy and framework for Wisconsin's Student Financial Aid Structure was established. Today, the rational and policy frameworks continue to operate. Essentially, there are two broad goals, Universal Educational Opportunity and Educational Diversity or "Freedom of Choice", are looked upon as educational goals which can be achieved, in part, through the financial aid structure.

The first goal is to eliminate financial barriers and thereby ensure an educational opportunity for all Wisconsin citizens commensurate with the desires and abilities regardless of their financial circumstances. This goal does not imply that the same educational experience need be provided to all students but it does require that all students be given an equal opportunity to pursue education consistent with their individual abilities, interests and ambitions. It has been recognized that if society is to achieve the goal of equality of opportunity it must first ensure the equality of educational opportunities. Every citizen has a right to participate in the economic, social, and political aspects of our society. Education provides the opportunity to exercise the right of full participation and must be made equally to all.

The second goal of the Financial Aid Structure is to support existing Educational Diversity by allowing students freedom to choose among the various educational offerings. Educational Diversity implies a wide range of academic environments, programs, and course offerings as well as diversity in sponsorship e.g. public and private. A comprehensive educational environment is one which offers technical training in addition to collegiate programs not of a technical nature; one and two year programs as well as four year programs.

In order to implement the two goals described above, the following operational policies were established to serve as guideposts of the Financial Aid Structure:

1. Financial aid be distributed on the basis of the student's financial need in order to maximize financial resources and thereby insure an educational opportunity to the greatest number of students.

2. Equalization supports diversity and insures freedom of choice by placing all students in the same relative position in relation to governmental instructional subsidies.

3. Awarding for excellence requires that academic excellence be recognized.

4. Shared responsibility recognizes the multiple responsibility of the student, the student's parent(s) or spouse, government, and private sources to contribute to educational costs.

5. Recognizing the unique financial needs of the disadvantaged suggests that it is a responsibility of the financial aid structure to recognize and relate to the unique financial needs of the economically disadvantaged.

6. Maximization of resources emphasizes the need to maximize the contribution of financial aid resources provided by all sources including students, spouses, parents, government, institutions, and private sponsors.

7. Administrative coordination and simplicity recognizes the importance of providing a coordinated, equitable, efficient, and responsive administrative framework designed to implement the other policies enumerated above. Meeting this policy goal and, in addition, fulfilling the legislative mandate of providing an annual review of the State's Financial Aid Structure, suggests that a single governmental body should be responsible for the administrative coordination of the State's financial aid programs.

HEAB Mission Statement

"The Wisconsin Higher Educational Aids Board will work to ensure that all Wisconsin residents are provided equal access to a higher education, to promote diversity on Wisconsin college and university campuses, and to distribute all funds in HEAB administered programs using fair, equitable and timely procedures."

History of the Higher Educational Aids Board

The Higher Educational Aids Board (HEAB) was created by statute on June 30, 1964 as the Commission for Academic Facilities. The original purpose of the board was to distribute federal campus construction funds. In September 1965, the name of the agency was changed by statute to the State Commission for Higher Educational Aids, with the present name being designated two years later. Along with the change of name came the assignment of the first grant and scholarship programs funded by the State. These programs were the outgrowth of the Governor's scholarship and Loan Committee of 1965. The two most important policies followed in the creation and the initial student aid programs were those of student financial need for the determination of the eligibility and award amount, and that aid should be available to Wisconsin residents attending both public and private institutions of higher education. The Board also received responsibility for the State Student Loan Program in 1966 with loans being made directly from State controlled funds.

The first ten years of the Board's existence can be viewed as a period of experimentation as well as growth. The agency became responsible for administering the federal Guaranteed Student Loan Program during this period as the federally funded construction and educational equipment programs came to an end. Many short lived State programs were approved, operated for a few years and then were discontinued, all prior to 1976. They included virtually every concept of student assistance with the exception of employment. There were grants and loans for professional degree students; teacher training stipends and scholarships with repayment provisions if teaching wasn't actually done; and grants for minority and disadvantaged students. In all, eight programs were started and were either discontinued or merged in successor programs.

The effective end to this decade of change came with legislation that, for the most part, followed the findings of a Legislative Council Committee, which was requested by the co-chairs of the Joint Committee on Finance in 1974-75. Programs were ended or merged and the grant structure the Board still administers today was put into place. Two large grant programs tied into the federal financial aid structure were the central feature, flanked by several smaller grant programs targeting additional aid to the most needy. Within a few years, the State Loan Program was removed from State funds and student loans were made from bond issue proceeds. This program grew rapidly along with the parallel increase in private lender loans. By 1980, a second large loan program was created from bond funds, the Wisconsin Health Education Assistance Loan (WHEAL), with assistance going to dental and medical students enrolled in Wisconsin institutions.

The second decade came to an end in 1984 when the agency's Board, sitting in it's capacity as the Board of the Wisconsin Higher Education Corporation (now the Great Lakes Higher Education Corporation), voted to make the corporation independent of both the Higher Educational Aids Board and State control. This was done and the agency was left with grant programs, responsibility for the two loan programs and the size of the staff returned to its 1966 level. Within the next two years, bond authority for the loan programs expired and the agency withdrew from the business of making loans under these programs.

Since 1984, the agency has concentrated on better delivery of student grant aid and collection of the remaining student loans for which it is responsible. In addition, several new aid programs have been added to the agency's mission and the concept of employment and forgiveness of loan repayment has returned. During 1991, the remaining State Student Loans were sold to an Ohio bank and the State's general fund received $34,000,000 during 1991-92 from the sale.

The 1995-97 State Budget would have eliminated the Higher Educational Aids Board and transferred the staff, functions and appropriations to a new Department of Education, effective July 1, 1996. The Education Commission would have assumed the responsibilities of HEAB. The 1995-97 Budget also eliminated the Council on Financial Aids, effective January 1, 1996. The State legislature recreated the HEAB in 1997 and restored the Executive Secretary position.

A new program, the Teacher Education Loan Program, was established in 1997. A provision of the 1997-99 budget expanded HEAB's Tuition Grant program to include students enrolled at tribally controlled colleges in the state. A provision in the 1999-2001 budget created a WHEG program, funded by gaming revenues, for students at tribally controlled colleges and eliminated the Tribal part of the Tuition Grant program. In 2000 the Teacher of the Visually Impaired Loan Program was established. A provision of the 2001-03 budget created the Nursing Student Loan Program.

back to Table of Contents

What Is Financial Aid?

Financial aid is money or other financial assistance available to help a student with the costs associated with attending a post-secondary institution. The amount of financial aid a student receives can be based on many factors, including scholastic achievement. However, financial need is most often the major determining factor. Financial need is the difference between the cost of attendance and the amount a student and his/her family is expected to contribute to the education. Financial Aid is available through a variety of sources, including the federal and state governments, the educational institution, and other public and private sources.

There are four basic types of financial aid:

SCHOLARSHIPS - this is an award given to a student based on achievement in a particular area, such as academic excellence, athletic excellence or outstanding achievement in a specialized area. Scholarships do not need to be repaid.

GRANTS - this is an award given to a student and is most often based on the financial need of the student. Grants do not need to be repaid.

LOANS - this type of aid may be available to both students and parents. In general, student loans are low-interest and repayment does not begin until after the student graduates from school or falls below half-time status. Some loans are available with an interest subsidy. Subsidized loans are usually based on financial need. Unlike other forms of financial aid, loans must be repaid.

STUDENT EMPLOYMENT - this type of aid may be offered to the student based on financial need. The work is usually part-time and limited to a specified number of hours per week. The employment is usually limited to the academic year. Student employment can be either need or non-need based.

Applying For Financial Aid

In order to apply for any financial aid, the student must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The application is available both in paper form and electronically. The paper form can be obtained from any post-secondary institution's financial aid office, a high school guidance counselor or HEAB. The electronic form is available at the FAFSA On the Web site at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. There is no charge for processing the form in either format.

The FAFSA should be completed at least six to eight months before the student expects to begin school. This means the form should be completed as soon as possible after January 1st of the student's senior year in high school. If the person filling out the form is not a high school senior, the application should be completed as soon as possible after January 1st prior to the academic year the student wishes to attend school. The student does not need to know the specific institution he/she wishes to attend. The FAFSA has space for multiple prospective schools to be listed. It can take as long as four to six weeks to process the form (depending on the format used to submit the information), send the information to the institution(s) listed on the form and for the school to inform the student of the financial aid package to be offered.

An individual school may have supplemental forms that need to be completed before financial aid awards can be made. There may be costs associated with the processing of these forms.

Individual schools may have specific filing deadlines that need to be met. The student should check with each institution to learn the deadlines involved. At times, HEAB may run into situations where the number of students who are eligible for aid exceeds the available funds. For this reason, students are urged to submit a FAFSA as soon as possible to ensure maximum eligibility.

If loans are part of the financial aid package, additional forms will need to be filled out by the student.

Filling Out the FAFSA

The FAFSA is used to collect financial information about the student and his/her family. The form needs to be completed for each academic year the student plans to attend school. A valid social security number is needed for the student to complete the FAFSA.

The FAFSA has six sections that need to be completed:

• questions about the student;
• questions about the student's school plans;
• questions about the student's finances;
• questions about the student's household (if applicable);
• questions about the student's parent(s) or spouse (if applicable); and
• the student's college(s).

If the student wishes to complete and submit the FAFSA electronically, the FAFSA website should be accessed. This site is http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. Once at the website, the student should follow the instructions for completing and submitting an electronic FAFSA. A copy of the completed paper form should be made before it is submitted to the processor. This makes it easier to make sure the form has been processed correctly.

A completed paper FAFSA should be sent to:

Federal Student Aid Programs
P.O. Box 4001
Mt. Vernon, IL 62864-8601

Once the FAFSA is processed, the student will receive a Student Aid Report (SAR). The SAR contains a summary of the information submitted on the FAFSA. The student should review the SAR for accuracy. If corrections are needed, they should be made and the SAR returned to the processor. If the FAFSA was completed and submitted electronically, the student may make any corrections on-line by returning to the FAFSA on the Web web-site.

In Wisconsin, information on the FAFSA is forwarded to both HEAB (if the student indicates Wisconsin as the student's state of residence) and the institutions indicated on the form. This information is used in calculating eligibility for state aid, federal aid and school based aid.

Need Calculation and Expected Family Contribution

A student's need is calculated by taking the cost of attending the school and subtracting the expected family contribution.

The cost of attending school is determined by the individual school. It is done by estimating the costs of the following expenses:

• tuition and fees;
• books and supplies;
• room and board;
• transportation; and
• miscellaneous personal expenses.

Other expenses that may be included are:

• loan fees (origination and insurance fees that are part of the Federal Family Education Loan and Direct Loan programs);
• child or dependent care costs;
• study abroad;
• cooperative education employment costs; and
• expenses related to a disability (if not covered by another agency).

The amount the student and his/her parent(s) are expected to pay is the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). A contributed share is expected from the student and/or his/her parent(s). Both income and assets are taken into account when calculating EFC. Examples of assets can include:

• cash;
• savings;
• other bank accounts;
• equity in an investment property; and
• equity in a business.

There is no contribution expected from a student's parent(s) if the student is considered "independent". A student is considered independent if he/she is:

• at least 24 years old; or
• an orphan or ward of the court (until 18 years old); or
• veteran of the military; or
• supporting his/her own children; or
• married; or
• attending graduate or professional school.

If a student is determined to be dependent, the amount the family is expected to contribute is calculated using a formula established by the federal government. The formula used is the same no matter what school is chosen. The formula takes into account that the family needs income to cover necessary expenses of everyday living. These expenses include food, housing, clothing, taxes, insurance and other necessities. The formula calculates the contribution minus these expenses. As noted above, a family's assets are used in the calculation of EFC. The calculation recognizes the fact that significant portions of a family's assets need to be set aside for retirement. However, some of these assets may be used in determining EFC if it is determined that the assets exceed the amount needed for retirement. Also included in the calculation is the number of students attending college from the family.

In addition to the family contribution, the student is expected to contribute to his or her own education. The student is expected to contribute at a much higher level than the family. In the dependent student's case, the contribution is 50 percent of income (after taxes and allowances) and 35 percent of other assets.

There is a similar federally established formula for calculating the contribution of an independent student.

At times, the school can use "professional judgement" if it is determined that the EFC calculation does not truly reflect the current financial situation of the family. "Professional judgement" is used by the school's financial aid office. It is used if the financial aid professional feels that there are unusual circumstances that are not adequately addressed by the EFC formula. If professional judgement is used, there must be complete and accurate documentation of what was done and the reasons for the change. The school and the student should be aware that professional judgement does not transfer from one school to another.

Once the cost of education and the EFC are known, the school can then proceed in putting together a financial aid package for the student. The package can be made up of a combination of federal, state and school based aid available.

Calculations and Formula

Here is an EXAMPLE of a determination of need. Let's say the cost for a year's attendance for living on-campus at a school is $9,981. The student in question has been classified as a dependent.

The cost is broken down like this:

Undergraduate Tuition	$3,405
Housing	$2,778
Meals	$1,948
Books and Supplies	$600
Transportation	$250
Personal Expenses	$1,000
TOTAL	$9,981

The federal formula has calculated an EFC of $2,300. This includes $600 that is expected from the student.

Cost of Education	$9,981
Estimated Family Contribution	- $2,300
FINANCIAL NEED	= $7,681

The $7,681 is the amount that the school would use in putting together a need-based financial aid package for the student.

This is the formula used to calculate family contribution:

PARENTAL CONTRIBUTION

1. Parent's total income (taxable and untaxed)

   Minus federal income tax (actual amount paid)
   Minus state and local taxes (standard allowance)
   Minus Social Security (FICA) taxes (actual amount paid)
   Minus Income Protection Allowance
   Minus Employment Expense Allowance (if both parents work or if the parent is a single head of household who works)

   = Available income

2. Net worth of assets (value minus debts on assets)

   Minus Education Savings and Asset Protection Allowance

   = Discretionary net worth

   x Asset conversion rate

   = Contribution from assets

3. Available income

   + Contribution from assets

   x Assessment percentage

   = Total parental contribution

4. Total parental contribution

   Divided by number in college

   = Parental contribution for student

STUDENT CONTRIBUTION (Dependent Student)

1. Total income (taxable and untaxed)

   Minus federal income tax (actual amount paid)
   Minus state and local tax (standard allowance)
   Minus Social Security (FICA) taxes (actual amount paid)
   Minus Income Protection Allowance

   = Available income

   x .50

   = Contribution from income

2. Total net assets

   x .35

   = Student's contribution from assets

3. Student contribution from income

   + Student contribution from assets

   = Student contribution

EXPECTED FAMILY CONTRIBUTION

Parental contribution

+ Student contribution

= Expected Family Contribution

Federal and State of Wisconsin Financial Aid Programs

There are a number of financial aid opportunities available through federal and State of Wisconsin programs.

The Title IV federal programs include:

• Federal Pell Grants

• Federal Stafford Loans (direct or through private lender)
  Subsidized or Unsubsidized

• Federal PLUS Loans (direct or through private lender)

• Campus Based Programs:
  Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants
  Work-study
  Perkins Loans

• Tax Credits:
  Hope Tax Credit
  Lifetime Learning Tax Credit

NOTE: The above listing includes Title IV programs only. Some schools participate in additional federal programs under Title VII.

State of Wisconsin programs include:

• Academic Excellence Scholarship

• Handicapped Student Grant

• Indian Student Assistance Grant

• Marquette Dental School Capitation Program

• Medical College of Wisconsin Capitation Program

• Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity Program

• Minority Retention Grant

• Minority Teacher Loan

• Nursing Student Loan

• Talent Incentive Program Grant

• Teacher Education Loan

• Teacher of the Visually Impaired Loan

• Wisconsin Higher Education Grant

• Wisconsin Tuition Grant

back to Table of Contents

General Eligibility Provisions

HEAB has eligibility requirements for schools that wish to participate in the programs it administers. A school must meet these requirements in order for its students to be able to receive grants, scholarships or loans administered by HEAB.

The requirements are:

• the school must have proof of state and federal non-profit tax status;
• the school must be accredited through a federally accepted accrediting agency (HEAB recognizes the Higher Learning Commission of the Northcentral Association of Colleges and Schools);
• the school must be a degree-granting institution;
• the school must be Wisconsin based;
• the school must have an approved Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy in place;
• the school must be eligible to participate in federal financial aid programs; and
• the school must agree to follow all statutes, rules, policies and procedures outlined for HEAB programs.

Distance Learning / Alternative Approaches

Distance Learning is a new and sometimes confusing aspect of financial aid. HEAB's rules regarding distance learning and eligibility for state funded financial aid are relatively simple:

The student must:

1. be enrolled in a course of study that is at least one year in length and leads to a recognized certificate or the course is part of a program leading to a degree; and

2. be enrolled in a participating Wisconsin school; and

3. meet all of the eligibility requirements for the individual aid program, including full or part-time enrollment based on a 9 month academic year.

The school must:

1. be a participating Wisconsin school; and

2. have at least 50% of its programs leading to a degree or certificate; and

3. have telecommunications courses account for less than 50% of the courses offered at the school.

As the use of distance learning increases in the future, HEAB will continue to monitor it's policies and procedures to ensure that they remain consistent with other parts of the financial aid process.

School Closings

If a participating school plans to close, closes or stops providing instruction (for a reason other than normal vacation periods or as a result of a natural disaster that directly affects the school or its student), the school must immediately contact HEAB and comply with the following requirements:

1. Within 45 days of the effective ending date of participation, submit to HEAB a dated letter of engagement for an audit by an independent public accountant of all HEAB program funds received. The completed audit report must be submitted to HEAB within 45 days after the date of the letter of engagement.

2. Report to HEAB on the arrangements for retaining and storing (for the remainder of the appropriate storage period) all records concerning the school's management of the HEAB programs. Arrangements pertaining to the retention and storage of HEAB related documents must be deemed satisfactory by HEAB. PLEASE NOTE: All HEAB related documents must be retained for at least seven (7) years.

3. Refund student's unearned HEAB program funds.

Schools that close must refund to HEAB or, following specific written instructions from HEAB, otherwise distribute any unexpended HEAB program funds it has received.

back to Table of Contents

General Eligibility Provisions

In order to receive HEAB funds, the student must meet Wisconsin statutory requirements and the federal admissions standards. Note: For the eligibility requirements of individual programs, please refer to the section for that program.

The student must:

1. Be a bona-fide Wisconsin resident per Wisconsin Statute 36.27(2); and

2. Be a citizen of the United States or an eligible noncitizen per federal student financial aid criteria; and

3. Have a high school diploma or its recognized equivalent. Recognized equivalents include the General Education Development (GED) or High School Equivalency Diploma (HSED).

4. A student who is delinquent in repaying and/or who owes state funds to HEAB should not be submitted for vouchering until the past due funds have been repaid or returned.

In order for a student studying abroad to be eligible for HEAB administered funds, the student must be considered to be enrolled at a participating Wisconsin school. For example, the participating school's registrar must consider the student to be a student at that school, and the student must be billed through the Business or Bursar's office as a registered student.

While HEAB follows the federal eligibility guidelines in almost all cases, there are three important situations where HEAB considers a student eligible for state aid even though the student would be ineligible for federal aid. The three situations are:

1. a drug-related conviction;
2. incarceration; and
3. in default on a federally guaranteed student loan.

There is nothing in current state statutes or current state administrative code that would prohibit students who are in one or more of these situations from receiving state aid.

The Talent Incentive Program (TIP) Grant is funded, in part, by federal funds. This means that, in order for the student to be eligible for a TIP grant, the student must meet the federal eligibility requirements listed above, with the exception of #2. An incarcerated student could still be eligible for a TIP grant if the student met all of the other eligibility requirements.

Child Support Delinquency

Per state statutory requirements, HEAB may not award certain types of aid to a student if HEAB receives certification from the Department of Workforce Development, Bureau of Child Support (BCS), that the student is delinquent in child support.

The programs affected by this statute are:

Academic Excellence Scholarship
Handicapped Student Grant
Indian Student Assistance Grant
Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity Program
Minority Retention Grant
Talent Incentive Program Grant
Wisconsin Higher Education Grant
Wisconsin Tuition Grant

Procedure

1. Every week HEAB receives a report from the BCS. This report is called the "Lien Docket". Each Federal Data File that is loaded on a daily basis is run against the most recent BCS report. If the student being loaded from the Federal Data File is on the BCS report, the student's record is loaded with a delinquency edit. This means the student is delinquent and cannot receive most types of HEAB assistance.

2. The school is informed of a student's delinquency on the Notification Report. Field #8 is labeled "Child Suprt". If "1" appears in this field the student is not eligible to receive state aid.

3. It is the student's responsibility to clear the delinquency. This should be done by working with the Child Support Office in the county or counties where the delinquency has occurred. Two of the options available to the student are clearing the delinquency or entering into an Alternate Payment Plan (APP).

4. If the delinquency is cleared, the Child Support Office will report this information to the BCS. The BCS will then reflect this information in their next report to HEAB. HEAB will then notify the school via the Notification Report.

5. The APP is a payment plan the delinquent payer (student) enters into with the child support agency. The purpose of the plan is to prevent enforcement actions from being taken against the delinquent payer. Once an APP has been negotiated and signed, the Bureau of Child Support will notify HEAB.

6. Once HEAB receives this notification, it will manually override the delinquency status on the Notification Report. The "1" status will be removed and the student will then be eligible for vouchering.

7. If a school has any questions, it should call HEAB at (608) 267-2206 and ask for assistance.

Selective Service Registration

All programs administered by the Wisconsin Higher Educational Aids Board (HEAB) have a statutory requirement that eligible recipients be registered with the Selective Service Administration (SSA). This procedure ensures that the Selective Service requirement is applied in a uniform and equitable fashion.

Procedure

For the Handicapped Student Grant, Indian Student Assistance Grant, Minority Retention Grant, Talent Incentive Program Grant, Teacher of the Visually Impaired Loan Program, Wisconsin Higher Education Grant and the Wisconsin Tuition Grant:

Beginning with the 2006-07 academic year, HEAB is no longer rejecting student records based on the Selective Service registration flags on the federal ISIR. Therefore, it is no longer necessary to submit Selective Service overrides through File Maintenance. (The Selective Service registration requirement is included in the year-end audit guidelines.)

1. A federal file of the Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR) is downloaded by HEAB on a daily basis. This file contains information from the FAFSA filed by Wisconsin residents who are applying for financial aid. One piece of information is the status of FAFSA filers required to register with the SSA.

2. A merged file of the downloaded ISIR files is created from the federal file. This merged file is run against the HEAB edits program.

3. If the FAFSA filer is a female, the file will pass on to award calculation.

4. If the FAFSA filer is male, the file will be edited to determine if the filer is registered with the SSA.

5. If the ISIR file shows that the filer is either registered with the SSA, is not required to register and/or is temporarily exempt, the file will pass on to award calculation.

6. If the ISIR file shows that the filer is not registered and is not temporarily exempt, the file will be stopped and placed on an error list. Placement on the list indicates that the student is not eligible to receive aid from HEAB administered programs.

7. Error reports are sent to all participating colleges and universities. It is the school's responsibility to collect and maintain acceptable documentation from the SSA needed to make the filer eligible for aid. The school's financial aid administrator should follow the SSA related criteria used for federal student aid to determine acceptable documentation for program's administered by HEAB.

8. Verification that acceptable SSA documentation was received, reviewed and approved by the school should be kept on file by the school. Information to update a student's record must be sent to HEAB via file maintenance.

9. When file maintenance is received and reviewed by HEAB, and indicates that acceptable SSA documentation was received, the filer's record will be removed from the error list and will pass to award calculation.

10. If verification of acceptable documentation is not received from the school, the filer will remain ineligible to receive aid from HEAB administered programs.

For the Academic Excellence Scholarship:

1. All incoming, first-time nominees for the Academic Excellence Scholarship (AES) will be manually reviewed to determine the gender of the nominee. This determination will be based on information supplied by the high school making the nomination.

2. If the nominee is female, no SSA check is required.

3. If the nominee is male, the nominee will be checked for SSA registration using the SSA website.

4. If the nominee is registered with the SSA and/or is temporarily exempt, the nominee will be cleared for further consideration.

5. If the nominee is not registered and is not temporarily exempt, the nomination approval process will be stopped.

6. The school and the nominee will be notified of the situation. It is the nominee's responsibility to provide acceptable documentation needed to make the nominee eligible for the AES. An example of acceptable documentation is a letter from the SSA showing either that the nominee is registered or is temporarily exempt.

7. When acceptable documentation is received, reviewed and approved, the nominee will be cleared for further consideration.

8. If acceptable documentation is not received, the nominee will be made ineligible for the AES.

9. If the nominee is temporarily exempt because he is not yet 18 at the time of nomination, the nominee will be placed on a list. This list will be checked before the start of the 2nd academic year of the award, to determine if the recipient has registered with SSA after his 18th birthday.

10. If the nominee has registered, he will remain eligible for the AES based on his continued eligibility under other criteria.

11. If the recipient has not registered, he will not be eligible to continue to receive the AES.

12. The recipient will be notified of this decision. It is the recipient's responsibility to provide acceptable documentation needed to make the recipient eligible for AES. An example of acceptable documentation is a letter from the SSA showing that the filer is registered.

13. When acceptable documentation is received, reviewed and approved, the recipient will regain eligibility for the AES based on his eligibility under other criteria.

For the Marquette University School of Dentistry and Medical College of Wisconsin Capitation Programs:

1. All incoming, first-time nominees for the capitation programs will be manually reviewed to determine the gender of the nominee. This determination will be made based on information supplied by the university and college.

2. If the nominee is female, no SSA check is required.

3. If the nominee is male, the nominee will be checked for SSA registration using the SSA website.

4. If the nominee is registered with the SSA, not required to register or is temporarily exempt, the nominee will be cleared for further consideration.

5. If the nominee is not registered or is not temporarily exempt, the nomination approval process will be stopped.

6. The school will be notified of the situation. It is the school's responsibility, in conjunction with the nominee, to provide acceptable documentation needed to make the nominee eligible for capitation. An example of acceptable documentation is a letter from the SSA showing either that the nominee is registered, not required to register or is temporarily exempt.

7. When acceptable documentation is received, reviewed and approved, the nominee will be cleared for further consideration.

8. If acceptable documentation is not received, the nominee will be ineligible for the capitation program.

For the Teacher Education Loan:

1. All incoming, first-time applicants for the Teacher Education Loan will be manually reviewed to determine the gender of the applicant. This determination will be made based on information supplied by the applicant.

2. If the applicant is female, no SSA check is required.

3. If the applicant is male, the applicant will be checked for SSA registration using the SSA website.

4. If the applicant is registered with the SSA, not required to register or is temporarily exempt, the applicant will be cleared for further consideration.

5. If the applicant is not registered or is not temporarily exempt, the application approval process will be stopped.

6. The applicant and the Milwaukee Teacher Education Center will be notified of the situation. It is the applicant's responsibility to provide acceptable documentation needed to make the applicant eligible for the loan. An example of acceptable documentation is a letter from the SSA showing either that the applicant is registered, not required to register or is temporarily exempt.

7. When acceptable documentation is received, reviewed and approved, the applicant will be cleared for further consideration.

8. If acceptable documentation is not received, the applicant will be ineligible for the Teacher Education Loan.

For the Minnesota/Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity Program:

1. All incoming, first-time applicants for the Minnesota/Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity Program will be manually reviewed to determine the gender of the applicant. This determination will be made based on information supplied by the applicant.

2. If the applicant is female, no SSA check is required.

3. If the applicant is male, the applicant will be checked for SSA registration using the SSA website.

4. If the applicant is registered with the SSA and/or is temporarily exempt, the applicant will be cleared for further consideration.

5. If the applicant is not registered and is not temporarily exempt, the application approval process will be stopped.

6. The applicant will be notified of the situation. It is the applicant's responsibility to provide acceptable documentation needed to make the applicant eligible for reciprocity. An example of acceptable documentation is a letter from the SSA showing either that the applicant is registered or is temporarily exempt.

7. When acceptable documentation is received, reviewed and approved, the applicant will be cleared for further consideration.

8. If acceptable documentation is not received, the applicant will be made ineligible for reciprocity.

9. If the applicant is temporarily exempt because he is not yet 18 at the time of application, the applicant will be placed on a list. This list will be checked before the start of the 2nd academic year of reciprocity, to determine if the recipient has registered with SSA after his 18th birthday.

10. If the applicant has registered, he will remain eligible for reciprocity based on his continued eligibility under other criteria.

11. If the applicant has not registered, he will not be eligible to continue to receive reciprocity.

12. The applicant will be notified of this decision. It is the applicant's responsibility to provide acceptable documentation needed to make the applicant eligible for reciprocity. An example of acceptable documentation is a letter from the SSA showing that the filer is registered.

13. When acceptable documentation is received, reviewed and approved, the applicant will regain eligibility for reciprocity based on his eligibility under other criteria.

For the Minority Teacher Loan Program:

1. All incoming, first-time nominees for the Minority Teacher Loan will be manually reviewed to determine the gender of the nominee. This determination will be made based on information supplied by the college or university.

2. If the nominee is female, no SSA check is required.

3. If the nominee is male, the school shall indicate that acceptable documentation of SSA is on file at the school with the other nomination information. No male student should be forwarded to HEAB for consideration if the school does not have acceptable documentation.

4. When verification of acceptable documentation is received with the application, HEAB will pass the nomination to award calculation.

5. If verification of acceptable documentation is not received with the nomination, the process will stop. The school will be notified via e-mail that verification of acceptable documentation was not received with the nomination.

6. When verification of acceptable documentation is received (either by updating the student's record with the federal processor or submitting file maintenance to HEAB) and approved by HEAB, the nomination will continue through the awarding process.

7. If verification of acceptable documentation is not received, the nominee will remain ineligible to receive the Minority Teacher Loan.

For the Nursing Student Loan:

1. All incoming first-time nominees for the Nursing Student Loan will be manually reviewed to determine the gender of the nominee. This determination will be made based on information supplied by the college or university.

2. If the nominee is female, no SSA check is required.

3. If the nominee is male, the school shall indicate that acceptable documentation of SSA is on file at the school with the other nomination information. No male student should be forwarded to HEAB for consideration if the school does not have acceptable documentation.

4. If verification of acceptable documentation is not received with the nomination, the process will stop. The school will be notified via e-mail that verification of acceptable documentation was not received with the nomination.

5. When verification of acceptable documentation is received (either by updating the student's record with the federal processor or submitting file maintenance to HEAB), the nomination will continue through the awarding process.

6. If verification of acceptable documentation is not received, the nominee will remain ineligible to receive the Nursing Student Loan.

EdVest

Per statutory requirement, funds withdrawn from an EdVest account cannot be used when calculating eligibility for state funds. This procedure ensures that the EdVest requirement is applied in a uniform and equitable fashion.

Procedure:

1. Each year, HEAB receives a file from Office of the State Treasurer prior to the beginning of the new academic year. This file contains information regarding all EdVest accounts that will be active for the upcoming academic year.

2. HEAB uses this file to identify FAFSA filers who may have reported EdVest funds among assets while completing the FAFSA.

3. When the filers have been identified, a letter will be sent to all filers. The letter will explain the Wisconsin law regarding EdVest. It will also ask the filers to identify where the EdVest funds where reported on the FAFSA.

4. Once the information requested is received from the filer, HEAB will remove the EdVest funds and re-calculate the EFC.

5. HEAB will use the re-calculated EFC to determine what, if any, state funding the filer may be eligible to receive.

6. If the re-calculation results in a new or changed award, the newly calculated EFC and the award calculation will be reported to the appropriate school and the student.

7. The school may then use this information to voucher funds, if the student is eligible.

8. If the re-calculation does not result in a new or changed award, no updated information will be sent to the appropriate school. A letter will be sent to the student explaining the re-calculation did not result in a new or changed award.

9. If no response is received from the letter sent in #3, no further action will be taken.

Residency

Wisconsin residency is a uniform requirement throughout all of the programs that HEAB administers. Only State of Wisconsin residents are eligible to receive aid disbursed by HEAB. State Statute 36.27 (Appendix #1) specifies Wisconsin residency criteria that a student must meet in order to be considered eligible for programs administered by HEAB.

Following is a breakdown of the Wisconsin statutes outlining residency criteria according to the type of student: adult, minor or refugee. It is recommended that schools use the following criteria in reviewing residency for students.

Residency Status By Type of Student

In determining bona fide Wisconsin residence at the beginning of a semester or session and for the preceding 12 months the intent of the student (or parent/guardian) to establish and maintain a permanent home in Wisconsin is the main consideration. Intent may be demonstrated or disproved by factors including (but not limited to):

1. timely filing of a Wisconsin income tax return of a type that only full-year Wisconsin residents can file; or

2. voter registration in Wisconsin; or

3. motor vehicle registration in Wisconsin; or

4. possession of a Wisconsin operator's license; or

5. place of employment; or

6. self-support; or

7. involvement in community activities in Wisconsin; or

8. physical presence in Wisconsin for at least 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

9. a visa that permits indefinite residence in the United States, if the student is not a citizen of the United States.

NOTE: A student who enters and remains in Wisconsin principally to obtain an education is presumed to continue to reside outside Wisconsin and such presumption continues in effect until rebutted by clear and convincing evidence of bona fide residency.

Adult Student

An adult student is considered a resident if:

1. the student has been a bona fide resident of Wisconsin for 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

2. the student is a dependent of his/her parents under 26 USC 152 (a), if one or both of the parents have been bona fide residents of Wisconsin for at least 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

3. the student has been employed as a migrant worker in Wisconsin for at least 2 months of each year for 3 of the 5 years preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or the student has been employed as a migrant worker in Wisconsin for at least 3 months of each year for 2 of the 5 years preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or the student's parent or legal guardian has been so employed while the student was a minor; or

4. the student is a graduate of a Wisconsin high school and the parents are bona fide residents of Wisconsin for 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

5. the student is employed full-time in Wisconsin, was relocated to Wisconsin by his/her current employer or moved to Wisconsin for employment purposes and accepted his/her current employment before applying for admission to an institution or center and before moving provided the student demonstrates an intent to establish and maintain a permanent home in Wisconsin; or

6. the student is the spouse of a person who meets the criteria in #5; or

7. the student is a non-resident member of the armed forces or engaged in alternative service and is stationed in Wisconsin on active duty; or

8. The student is the spouse of a person who meets the criteria in #7; or

9. the student is a member of the armed forces who resides in Wisconsin and is stationed at a federal military installation located within 90 miles of the borders of Wisconsin; or

10. The student is the spouse of a person who meets the criteria in #9.

Minor Student

A minor student is considered a resident if:

1. One or both of the student's parents have been bona fide residents of Wisconsin for at least 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

2. the student has resided substantially in Wisconsin during the years of minority and at least 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

3. the student is under guardianship in Wisconsin pursuant to ch. 48 or 880 whose legal guardian has been a legal resident of Wisconsin for at least 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

4. the student's parent or legal guardian has been employed as a migrant worker in Wisconsin for at least 2 months of each year for 3 of the 5 years preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or the student's parent or legal guardian has been employed as a migrant worker in Wisconsin for at least 3 months of each year for 2 of the 5 years preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

5. the student is a graduate of a Wisconsin high school and the parents are bona fide residents of Wisconsin for 12 months preceding the beginning of a semester or session for which the student registers; or

6. the student's parent was relocated to Wisconsin by his/her current employer or moved to Wisconsin for employment purposes and accepted his/her current employment before the student applied for admission to an institution or center and before moving provided the student's parent demonstrates an intent to establish and maintain a permanent home in Wisconsin; or

7. the student's parent is a non-resident member of the armed forces or engaged in alternative service and is stationed in Wisconsin on active duty; or

8. the student's parent is a member of the armed forces who resides in Wisconsin and is stationed at a federal military installation located within 90 miles of the borders of Wisconsin.

Refugee Student

A refugee student is considered a resident if:

The student is a refugee, as defined under 8 USC 1101 (a) (42), who moved to Wisconsin immediately upon arrival in the United States and who has resided in Wisconsin continuously since then, IF the student demonstrates an intent to establish and maintain a permanent home in Wisconsin.

Residency Review Process for Grant and Scholarship Programs

Following is the current process HEAB uses to determine Wisconsin residency for a student:

1. Initial determination is made by the HEAB mainframe computer programs based on information received from the federal government on the ISIR.

   A dependent student is considered a non-resident if:

   The student's permanent address, the student's legal address, or the supporting (as listed on the FAFSA) parent's address indicates an out-of-state address, as reported on the FAFSA.

   An independent student is considered a non-resident if:

   The permanent or legal state of residence is out-of-state, as reported on the FAFSA.

   Both dependent and independent students are considered non-residents if:

   The permanent or legal state of residence is left blank on the FAFSA.

2. Identified non-resident students are reported to schools on the Graduate, Non-resident Error Report.

3. The school is responsible for the initial review of a student who appears on the error report. The school should identify students where the school's residency status differs from the status reported by HEAB.

4. When a student with a differing residency status has been identified, the school should contact HEAB. The school should e-mail the program coordinator at HEAB verifying that the school has the appropriate documentation on file to show that the student should be considered a Wisconsin resident.

5. If the financial aid administrator has a question about the students’ residency, the administrator may contact the HEAB grant coordinator for a determination. If it remains unclear as to whether or not a student meets the statutory requirements for state residency, the financial aid administrator must request that the student complete a "Residency Determination Form" (Appendix #2). Once completed, the student must submit the "Residency Determination Form" to the financial aid administrator for a review and determination.

6. The student is given the opportunity to appeal a denial to the Executive Secretary if the determination is made by HEAB.

7. If the Executive Secretary approves residency appeal, the Executive Secretary contacts both the student and the school by letter or e-mail.

8. If the Executive Secretary upholds the denial, the Executive Secretary contacts both the student and the school by letter or e-mail.

9. The decision of the Executive Secretary is final.

PLEASE NOTE: At any point in this process, HEAB may ask for an opinion from the Attorney General's office regarding legal interpretation of Wisconsin statutes and/or Wisconsin Administrative Code.

Effects of Professional Judgement Adjustment

As mentioned previously, a change to a student's EFC based on professional judgement does not transfer from one school to another. When a student transfers from one school to another between terms, the second school may re-calculate the student's EFC if the first school used professional judgement in determining the EFC.

HEAB has a policy regarding the awarding of funds to a student that is in this situation. It is HEAB's policy to honor the professional judgement and calculations of each school. When necessary a manual adjustment is made to allow a student to receive additional funds.

Here is an example:

A school uses professional judgement and calculates an EFC for a student. This makes the student eligible for a WHEG of $1000. The school submits a voucher request to HEAB and the student receives $500 for the first semester. The student then transfers to a different school for the second semester. The second school recalculates the student's EFC. This makes the student eligible for a WHEG of only $400. The second school submits a voucher request to HEAB for $200. While technically the student, based on the second school's EFC calculation, has already received more ($500) in the first semester than he/she is eligible for, HEAB will make a manual adjustment to the system in order to award the student the $200.

If the reverse situation occurs (a higher eligibility at the second school) HEAB will voucher for half of the higher total eligibility.

Outside Funding Sources

At times, a student may be eligible for outside sources of funding. These outside funding sources may give the student up to the equivalent of the cost of tuition, fees, books, supplies and room & board.

Please note that a student who may be eligible for this type of outside funding may also be eligible for programs administered by HEAB as long as the student meets the program eligibility criteria and will not be overawarded.

back to Table of Contents

Academic Excellence Scholarship (AES)

Overview

This program provides scholarships to selected 12th grade students who have the highest grade point average in each public and private school in the state. The number of scholarships for which each high school is eligible is based on the total student enrollment (grades 9-12). The scholarships are awarded based on the following formula:

Over 2,500 students	six scholarships
2,000-2,499 students	five scholarships
1,500-1,999 students	four scholarships
1,000-1,499 students	three scholarships
500-999 students	two scholarships
80-499 students	one scholarship
Less than 80 students	no more than 10 scholarships, in aggregate.

Students receive a maximum of $2,250 per year to be applied towards tuition. Half of the scholarship is funded by the state and half by the school. Tuition and fees in excess of $2,250 is the responsibility of the student. Students may attend any UW, private or Technical school in Wisconsin with an AES.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month academic period.

Eligibility

In order to receive this scholarship, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating UW, Wisconsin Technical College or private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the State by September 30th of the academic year following the year in which the student graduated from high school;

2. be enrolled on a full-time basis (as determined by the school) in a degree, certificate, or 2-year vocational diploma program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual); and

5. maintain at least a 3.000 cumulative grade point average.

6. No student is eligible for more than four years (or eight semesters) at a UW or private, non-profit post-secondary institution. No student is eligible for more than three years (or six semesters) at a Wisconsin Technical College.

Application Process

1. Schools With Total Enrollments Greater Than 80 Students:
   1. The school board or governing board at each public or private high school makes a selection.

   2. The school board or governing board is required to name the 12th grade student with the highest grade point average, as normally determined by the high school. This selection must be made by February 15th.

   3. If two or more students in the same high school have the same grade point average, the faculty is required to select the student to receive the scholarship and designate the other student as the alternate. If the high school uses a weighted grading system, the student with the next highest GPA may be designated as an alternate.

   4. The school forwards the name of the selected student to HEAB.

   5. HEAB informs the student of his/her selection and supplies information regarding the scholarship and how to use it. (Appendix #3)

   6. HEAB administrative rules require each high school to have a written policy that describes their grading system, tie-breaking procedures and criteria used to determine and rank scholars.

   7. If the student does not use the scholarship by September 30th following the high school graduation, the scholarship is awarded to the alternate.

2. Schools With Total Enrollments Less than 80 Students:
   1. The 10 students from public or private high schools with the highest grade point averages are selected, per HEAB administrative rules.

   2. If there is a tie, students are chosen based on their ACT or SAT scores and then on the quality and content of letters submitted by the students, listing the reasons they feel qualified to receive the scholarship.

3. HEAB processes the information for each recipient.

4. Each school that has AES recipients will receive a Notification Report that lists only AES recipients. This report is scheduled to be sent out monthly in August and September, and as needed at other times of the year.

5. Once this special Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

6. In late May, HEAB will send a Verification Report (G.P.A., credits taken, etc.) to each school with AES student(s). The school must complete the report and return it to HEAB as soon as possible. This report is available in paper or electronic formats.

7. If, based on the report, the student continues to meet eligibility requirements (see "Eligibility" above for specific criteria), the AES is automatically renewed for the next academic year.

8. If, based on the report, the student does not meet eligibility requirements, the student is informed by HEAB of the loss of the AES by letter (Appendix #4). The school is sent a copy of the letter.

AES Notification Report

There is a separate notification report for the Academic Excellence Scholarship program. This report is sent to all participating institutions that have an enrolled AES student. The report is scheduled to be sent out regularly during the fall-spring-summer school year and monthly during July and August. The AES Notification Report is provided in two formats: a printable report file and a flat text file.

There are 9 fields on the Printable AES Notification Report. Following is a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use the AES Notification Report.

1. LNAME

   The student's last name.

2. FNAME

   The student's first name.

3. SSN

   The student's social security number.

4. YRIN

   The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other undergraduate status

5. AWARD

   The amount of the student's AES award that HEAB provides for the year. The school is responsible for the same amount.

   This is the field that is used for vouchering. You can request half of the amount shown in this field for each semester of the current academic year. Some seniors will be listed with just a one-semester award; request that amount for the semester.

6. VAMT

   The amount of money that has been paid out for the student for the current academic year.

7. RAMT

   The amount of money refunded for the student for the current academic year.

8. REMAINING

   The amount of money that remains available for the student for the current academic year.

9. COUNT

   A number used by HEAB to calculate total numbers of students.

There are 14 fields on the Flat File AES Notification Report. Each record is 144 characters wide. Following is a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use this report.

1. The student's social security number.

   This field begins in position 1.

2. The student's last name.

   This field begins in position 11.

3. The student's first name.

   This field begins in position 28.

4. The student's street address.

   This field begins in position 43.

5. The student's city.

   This field begins in position 71.

6. The student's state.

   This field begins in position 88.

7. The student's zip code.

   This field begins in position 91.

8. The current academic year.

   This field begins in position 96.

9. The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other undergraduate status

   This field begins in position 100.

10. The three digit school code assigned by HEAB to the institution.

    This field begins in position 101.

11. The amount of the student's AES award that HEAB provides for the year. The school is responsible for the same amount.

    This is the field that is used for vouchering. You can request half of the amount shown in this field for each semester of the current academic year. Some seniors will be listed with just a one-semester award; request that amount for the semester.

    This field begins in position 107.

12. The amount of money that has been paid out for the student for the current academic year.

    This field begins in position 118.

13. The amount of money refunded for the student for the current academic year.

    This field begins in position 126.

14. The amount of money that remains available for the student for the current academic year.

    This field begins in position 138.

AES Enrollment Verification Report

The Enrollment Verification Report is used to obtain information that helps HEAB to determine if an AES recipient is eligible for another year of the scholarship. This report is sent to all participating institutions that have an enrolled AES student.

The report is sent out once a year in May. The report is sent electronically by e-mail to the participating institution. If the institution cannot process an electronic file, a paper report can be sent.

There are eleven fields on the AES Enrollment Verification Report. Following is a field by field breakdown on how to read and use the report.

1. NAME & ADDRESS

   The student's last name, first name, and address where the student lives.

2. SSN

   The student's social security number.

3. YEAR

   The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other undergraduate status

4. 1ST TERM CREDITS EARNED

   The number of credits the student earned in the first term of the most recent academic year.

5. 1ST TERM GPA

   The grade point average the student earned in the first term of the most recent academic year.

6. 2ND TERM CREDITS EARNED

   The number of credits the student earned in the second term of the most recent academic year.

7. 2ND TERM GPA

   The grade point average the student earned in the second term of the most recent academic year.

8. 3RD TERM CREDITS EARNED

   The number of credits the student earned in the third term (if the school uses trimesters) of the most recent academic year.

9. 3RD TERM GPA

   The grade point average the student earned in the third term (if the school uses trimesters) of the most recent academic year.

10. FINAL CUMULATIVE CREDITS EARNED

    The total number of credits the student has earned while attending this institution.

11. FINAL CUMULATIVE GPA

    The cumulative grade point average the student has earned while attending this institution.

Handicapped Student Grant

Overview

This program provides grants to Wisconsin residents who are enrolled as undergraduates at an in-state public or private, non-profit post-secondary institution and who have a hearing or visual impairment. In addition, there is a selective list of out-of-state institutions that are approved to participate in this program.

The grant is based on financial need. Students are eligible for a minimum of $250 up to a maximum grant of $1,800 per year for up to ten semesters. This grant is in addition to WHEG or TG. Additional costs of education such as special equipment or materials are included along with the standard student budget.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

In order to receive this grant, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating UW, Wisconsin Technical College or private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the state;

2. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual);

5. demonstrate financial need; and

6. be deaf or hard of hearing or visually handicapped. For purposes of this grant the hearing loss must be 40 decibels or greater in the better ear and/or the vision loss must be 20/200 or less in the better eye or the field of vision must be 20 degrees or less in the better eye.

7. Maximum eligibility for this grant is ten (10) semesters.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA form for processing.

2. The student must complete an application for the grant. The application form, "Wisconsin Hearing/Visually Handicapped Program" (Appendix #5), can be obtained through the school or by contacting HEAB.

3. The student must complete the first part of the form.

4. The second part of the form must be certified and signed by a medical professional.

5. Once completed, the form is sent to HEAB.

6. HEAB reviews the form.

7. Once the form has been reviewed and it has been determined that the student is eligible, HEAB contacts the school by e-mail. HEAB asks the school to determine the financial need of the student and the amount of award for which the student is eligible.

8. Once HEAB has this information, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

9. Once the revised Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

10. The first part of the Wisconsin Hearing/Visually Handicapped Program form needs to be completed and sent to HEAB for processing every year the student wishes to receive the grant.

    The medical certification (Part II of the form) does NOT need to be completed past the initial application.

11. If HEAB determines that the student is not eligible a denial letter is sent by to the school with a copy to the student.

12. The student may appeal HEAB's decision by contacting the Executive Secretary in writing.

Indian Student Assistance Grant

Overview

This program provides grants to resident Native Americans who have at least one-quarter Indian blood or who are a member of a federally recognized tribe as determined by the appropriate tribal government.

The grant is based on financial need. Students are eligible for a minimum of $250 and up to a maximum grant of $1,100 for up to ten semesters. In many cases, tribal governments provide matching funds for most grant recipients.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

In order to receive this grant, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating UW, Wisconsin Technical College or private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the state;

2. be enrolled at least part-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual);

5. demonstrate financial need; and

6. have at least one-quarter Native American blood or be a member of a federally recognized United State tribe as determined by the appropriate tribal government.

7. Maximum eligibility for this grant is ten (10) semesters.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA form for processing.

2. The student must complete an application for the grant. The application form, "Wisconsin Indian Assistance Grant" (Appendix #6) can be obtained through the school or by contacting HEAB.

3. The student must complete Part I of the form. Once Part I is completed, the form should be forwarded to the student's tribal education office(s). A list of tribal education offices is available at the rear of this manual (Appendix #7).

4. Part II of the form must be certified and signed by a tribal official(s). Once Part II is completed, the form should be forwarded to the financial aid office at the school the student plans to attend.

5. Part III of the form must be completed and signed by the financial aid administrator at the school the student plans to attend. (The cost of education for students enrolled less than half- time is limited to the cost of tuition, fees and books.)

6. Once completed, the school sends copies of the form to HEAB and the tribal education office.

7. HEAB reviews the form.

8. Once HEAB has reviewed the form, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

9. Once the revised Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

10. Part III of the Wisconsin Indian Student Assistance Grant form needs to be completed and sent to HEAB for processing every year the student wishes to receive the grant.

    Parts I and II do NOT need to be completed past the initial application.

11. If HEAB determines that the student is not eligible the school is notified by e-mail.

12. The student may appeal HEAB's decision by contacting the Executive Secretary in writing.

Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity Program

Overview

This program provides tuition reciprocity for Wisconsin residents who enroll in an eligible Minnesota public institution program on a space available basis. Students who qualify pay the established reciprocity fee for courses that are available at public institutions in Wisconsin.

Eligibility

In order to receive Minnesota-Wisconsin tuition reciprocity, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating Minnesota school; and

2. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual).

NOTE: Professional students enrolling in a Doctor of Medicine, a Doctor of Dental Sciences or a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program are NOT eligible for tuition reciprocity under this program.

Application Process

1. The student determines which school in Minnesota he/she wants to attend (see Appendix #8 for the list of eligible Minnesota schools).

2. The student completes a Minnesota-Wisconsin Application for Reciprocity Fee Status form (Appendix #9).

3. The completed form is sent to HEAB.

4. HEAB processes the form. The student must be a Wisconsin resident and plan to attend an eligible Minnesota institution.

5. Once the form has been processed, the student will receive a confirmation letter from HEAB if the form has been approved. If it has been determined that the student is not eligible for reciprocity, the student is sent a letter explaining the denial.

6. At the same time the confirmation letters are sent to students, a Certification List is sent to any school with newly eligible students. The school should use this list to determine which students should be charged the equivalent of Wisconsin resident tuition.

7. Three times a year, HEAB issues an enrollment report to all participating schools. This is done after the fall, spring and summer semester end dates. The school should complete the report by verifying and giving HEAB the following information:
   1. student's name;
   2. student's social security number;
   3. number of credits the student took; and
   4. the tuition charged.

8. Once HEAB receives this enrollment information, the report is used to calculate payment due to either Wisconsin or Minnesota.

Minority Retention Grant

Overview

This program provides grants to minority undergraduates, excluding freshmen, enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) at Wisconsin Technical Colleges or private, non-profit post-secondary institutions in the state.

The grant is based on financial need. Students are eligible for up to a maximum of $2,500 per year.

Maximum eligibility is eight semesters.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

In order to receive this grant, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating Wisconsin Technical College or private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the state;

2. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual);

5. demonstrate financial need; and

6. be either an African American; Native American; Hispanic; or Southeast Asian admitted to the United States after December 31, 1975 (Laotian, Vietnamese or Cambodian).

7. Maximum eligibility for this grant is eight (8) semesters.

8. First year students are not eligible to participate in this program.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA form for processing.

2. The student is identified by the school that he/she is attending as a candidate for a Minority Retention Grant, based on criteria listed above.

3. The school completes a "Minority Retention Grant" form (Appendix #10) and returns the completed form to HEAB.

4. HEAB reviews the form.

5. Once HEAB reviews the form and approves eligibility, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

6. Once the Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

7. The Minority Retention Grant form needs to be completed and sent to HEAB for processing each year the student is eligible to receive the grant.

8. If HEAB determines the student is not eligible, the school is sent an e-mail message by HEAB informing the school of the decision.

9. The student may appeal HEAB's decision by contacting the Executive Secretary in writing.

Minority Teacher Loan

Overview

This program provides education loans of up to $2,500 per year at five- percent interest. The student must be enrolled in a program leading to a teaching license at an Independent or University of Wisconsin Institution.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month academic period.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for this loan, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating UW or private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the state;

2. be enrolled in a program leading to a teaching license;

3. make satisfactory academic progress toward a degree (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual); and

5. be a member of a minority group. Wisconsin statutes define a "minority" as an African American; Native American; Hispanic; or Southeast Asian admitted to the United States after December 31, 1975 (Laotian, Vietnamese or Cambodian).

6. ONLY juniors or seniors are eligible to participate in this program.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA form for processing.

2. Based on program eligibility criteria, the school financial aid administrator recommends students who show eligibility for the Minority Teacher Loan.

3. The school financial aid administrator provides HEAB with information regarding the student. Information to be submitted to HEAB on behalf of eligible students includes:
   1. student name;
   2. student address;
   3. student social security number;
   4. student enrollment status;
   5. student Wisconsin residency status;
   6. year in school;
   7. indicate whether or not the student is enrolled in Teacher Certification Program;
   8. specify the semesters for which loan disbursements should be made; and
   9. recommended dollar amount of loan.

4. Once HEAB has the information listed above, a Minority Teacher Loan Recipient Agreement (Appendix #11) is mailed to the student for his/her signature.

5. The student must return the signed agreement to HEAB within the time period indicated on the document.

6. Once the signed agreement is returned, it will be reviewed by HEAB.

7. HEAB then vouchers checks and sends the checks to the school for disbursement to students who have been approved. If the agreement is not approved, HEAB contacts the school financial aid office by e-mail and explains the denial.

8. Checks are sent to the schools for the first and second semesters.

9. The financial aid office must apply separately for each of the two-years of possible eligibility for the student. The student must be recommended and must have an approved, signed agreement for each of the two years of eligibility.

Nursing Student Loan

Overview

This program provides education loans of up to $3,000 per year. The overall maximum a student can borrow is $15,000. The student must be enrolled in a program leading to a nursing license.

Assigned spending limits will be made to participating colleges and universities prior to each academic year. Total dollars nominated by each school shall not exceed assigned spending limits.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month academic period.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for this loan, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating UW, Wisconsin Technical or private, non-profit post secondary institution in the state;

2. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program leading to a nursing license (RN or LPN);

3. make satisfactory academic progress (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual);

5. demonstrate financial need; and

6. agree to practice as a licensed nurse or nurse educator in Wisconsin for the term of the forgiveness period.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA form.

2. Based on program eligibility criteria, the school financial aid administrator recommends students who show eligibility for the Nursing Student Loan.

3. The school financial aid administrator provides HEAB, via e-mail, with information regarding the student. Information to be submitted to HEAB on behalf of eligible students includes:
   1. student name;
   2. student address;
   3. student social security number;
   4. student enrollment status;
   5. State of Wisconsin residency status;
   6. year in school;
   7. indicate the nursing program the student is enrolled in;
   8. specify the semesters for which the loan disbursements should be made;
   9. the student budget minus EFC and minus other need-based aid; and
   10. recommended dollar amount of loan.

4. Once HEAB has the information above, an approved loan amount is determined and a Nursing Student Loan Recipient Agreement (Appendix 12) is mailed to the student for his/her signature.

5. The student must return the signed agreement to HEAB within the time period indicated on the document.

6. Once the signed agreement is returned it will be reviewed by HEAB.

7. HEAB then vouchers a check and sends the check to the school for disbursement to the approved student. If the agreement is not approved, HEAB contacts the school financial aid office by e-mail and explains the denial.

8. The financial aid office must nominate separately for each of the years of possible eligibility for the student. The student must be recommended and must have an approved signed agreement for each of the years of eligibility.

Talent Incentive Program Grant (TIP)

Overview

This program provides grants to the most financially-needy and educationally-disadvantaged students selected by the staff of the Wisconsin Educational Opportunity Program (WEOP) and institutional financial aid officers.

This program is supported, in part, by the federal Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (LEAP) and Special Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (SLEAP) programs. The federal monies are distributed to states on a formula basis, must be matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis with state funds and can only be used to supplement financial aid programs that are not restricted to students attending a particular type of institution.

Students may be eligible for both a maximum TIP award as well as a maximum WHEG or TG award. Freshmen may receive Initial TIP awards of $600 to $1,800. Upperclassmen may receive Continuing TIP awards of $250 to $1,800, but the actual maximum award amount varies from year to year depending on the amount of state and federal funds available.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

The TIP Grant is funded, in part, by federal funds. This means that, in order for a student to be eligible for a TIP Grant, the student must meet federal eligibility requirements. See " Chapter 4 - Student Eligibility" for more information.

To be eligible for an Initial TIP award, a student must:

1. be a first-time freshman, defined as: A student who has been enrolled in a post-secondary institution for less than two semesters at half or greater time since attending high school;

2. be enrolled in a participating UW, Wisconsin Technical College or private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the state;

3. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual); and

5. meet at least one of the following criteria under A and at least one under B:
   1. Financial Need
      1. Family Contribution
         1. A dependent student whose expected parent contribution is $200 or less.
         2. An independent student whose academic year contribution is $200 or less.

      2. TANF or W2 Benefits
         1. A dependent student whose family is receiving TANF or W2 benefits.
         2. An independent student who is receiving TANF or W2 benefits.

      3. Unemployment
         1. A dependent student whose parent(s) are ineligible for unemployment compensation and has/have no current income from employment.
         2. An independent student (and spouse, if married) who is/are ineligible for unemployment compensation and has/have no current income from employment.

   2. Non-Traditional / Educationally-Disadvantaged
      1. The student is:
         1. African-American;
         2. Hispanic, defined as a person of any race whose ancestors originated in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Central America or South America or whose culture or origin is Spanish;
         3. Southeast Asian, defined as a person who is admitted to the United States after December 31, 1975, and who either is a former citizen of Laos, Vietnam or Cambodia or whose ancestor was or is a citizen of Laos, Vietnam or Cambodia (this definition includes Hmong); or
         4. Native American.

      2. The student is or will be enrolled in a special academic support program due to insufficient academic preparation.

      3. The student is a first-generation post-secondary student (neither parent graduated from a four-year college or university).

      4. The student is handicapped according to the Department of Workforce Development, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) or according to the Special Needs or Disabilities Office on Wisconsin college or university campuses which use the Americans with Disabilities Act definition.

      5. The student is currently or was formerly incarcerated in a correctional institution.

      6. The student's environmental or academic background is such that it deters the pursuit of educational plans.

To be eligible for a Continuing TIP award the student must:

1. have received an initial TIP award during their freshman year;

2. be enrolled in their second or later year at a participating UW, Wisconsin Technical College or private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the state;

3. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

4. make satisfactory academic progress (per federal student financial aid criteria);

5. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual);

6. remain continuously enrolled after receiving the initial award; and

7. continue to demonstrate financial need.

8. Maximum eligibility for this grant is ten (10) semesters, including the initial award.

Application Process

To receive an Initial TIP award:

1. The student must complete and file a FAFSA form.

2. A nomination for TIP may either come from the post-secondary institution or from a WEOP counselor.

3. If the nomination comes from the post-secondary institution:
   1. The school FAO reviews prospective students for TIP eligibility. One of the ways to identify prospective TIP recipients is by reviewing EFC's.

   2. The school FAO interviews the prospective TIP recipient to determine if the student meets the TIP criteria.

   3. If the school FAO believes that the student meets eligibility criteria, a TIP Institutional Nomination Form (Appendix #13) should be completed and forwarded to HEAB.

   4. HEAB reviews the nomination and makes the final determination of eligibility.

4. If the nomination comes from a WEOP counselor:
   1. The WEOP counselor recruits eligible students from area high schools and the community at large.

   2. If a student is determined eligibility for a TIP Grant the student must complete the WEOP Student Eligibility Criteria Sheet.

   3. Final review and determination of the student's eligibility is made and award is approved.

5. Based on this information, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

6. Once the Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

NOTE: Only first-time freshmen may be nominated for an Initial TIP award.

To receive a Continuing TIP award:

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA for processing.

2. HEAB receives the processed data from the FAFSA through the federal processor.

3. Based on this information, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

4. Once the Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

Continuous Enrollment

One of the requirements for receiving a Continuing TIP award is that the student be continuously enrolled from term to term and year to year. Exceptions to this requirement may be made for:

• Illness or other medical condition which prevents attendance. All such exceptions must be certified by a doctor and may be for no longer than 12 months.

• Active duty military service.

To request an exception to the continuous enrollment requirement, the student should send a letter to HEAB which includes the following information:

• The student's name, Social Security Number, and current mailing address.

• A description of the circumstances which prevented the student from attending classes.

• The date on when the student withdrew or otherwise stopped attending classes, and the date the student re-enrolled.

• For a medical exception: A letter from a medical professional on their official letterhead confirming the student's medical condition during the time the student was not attending class.

• For a military exception: A copy of the student's release or discharge from active duty.

This letter and documentation should be sent to:

Higher Educational Aids Board
Talent Incentive Program Grant
P.O. Box 7885
Madison, WI 53707-7885

or Fax: (608) 267-2808

Students who lose TIP eligibility for any reason other than not being enrolled (falling below half-time enrollment, not making satisfactory academic progress, too high an EFC, etc.) are not permanently excluded from TIP. If their situation changes so that they once again meet the eligibility requirements, the may receive TIP again, as long as they have been continuously enrolled. The student does not have to continuously receive TIP, they just have to be continuously enrolled. The only way to permanently lose TIP eligibility is to not be continuously enrolled.

NOTE: HEAB's Grants system cannot automatically check for continuous enrollment. If a student has any TIP spent for the previous year, the system will calculate a Continuing TIP award.

NOTE: Please remember that for return or refund purposes, Talent Incentive Program Grant funds are considered federal monies. This means the federal refund policy should be used when calculating when and how much to refund. As part of the federal Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005, the federal LEAP and SLEAP programs have been removed from the federal Return of Title IV Funds (R2T4) requirements, as of July 1, 2006. The TIP Grant is partially funded by the federal LEAP/SLEAP programs, so if LEAP/SLEAP is no longer required to be included in R2T4, then TIP no longer has to be included in R2T4. The same procedure should be used to return TIP funds to HEAB as is used to return WHEG/WTG or any other state funds.

Teacher of the Visually Impaired Loan Program (TVI)

Overview

This program provides education loans of up to $10,000 per year at five-percent interest. The maximum a student can borrow is $40,000. The student must be enrolled in a program that prepares them to be licensed as teachers of the visually impaired or as orientation and mobility instructors.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month academic period.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for this loan, the student must:

1. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual);

2. be enrolled at least part-time in a program that prepares the student to be licensed as a teacher of the visually impaired or an orientation and mobility instructor;

3. be enrolled at an eligible in-state or eligible out-of-state school. An eligible out-of-state school must be located in a physically adjacent state (Illinois, Iowa, Michigan or Minnesota);

4. agree to be a licensed teacher of the visually impaired or a mobility and orientation instructor in a Wisconsin School District, the Wisconsin Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired or a cooperative educational service agency; and

5. make satisfactory academic progress toward a degree (per federal financial aid criteria.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA form for processing.

2. The school financial aid administrator provides HEAB with information regarding the student. Information to be submitted to HEAB on behalf of eligible students includes:
   1. student name;

   2. student social security number;

   3. student enrollment status;

   4. year in school;

   5. indicate whether or not the student is enrolled in a program that prepares the student to be licensed as a teacher of the visually impaired or an orientation and mobility instructor;

   6. specify the semesters for which loan disbursements should be made; and

   7. recommend dollar amount of loan.

3. Once HEAB has the information listed above, Teacher of the Visually Impaired Recipient Agreement (Appendix #14) is mailed to the student for his/her signature.

4. The student must return the signed agreement to HEAB within the time period indicated on the document.

5. Once the signed agreement is returned, it will be reviewed by HEAB.

6. HEAB then vouchers checks and send the checks to the school for disbursement to students who have been approved. If the agreement is not approved, HEAB contacts the school financial aid office by e-mail and explains the denial.

7. Checks are sent to the schools for the first and second semesters.

8. The student must apply separately for each of the years of possible eligibility. The student must have a signed and approved agreement for each of the years of eligibility.

Wisconsin Higher Education Grant (WHEG)
University of Wisconsin College or University

Overview

This program provides grant assistance to undergraduate, Wisconsin residents enrolled at least half-time in degree or certificate programs at a University of Wisconsin college or university.

The grant is based on financial need. Grants can range from $250 to $1,800 $3,000 per year. The maximum award each year varies based on the appropriation to the WHEG program.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

In order to receive this grant, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating University of Wisconsin college or university;

2. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress toward an associate or bachelor's degree (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual); and

5. demonstrate financial need.

6. Maximum eligibility for this grant is ten (10) semesters.

NOTE: The maximum eligibility of 10 semesters includes semesters in which a student received a Wisconsin Tuition Grant.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA for processing.

2. HEAB receives the processed data from the FAFSA through the federal processor.

3. Based on this information, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

4. Once the Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

HEAB uses a formula in calculating the appropriate amounts to be disbursed to a student eligible for the UW WHEG Grant.

Please refer to the "Formula" section in Appendix 15.

Wisconsin Higher Education Grant (WHEG)
Wisconsin Technical College

Overview

This program provides grant assistance to undergraduate, Wisconsin residents enrolled at least half-time in degree or certificate programs at a Wisconsin Technical College.

The grant is based on financial need. Grants can range from $250 to $1,800 $3,000 per year. The maximum award each year varies based on the appropriation to the WHEG program.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

In order to receive this grant, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating Wisconsin Technical College;

2. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress toward an associate or bachelor's degree (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual); and

5. demonstrate financial need.

6. Maximum eligibility for this grant is ten (10) semesters.

NOTE: The maximum eligibility of 10 semesters includes semesters in which a student received a Wisconsin Tuition Grant.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA for processing.

2. HEAB receives the processed data from the FAFSA through the federal processor.

3. Based on this information, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

4. Once the Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

HEAB uses a formula in calculating the appropriate amounts to be disbursed to a student eligible for the Wisconsin Technical College WHEG Grant.

Please refer to the "Formula" section in Appendix 15.

Wisconsin Higher Education Grant (WHEG)
Tribal College

Overview

This program provides grant assistance to undergraduate, Wisconsin residents enrolled at least half-time in degree or certificate programs at a Wisconsin Tribal College.

The grant is based on financial need. Grants can range from $250 to $1,800 $3,000 per year. The maximum award each year varies based on the appropriation to the WHEG program.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

In order to receive this grant, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating Wisconsin Tribal College;

2. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress toward an associate or bachelor's degree (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual); and

5. demonstrate financial need.

6. Maximum eligibility for this grant is ten (10) semesters.

NOTE: The maximum eligibility of 10 semesters includes semesters in which a student received a Wisconsin Tuition Grant.

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA for processing.

2. HEAB receives the processed data from the FAFSA through the federal processor.

3. Based on this information, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

4. Once the Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

HEAB uses a formula in calculating the appropriate amounts to be disbursed to a student eligible for the Tribal College WHEG Grant.

Please refer to the "Formula" section in Appendix 15.

Wisconsin Tuition Grant (TG)

Overview

This program provides grant assistance to undergraduate, Wisconsin residents enrolled at least half-time in degree or certificate programs at Independent Colleges or Universities throughout Wisconsin. The grant can be awarded on a pro-rated basis (6-8 credits = 50%, 9-12 credits = 75%).

The grant awarded is based on financial need and to provide tuition equalization between independent colleges/universities and the University of Wisconsin System (specifically U.W. Madison). Grants can range from $250 to $2,300 per year. By statute, grants may not be less than $250 per year, but the actual maximum and minimum award varies each year based on the appropriation to the WTG program.

Funds available for this program are based on a nine-month budget.

Eligibility

In order to receive this grant, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a participating private, non-profit post-secondary institution in the state;

2. be enrolled at least half-time (as determined by the school) in a degree or certificate program;

3. make satisfactory academic progress (per federal student financial aid criteria);

4. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual); and

5. demonstrate financial need.

6. Maximum eligibility for this grant is ten (10) semesters.

NOTE: The maximum eligibility of 10 semesters includes semesters in which a student received a Wisconsin Higher Education Grant (WHEG).

Application Process

1. The student must complete and submit a FAFSA for processing.

2. HEAB receives the processed data from the FAFSA through the federal processor.

3. Based on this information, the Notification Report is updated to show the amount of award available to the student.

4. Once the Notification Report is received, the school can submit a voucher request for the eligible student(s). The school should follow the voucher procedure outlined in the Vouchering section of this manual.

The Tuition Grant is limited by state statute to 122% over-award. Also, as mentioned above, the Tuition Grant can be awarded on a pro-rated basis depending on the number of credits a student takes during any given semester. Due to these two factors, participating institutions are expected to:

1. Compare their Notification Lists to their actual enrollment and delete students from the list who are not attending their institutions.

2. Notify HEAB of students who are only eligible for one semester of Tuition Grant.

3. Notify the HEAB Tuition Grant Coordinator of pro-rated awards.

4. Refunds must be a priority for Tuition Grant institutions. "Unearned funds" (see Refund Policy) must be returned to HEAB as soon as possible so these funds are available to other eligible students.

Please note that Tuition Grant funds are tuition specific and cannot be used for any other educational costs.

HEAB uses a formula in calculating the appropriate amounts to be disbursed to a student eligible for the Tuition Grant.

Please refer to the "Formula" section in Appendix 15.

School Specific Programs

The following programs are administered by HEAB. However, in each case, the program in its current form, is specific to one school.

Teacher Education Loan

This program provides loans of up to $2,000 to Wisconsin residents enrolled in the teacher education programs at the Milwaukee Teacher Education Center (MTEC). The student must agree to teach in the Milwaukee Public schools for at least two years for the loan to be forgiven. For each year the student teaches in the school district, 50% of the loan is forgiven. If the student does not teach in the school district, the loan must be repaid at a 5% interest rate.

The loan amount can range up to a maximum of $2,000. The student must fill out a Teacher Education Loan Program Recipient Application and be enrolled in a teacher education program at MTEC.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for this loan, the student must:

1. be enrolled in a teacher education program at MTEC; and

2. meet the Wisconsin residency requirements (see Residency section of this manual).

Application Process

1. At the beginning of each teacher education program, MTEC recommends students who show eligibility for the Teacher Education Loan.

2. A Teacher Education Loan Program Recipient Application and Agreement is provided by HEAB to MTEC for distribution to each eligible student.

3. The student must return the completed application and signed agreement to MTEC, who submits them to HEAB.

4. The applications will be reviewed by HEAB.

5. HEAB then vouchers a check for the total amount of the approved applications and sends the check to MTEC for disbursement to students who have been approved. If an application is not approved, HEAB contacts MTEC and explains the denial.

Marquette Dental School Capitation Program

This program allows a pre-determined number of Wisconsin residents to attend the Marquette University School of Dentistry at a "resident" tuition rate. Currently, 145 students are able to participate each academic year. Students who meet the program criteria are awarded $8,753 per year in a tuition subsidy.

The student must be enrolled full-time in the Doctor of Dental Science Program at Marquette University.

Medical College of Wisconsin Capitation Program

This program allows a pre-determined number of Wisconsin residents to attend the Medical College of Wisconsin at a "resident" tuition rate. Students who meet the program criteria are awarded a tuition subsidy.

The student must be enrolled full-time in the Medical Doctor Program at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Inactive Loan Programs

Currently, there are four loan programs that are administered by HEAB in which new loans are not being made.

However, there are still previous borrowers in various stages of deferment or repayment in each of these programs. HEAB continues to work as a collection entity for these loans and contact the borrowers when necessary.

If you or your school receive inquiries on any of these loan programs, please refer them to HEAB for further information. The programs are:

Independent Student Grant (ISG)

Nursing Student Stipend Loan (NSSL)

Paul Douglas Teacher Scholarship Program

Wisconsin Health Education Assistance Loan (WHEAL)

back to Table of Contents

As of November of 2004, the Notification List is being provided in two new formats. This chapter will be rewritten to include these new formats. Until the rewrite is completed, guides and instructions for the new Notification List may be downloaded from HEAB's Information for Financial Aid Administrators page.

The Notification Report is a list of all Wisconsin residents who have applied for state financial aid. It indicates which state aid programs the student is eligible for and the dollar amount available. This report is electronically sent to all participating institutions as a way of notifying the school that the student is eligible for state aid that HEAB administers. The report is sent out weekly during the fall-spring-summer school year. In addition, from April through July, a report is printed weekly for the upcoming academic year.

When a student lists Wisconsin as his/her state of legal residence on the FAFSA, HEAB downloads the information onto its computer system. HEAB then calculates awards for each school the student listed on the FAFSA and produces a Notification Report for each school. A student is listed on a school's report if the school is one of the first four schools the student listed on the processed FAFSA. Based on this document, schools voucher funds for those students who are enrolled.

THE SMALLEST ELIGIBILITY AMOUNT THAT HEAB WILL SHOW FOR AN ACADEMIC YEAR IS $250. ANY AWARD ELIGIBILITY LESS THAN $250 FOR AN ACADEMIC YEAR WILL NOT SHOW ANY AWARD ELIGIBILITY.

SCHOOLS MAY NOT MAKE AN AWARD OR ISSUE AN AWARD LETTER SPECIFYING A HEAB ADMINISTERED GRANT TO A STUDENT UNLESS THAT AWARD IS LISTED ON THE NOTIFICATION LIST. BASED ON THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS WHEN THE REQUEST IS MADE, THERE IS NO GUARANTEE OF AN AWARD.

PLEASE NOTE: SCHOLARSHIP AND LOAN AWARDS ARE NOT INDICATED ON THE NOTIFICATION LIST.

The Notification Report is provided in two formats: a printable report file and a flat text file.

There are 14 fields on the Printable Notification Report. Following is a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use this report.

1. S. S. NUMBER

   The student's social security number.

2. STUDENT NAME

   The student's last name, first name and middle initial.

3. YR IN SCH

   The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other undergraduate status

4. DEP IND

   The student's dependency status.

   DEP = Dependent
   IND = Independent

5. MAR

   The student's marital status.

   1 = Single
   2 = Married
   3 = Separated

6. EXEM

   The parents' household size for dependent students, or the student's household size for independent students.

   If the student is independent there must be a number of at least "01".

7. AWARD

   This field shows the amount the student is eligible for if he/she attends your school. The amount listed is for WHEG or TG. If there is an award for the Indian Student Assistance Grant, the Minority Retention Grant or the Handicapped Student Grant there will be an additional line for each of these grants.

   This is the field that is used for vouchering. You can request funds up to one half of the amount shown for WHEG, TG or one of the three other grant programs described above for each semester. To help you verify how much to request, you can check field #13 to see what has already been disbursed for the current academic year.

   NOTE: Awards may be recalculated during the school year due to funding restrictions. Awards are NOT guaranteed. They are based on the availability of funds at the time the request is made.

8. CHILD SUPRT

   If "1" appears in this field, the student is listed on the statewide child support lien docket and is blocked from receiving state grant assistance. It is the student's responsibility to resolve any child support issues. Please see the Child Support section of this manual.

9. FAMILY CONTRIBUTION

   The amount of the student's Expected Family Contribution for the current academic year.

10. RPT CD

    These codes indicate the current status of each student on the report.

    0 = Incomplete
    1 = First time reported as ineligible
    2 = Previously reported as ineligible
    3 = First time reported as eligible
    4 = Previously reported as eligible
    5 = First time reported as changed to ineligible
    6 = Previously reported as changed to ineligible
    7 = First time reported as changed to eligible
    8 = Previously reported as changed to eligible
    9 = Remains eligible, award changed

11. TIP CD

    This code indicates the status of the student's TIP award.

    1 = Continuing TIP student, either a sophomore, junior or senior
    2 = student has been nominated by WEOP and is a freshman
    4 = student has been nominated by the institution and is a freshman

12. TIP AWARD

    This field shows the amount the student is eligible for if he/she attends your school. The amount listed is for TIP.

    This is the field that is used for vouchering. You can request funds up to one half of the amount shown for TIP for each semester. To help you verify how much to request, you can check field #13 to see what has already been disbursed for the current academic year.

13. SPENT

    The amount of money that has been paid out for the student for the current academic year.

14. PROC CD

    These codes indicate the status of each award.

    A = No award calculated yet but ready to calculate if at an eligible institution.

    B = Award calculated but not yet reported to the institution.

    C = Award calculated and reported to the institution.

    D = Recalculate award due to needs analysis revisions from the aid officer.

    E = Award recalculated due to needs analysis revision but not reported to the institution.

    F = Recalculated due to needs analysis revision and reported to the institution.

    G = Recalculate award due to special institutional formula. For TG awards at private schools only.

    H = Recalculated award due to special formula but not reported.

    K = Recalculated award due to special institutional formula and reported to the institution.

    O = Ineligible for additional TG or WHEG (depending on the institution code) due to 10 semester rule but not reported to the institution.

    P = Ineligible for additional TG or WHEG due to 10 semester and ineligibility has been reported to the institution. Do not allow recalculation of the grant.

    Q = Partial yearly award calculated (due to 9 semesters used) but not reported to the institution.

    R = Partial yearly award calculated and reported to the institution. Do not allow recalculation of the award.

    S = Indian Grant awarded but not reported to the institution.

    T = Indian Grant awarded and reported to the institution.

    U = Indian Grant with no eligibility due to 10 semester rule.

    W = Do not voucher, WHEG or TG funds not available. This is a "wait list". If funds become available, the student may be vouchered.

    Z = Prevents automatic award recalculation.

There are 22 fields on the Flat File Notification Report. Each record is 80 characters wide. Following is a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use this report.

1. The student's social security number.

   The field length is 9 characters.

2. The student's last name, first name and middle initial.

   The field length is 23 characters.

3. The student's marital status.

   1 = Single
   2 = Married
   3 = Separated

   The field length is 1 character.

4. Household Size - The parents' household size for dependent students, or the student's household size for independent students.

   The field length is 2 characters.

5. The student's record is rejected for an award calculation if there is an "R" in this field.

   The field length is 1 character.

6. The three digit school code assigned by HEAB to the institution.

   The field length is 3 characters.

7. The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other undergraduate status

   The field length is 1 character.

8. The student's dependency status.

   1 = Independent
   2 = Dependent

   The field length is 1 character.

9. This field shows the grant amount the student is eligible for if he/she attends your school. The amount listed is for WHEG or TG. If there is an award for the Indian Student Assistance Grant, the Minority Retention Grant or the Handicapped Student Grant there will be an additional line for each of these grants.

   This is the field that is used for vouchering. You can request funds up to one half of the amount shown for WHEG, TG or one of the three other grant programs described above for each semester. To help you verify how much to request, you can check field #20 to see what has already been disbursed for the current academic year.

   NOTE: Awards may be recalculated during the school year due to funding restrictions. Awards are NOT guaranteed. They are based on the availability of funds at the time the request is made.

   The field length is 4 characters

10. This field shows the TIP Grant amount the student is eligible for if he/she attends your school.

    This is the field that is used for vouchering. You can request funds up to one half of the amount shown for TIP for each semester. To help you verify how much to request, you can check field #20 to see what has already been disbursed for the current academic year.

    The field length is 4 characters

11. FILLER - This field is NOT used.

    The field length is 4 characters.

12. FILLER - This field is NOT used.

    The field length is 3 characters.

13. If "1" appears in this field, the student is listed on the statewide child support lien docket and is blocked from receiving state grant assistance. It is the student's responsibility to resolve any child support issues. Please see the Child Support section of this manual.

    The field length is 1 character.

14. FILLER - This field is NOT used.

    The field length is 1 character.

15. The amount of the student's Expected Family Contribution for the current academic year.

    The field length is 6 characters.

16. TIP Code - This code indicates the status of the student's TIP award.

    1 = Continuing TIP student, either a sophomore, junior or senior
    2 = student has been nominated by WEOP and is a freshman
    4 = student has been nominated by the institution and is a freshman

    The field length is 1 character.

17. Report Code - These codes indicate the current status of each student on the report.

    0 = Incomplete
    1 = First time reported as ineligible
    2 = Previously reported as ineligible
    3 = First time reported as eligible
    4 = Previously reported as eligible
    5 = First time reported as changed to ineligible
    6 = Previously reported as changed to ineligible
    7 = First time reported as changed to eligible
    8 = Previously reported as changed to eligible
    9 = Remains eligible, award changed

    The field length is 1 character.

18. FILLER - This field is NOT used.

    The field length is 4 characters.

19. Processing Code - These codes indicate the status of each award.

    A = No award calculated yet but ready to calculate if at an eligible institution.

    B = Award calculated but not yet reported to the institution.

    C = Award calculated and reported to the institution.

    D = Recalculate award due to needs analysis revisions from the aid officer.

    E = Award recalculated due to needs analysis revision but not reported to the institution.

    F = Recalculated due to needs analysis revision and reported to the institution.

    G = Recalculate award due to special institutional formula. For TG awards at private schools only.

    H = Recalculated award due to special formula but not reported.

    K = Recalculated award due to special institutional formula and reported to the institution.

    O = Ineligible for additional TG or WHEG (depending on the institution code) due to 10 semester rule but not reported to the institution.

    P = Ineligible for additional TG or WHEG due to 10 semester and ineligibility has been reported to the institution. Do not allow recalculation of the grant.

    Q = Partial yearly award calculated (due to 9 semesters used) but not reported to the institution.

    R = Partial yearly award calculated and reported to the institution. Do not allow recalculation of the award.

    S = Indian Grant awarded but not reported to the institution.

    T = Indian Grant awarded and reported to the institution.

    U = Indian Grant with no eligibility due to 10 semester rule.

    W = Do not voucher, WHEG or TG funds not available. This is a "wait list". If funds become available, the student may be vouchered.

    Z = Prevents automatic award recalculation.

    The field length is 1 character.

20. This field shows the amount of money that has been paid out for the student for the current academic year.

    The field length is 4 characters.

21. This field shows the amount of TIP money that has been paid out for the student for the current academic year.

    The field length is 4 characters.

22. FILLER - This field is NOT used.

    The field length is 1 character.

back to Table of Contents

As of November of 2004, the Notification List is being provided in two new formats. These new formats combine the Notification List and Error Reports into a single, expanded Notification List. The seperate Error Reports are being eliminated, and this chapter will be removed the Manual. Guides and instructions for the new Notification List may be downloaded from HEAB's Information for Financial Aid Administrators page.

There are three different Error Reports produced by HEAB in connection with the Notification Report. They are:

1. Students Rejected In Analysis
2. Students Requiring Eligibility Review
3. Graduate, Nonresident

Each of these reports deals with different types of errors. The errors need to be corrected before the student may receive money. The errors (except residency) should be corrected through the federal processor, or by submitting file maintenance to HEAB. Please refer to the File Maintenance section of this manual for more information.

Each of the Error Reports will be reviewed below. There will be a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use each report.

Students Rejected in Analysis

This error report lists students that have been identified by HEAB as having errors in information. These errors include: expected family contribution, marital status, family size, year in school, dependency status and selective service registration status.

There are 10 fields on the Students Rejected in Analysis Error Report. Following is a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use this report.

1. OBS (Observation Number)

   The number of the record in the report. This number is continuous and consecutive from the beginning of the report. Since the report is continuous starting with the first school, your school may receive a report that starts with a number other than 1.

2. NAME

   The student's last name, first name and middle initial.

3. SSN

   The student's social security number.

4. YR

   The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other academic status
   6 and higher = graduate status and not eligible for financial aid from HEAB

5. STATUS

   The student's dependency status

   INDEP = Independent
   DEPEN = Dependent

6. MARITAL

   The student's marital status: either SINGLE, MARRIED, or SEPARTD (seperated).

7. FAMSIZE

   The parents' number of family members for a dependent student, or the student's number of family members for an independent student, based on information from the FAFSA.

8. CONTR

   The amount of the student's Expected Family Contribution for the current school year.

   When 99999 appears in this field, the information on the FAFSA needs to be verified.

9. SELSRV

   The student's status with the Selective Service Administration.

   Y = Registered with the Selective Service Administration
   T = Temporarily exempt
   N = No record or not registered with the Selective Service Administration
   Blank = Female, or male born before 1960. Registration not required

10. EVREJ

    The student's record has been rejected in analysis by HEAB's Grants system.

    R = Rejected in Analysis

Students Requiring Eligibility Review

These reports lists students who HEAB believes have used up the maximum number of semesters for a particular award. The maximum number of semesters a student is eligible for an individual program is ten (10). For example, a student is eligible for up to 10 semesters of WHEG. The same student may be eligible for up to 10 semesters of the Indian Student Grant.

Please Note: A student is eligible for a combined total of 10 semesters of WHEG and/or TG. A student cannot have a combined total of semesters for WHEG and/or TG that exceeds 10.

There are 12 fields on the Students Requiring Eligibility Review Error Report. Following is a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use this report.

1. SSN

   The student's social security number

2. NAME

   The student's last name, first name and middle initial

3. YR

   The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other academic status
   6 and higher = graduate status and not eligible for financial aid from HEAB

   The grants and scholarships administered by HEAB are only available to undergraduate students. Graduate students are not eligible. Student with a year in school greater than "5" appear on the Graduate, Nonresident error report.

4. TIP_CD

   This code indicates the status of the student's TIP award.

   0 = maximum number of semesters of TIP have been used.

5. RPT_CD

   These codes indicate the status of each award.

   O = Ineligible for TG or WHEG (depending on the institution code) due to 10 semester rule but not reported to the institution. This means that this report is the first notification that the school is receiving

   P = Ineligible for additional TG or WHEG and ineligibility has been reported to the institution. Do not allow recalculation of the grant.

   Q = Partial yearly award calculated but not reported to the institution.

   R = Partial yearly award calculated and reported to the institution. Do not allow recalculation of the award.

6. WHEG_SEM

   The number of semesters the student has received a WHEG. The maximum number of semesters allowed is 10.

7. TG_SEM

   The number of semesters the student has received a TG. The maximum number of semesters allowed is 10.

8. TIP_SEM

   The number of semesters the student has received a TIP grant. The maximum number of semesters allowed is 10.

9. IND_SEM

   The number of semesters the student has received an Indian Student Assistance Grant. The maximum number of semesters allowed is 10.

10. MG_SEM

    The number of semesters the student has received a Minority Retention Grant. The maximum number of semesters allowed is 10.

11. NEW

    If there is a * in this field, this is the first time this student has shown up on this report.

12. TIP

    If there is a ? in this field, there is question regarding the student's eligibility for a TIP award.

Graduate, Nonresident

This report lists students who HEAB has identified as either graduate students and/or non-Wisconsin residents. Graduates and non-Wisconsin residents are not eligible to participate in programs administered by HEAB.

There are 7 fields on the Graduate, Nonresident Error Report. Following is a field-by-field breakdown on how to read and use this report.

1. NAME

   The student's last name, first name and middle initial.

2. SSN

   The student's social security number.

3. YEARIN

   The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = Fifth year senior or other academic status
   6 and higher = graduate status and not eligible for financial aid from HEAB

4. RESIDENT

   The student's Wisconsin residency status, as initial determined by HEAB's Grants system.

   1 = Wisconsin resident
   2 = nonresident

   If "2" appears in this field, this student is not considered a Wisconsin resident, based on the information HEAB has received from the student's federal FAFSA data.

   In order to be considered for aid, the student must go through the Residency Review Process. Please consult the Residency section of this manual for an outline of this process.

5. TRANDATE

   The date the student was first listed on this report.

6. REASON

   The reason the student appears on this error report, either because the student is a GRADUATE or a NONRESIDENT.

7. NEW

   If there is a * in this field, this is the first time this student has shown up on this report.

NOTE: A change in state residency cannot be made by file maintenance. The school should contact HEAB by phone or e-mail to request a change in residency status.

back to Table of Contents

File maintenance is the process used by schools to correct student information that appears on one of the three HEAB Error Reports. All file maintenance is handled electronically via e-mail.

File maintenance is used to correct or change information on a student in certain circumstances or to delete a student from a school's Notification Report.

There are two file maintenance templates (Appendices 16 & 17). One template is for Tuition Grant schools that have multiple tuition rates. The other template is for all other schools.

PLEASE NOTE: Beginning with the 2002-03 academic year, file maintenance will be accepted for the following items only:

Professional Judgement changes
Special Tuitions
Selective Service changes
Special Circumstances
Deletes

If you have a situation that you believe is a special circumstance, please contact the program coordinator.

PLEASE NOTE: Beginning with the 2006-07 academic year, HEAB is no longer rejecting student records based on the Selective Service registration flags on the federal ISIR. Therefore, it is no longer necessary to submit Selective Service overrides through File Maintenance. (The Selective Service registration requirement is included in the year-end audit guidelines.)

ALL other changes must be made by submitting information to the federal processor.

File Maintenance Template

The following is a formatting guide for the file maintenance template. Using this, you will be able to format any blank spreadsheet to comply with our formatting requirements.

For Tuition Grant schools that have more than one tuition level listed with us, please contact us directly for a special file maintenance template.

If you have had problems with an old template, please use this guide to create a new template starting from a blank spreadsheet. Simply choose "SAVE AS" from the FILE drop-down menu and change the file type to "TEMPLATE".

A. SSN

1. The student's social security number.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 9 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column does not need a specific setting.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   The social security number must be sent with only nine digits and no spaces, dashes or other dividers. Formatting the cell before entering any numbers can do this.

5. NOTES

   Explains the specifics of formatting the SSN.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position the 1-9.

B. EC or ED

1. This column contains the 2-letter code that tells HEAB what type of file maintenance is being performed.

   EC = Edit Change	This code should when the school is changing or correcting information regarding students who are currently on the Notification List
   ED = Edit Delete	This code should be used when the school would like to remove a student from its Notification List.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 5 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the left.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   Capitol letters must be used for the 2-letter codes. Also be sure that both letters are entered.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 10-11.

C. STUDENT NAME

1. The student's first and last name.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 20 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the left.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   The student's name must be entered: last name two spaces first name. No commas should be used and all of the letters should be capitalized.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 15-34.

D. DEPENDENCY STATUS

1. The student's dependency status.

   1 = independent
   2 = dependent

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 1 space.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column does not need a specific setting.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column

5. NOTES

   No alpha characters can be used in this column.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 35

E. YEAR IN SCHOOL

1. The student's year in school.

   1 = Freshman
   2 = Sophomore
   3 = Junior
   4 = Senior
   5 = 5th Year Senior or Other Undergraduate Status
   8 = Previous Degree

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 1 space.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column does not need a specific setting.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   Lists the appropriate single digit codes for each school year. If the year in school is greater that "5" this will cause an error. The grants and scholarships administered by HEAB are only available to undergraduate students. Graduate students are not eligible.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ACSII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 36.

F. MARITAL STATUS

1. The student's marital status.

   1= Single
   2 = Married
   3 = Separated

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 1 space.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column does not need a specific setting.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   Lists the appropriate single digit code for each marital status.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 37.

G. HOUSEHOLD SIZE

1. The number of dependents in the student's household. For an independent student the number must be at least "01". This item is not applicable to a dependent student.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 2 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column does not need a specific setting.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   The household size must be sent with only two digits with no spaces, dashes or other dividers.

5. NOTES

   No notes for this column.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 38-39.

H. PARENTAL CONTRIBUTION

1. The dollar amount parents are expected to contribute to the student's educational costs.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 6 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   The amount must be formatted as a five-digit number with leading zeroes (if necessary) and does not include a decimal point or cents. The built-in "Zip Code" format will format the number correctly.

5. NOTES

   No notes for this column.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 41-45.

I. TOTAL EFC

1. The total estimated family contribution for the student and his/her family.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 6 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   The amount must be formatted as a five-digit number with leading zeroes (if necessary) and does not include a decimal point or cents. The built-in "Zip Code" format will format the number correctly.

5. NOTES

   No notes for this column.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 47-51.

J. STUDENT CONTRIBUTION

1. The dollar amount the student is expected to contribute to his/her educational costs.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 6 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   The amount must be formatted as a five-digit number with leading zeroes (if necessary) and does not include a decimal point or cents. The built-in "Zip Code" format will format the number correctly.

5. NOTES

   No notes for this column.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 53-57.

K. SELECTIVE SERVICE OVERRIDE

As of the 2006-07 academic year, this field is no longer used.

1. The letter "S" is the override code to be used when schools have documentation that the student's status allows state grants to be awarded.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 8 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   If the school has documentation that the student is eligible, an "S" should be entered in this position.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ACSII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 64.

L. HEAB SCHOOL CODE

1. The 3 digit school code assigned to your school by HEAB.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 15 spaces

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 78-80.

File Maintenance Template for TG Schools with Multiple Tuition Levels

The following is a formatting guide for the file maintenance template for Tuition Grant schools that have more than one tuition level. Using this, you will be able to format any blank spreadsheet to comply with our formatting requirements.

The file maintenance template for a multiple-tuition TG school is exactly the same as the standard file maintenance template with the following exceptions:

L. TUITION CODE

1. HEAB assigned codes (1-4) that allow a TG school to have students at different tuition levels.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 8 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column

5. NOTES

   This is the column where the HEAB assigned 1-digit code is placed that tells HEAB the tuition level.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ACSII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 73.

M. HEAB SCHOOL CODE

1. The 3-digit school code assigned to your school by HEAB.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 7 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   This is the place where the HEAB assigned 3-digit school code is placed.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 78-80.

File Maintenance Process

1. Once the required information is in the correct format, whether HEAB's template or the school's own template created from HEAB's layout, the information is transmitted to HEAB for processing.

   The e-mail address that must be used is: heabmail@heab.state.wi.us The school will receive an e-mail receipt from HEAB confirming that the information has been received.

2. If there are errors in the transmitted data, the school will be contacted by HEAB. HEAB will explain the problem help the school make corrections, if necessary. Once the corrections are made, the school must re-transmit the information to HEAB. The school will receive an e-mail receipt from HEAB confirming that the information has been received.

3. HEAB processes file maintenance changes twice a week (Tuesday and Friday). The file maintenance process is performed prior to the voucher run. File maintenance requests received before 12 noon will be processed and loaded the same day.

General Points:

There have been schools that have been sending file maintenance for students who are not enrolled at their school. This should not be done. This causes new awards to keep recalculating based on file maintenance sent in by a school where the student is not attending. The school where the student is attending has to keep sending in file maintenance to correct what the other school has sent.

When you send file maintenance, which includes contribution changes, you must always include the SC and the PC along with the new EFC for dependent students. This is important for maintaining HEAB's internal student system particularly when working with the TIP Grant program.

It is not necessary for you to submit an award amount via file maintenance. This information is not used. Awards are calculated prior to each voucher and re-calculations are triggered by changes to any of the five key fields (dependency status, year in school, marital status, household size and EFC).

The only proper procedure for correcting a student's social security number is to submit a separate e-mail to the general HEAB address (heabmail@heab.state.wi.us). Please include the student's name, the incorrect number and the correct number.

Please remember that when you submit a delete for a student, you are deleting your school from the student's record, NOT the student's record from our system.

You are encouraged to make all changes through the federal processor rather than via file maintenance. You are encouraged to do this since most recent data received is what will be reflected on a student's record whether it is from file maintenance or the ISIR file. In many cases file maintenance data submitted is overridden by ISIR file data when the ISIR record does not reflect the change included in past file maintenance.

If you have any question regarding a file maintenance request, please e-mail HEAB at heabmail@heab.state.wi.us and ask for help. Please make sure to include the social security number of the student in question.

back to Table of Contents

Vouchering is the process by which the school requests state aid money for the programs administered by HEAB for the students attending their institution. Since the beginning of the 1998-99 academic year, all vouchering has been done electronically.

SCHOOLS MAY NOT SUBMIT A VOUCHER REQUEST FOR A STUDENT THAT IS NOT ON THE NOTIFICATION LIST. THE VOUCHER REQUEST WILL BE REJECTED AND WILL NOT BE PROCESSED. SCHOOLS MAY VOUCHER ONLY FUNDS FOR STUDENTS THAT ARE ON THE NOTIFICATION LIST.

PLEASE NOTE: SCHOLARSHIP AND LOAN AWARDS ARE NOT INDICATED ON THE NOTIFICATION LIST.

The information sent to HEAB must be in the specified format. HEAB has a voucher template (Appendix #18) available for use by schools in submitting a voucher request. Schools may use this template to send HEAB data formatted to comply with the file layout that follows the template. If a school is unable to use our template, they may use the file layout to create their own template and still be able to transmit data to HEAB in the correct format.

Vouchering Template

The following is a formatting guide for the voucher template. Using this, you will be able to format any blank spreadsheet to comply with our formatting requirements.

If you have had problems with an old template, please use this guide to create a new template starting from a blank spreadsheet. Simply choose "SAVE AS" from the FILE drop-down menu and change the file type to "TEMPLATE".

A. HEAB SCHOOL CODE

1. Three-digit code that HEAB has assigned to the school.

   100-199 UW Colleges and Universities
   200-299 Private, Not for profit Colleges and Universities
   300-399 Technical Colleges
   400-402 Bellin Nursing Schools

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is fifteen (15) spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of the column must be set to align at the left.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   The HEAB-assigned school code is required. A transaction code or a voucher number are internal identifiers that some schools use to track the voucher request and are not required by HEAB.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 1-3 for the school code and 4-15 for the transaction code.

B. SSN

1. The student's social security number.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is nine (9) spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   Not applicable to this column.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   The social security number must be sent with only nine digits and no spaces, dashes or other dividers. Formatting the cell before entering any numbers can do this.

5. NOTES

   Explains the specifics of formatting the SSN.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 16-24.

C. DISBURSEMENT CODE

1. The two digit HEAB assigned code for the programs it administers. These codes tell HEAB what program you are requesting money for. The specific codes are listed in C5.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is three (3) spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to this column.

5. NOTES

   The disbursement codes are:

   10 - Wisconsin Higher Education Grant (UW and Technical)
   20 - Talent Incentive Program Grant
   30 - Wisconsin Tuition Grant
   35 - Aviation TG
   45 - Handicapped Student Grant
   50 - Indian Student Assistance Grant
   55 - Tribal WHEG
   60 - Minority Retention Grant
   65 - Minority Teacher Loan
   90 - Academic Excellence Scholarship

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 26-27

D. REQUEST AMOUNT

1. This is the amount of money being requested for the program specified in C3. The number must be typed with the dollars and cents but with no decimal points. The amount to be vouchered is taken from the Notification Report (see Notification Report section).

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 22 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the right.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   The amount requested must be entered in the proper format. The number must be typed in dollars and cents ($1,200.00 =120000). There can be no decimal points.

5. NOTES

   Emphasizes the point that there can be no decimal point in D.4.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 44-49.

E. STUDENT NAME

1. The student's first and last name.

2. WIDTH

   The width of the column on the spreadsheet. The width of this column is 30 spaces.

3. ALIGNMENT

   The alignment of this column must be set to align to the left.

4. NUMBER FORMATTING

   Not applicable to the column.

5. NOTES

   The student's name can be entered with either the last name entered first or last and the first name entered first or last.

6. POSITION IN A TEXT (ASCII) FILE

   The physical position on the row. For this column the position is 50-80.

Vouchering Process

1. Once the required information is in the correct format, whether HEAB's template or the school's own template created from HEAB's layout, the information is transmitted via e-mail to HEAB for processing.

   The e-mail address that must be used is: heabmail@heab.state.wi.us. The school will receive an e-mail receipt from HEAB confirming that the information has been received.

2. If there are errors in the transmitted data, the school will be contacted by HEAB. HEAB will explain the problem and help the school make corrections, if necessary. Once the corrections are made, the school must re-transmit the information to HEAB. The school will receive an e-mail receipt from HEAB confirming that the information has been received.

3. HEAB processes voucher requests every Tuesday and Friday afternoon. Voucher requests received before 12 noon on Tuesday and Friday will be processed and loaded on the same day. HEAB receives checks three to four days after the vouchering process runs. The checks are then processed by HEAB and sent to the schools.

4. A student who is delinquent in repaying and/or who owes state funds to HEAB should not be submitted for vouchering until the past due funds have been repaid or returned.

Schools have the option of receiving one check for all vouchered students, one check for each program or an individual check for each student. HEAB's preference is to do one check per school rather individual checks.

If you currently receive individual checks and would like to switch to one check per program or one check per voucher, please contact HEAB at 608-267-2206 or by e-mail at heabmail@heab.state.wi.us.

If you do not receive funds for an individual student when you have submitted a voucher request, you should review the Error Lists that are sent to you by HEAB to determine the reason. If the student does not appear on the Error Lists, please e-mail HEAB at heabmail@heab.state.wi.us and ask for an explanation. Please make sure to include the social security number of the student in question.

back to Table of Contents

7/29/05 - This chapter has been rewritten in accordance with the revised Return of Funds Policy which was approved by the Higher Educational Aids Board on July 29, 2005. (See Board Report #06-04.)

The timely identification and return of funds is essential. Returning funds in a timely manner helps ensure that Wisconsin students will have money available to them when needed.

Policy

Unclaimed Funds/Non-Attendance

If funds are unclaimed by the student within 21 days of the date the funds are received by the institution, the state funds must be returned to HEAB promptly after the 21st day.

Withdrawal

If a student withdraws after beginning attendance, state funds must be returned to HEAB within 30 days of the last date of attendance, or the date the student officially notifies school officials of withdrawal, or the date the school officially designates as the withdrawal date. If a student unofficially withdraws, state funds must be returned to HEAB within 30 days of school officials becoming aware of the withdrawal.

Process

1. Federal methodology will be used to determine the amount of funds to be returned to HEAB. State aid programs will have priority for any credit balance remaining from an institutional refund after the federal Return of Title IV Funds requirements are satisfied. The amount of state grants refunded shall not exceed the "unearned" percentage of grant, consistent with the "unearned" percentage of federal funds.

2. Unclaimed or refunded money should be returned to HEAB by check. The information accompanying the returned funds must include:
   1. Student's first and last name.
   2. Student's social security number
   3. The correct disbursement code.
   4. Your 3 digit HEAB school code.
   5. The HEAB voucher number (if you do not know the voucher number include the academic year and semester of the award being returned).
   6. Amount of each individual award being refunded.
   7. The check number and date of check being returned. This should not be the number and date of the original award check if different.

3. Refund lists may be submitted on disk using the Refund Template (Appendix #19). Such lists must be saved as an Excel spreadsheet, not a PRN document.

4. Refund lists must be mailed with their accompanying check(s), unless arrangements have been made with HEAB to email the lists.

5. All Talent Incentive Program Grant refunds should be sent to the state. While the LEAP/SLEAP program partially funds the TIP Grant, all funds are administered through HEAB. The federal refund policy must be used to calculate the amount of funds to be returned.

6. Subject to State Return of Funds Calculation:
   Academic Excellence Scholarship (AES)
   Wisconsin Higher Education Grant (WHEG)
   Wisconsin Tuition Grant (WTG)
   Talent Incentive Program (TIP) Grant
   Hearing & Visually Handicapped Student Grant
   Indian Student Assistance Grant
   Minority Undergraduate Retention Grant
   Minority Teacher Loan
   Nursing Student Loan
   Teacher Education Loan
   Teacher of the Visually Impaired Loan

PLEASE NOTE: As part of the federal Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005, the federal LEAP and SLEAP programs have been removed from the federal Return of Title IV Funds (R2T4) requirements, as of July 1, 2006. The TIP Grant is partially funded by the federal LEAP/SLEAP programs, so if LEAP/SLEAP is no longer required to be included in R2T4, then TIP no longer has to be included in R2T4. You should use the same procedure to return TIP funds to HEAB as you do to return your WHEG/WTG or any other state funds.

The Refund Template is available as Appendix #19 of this manual.

All refunds should be mailed to:

State of Wisconsin Higher Educational Aids Board
Refund Processing
P.O. Box 7885
Madison, WI 53707-7885

back to Table of Contents

MN-WI Tuition Reciprocity Program provides tuition reciprocity for Wisconsin residents who enroll in an eligible Minnesota public institution program on a space available basis. Students who qualify pay the established reciprocity fee for course work that is available at public institutions in Wisconsin. Professional students enrolling in a Doctor of Medicine, a Doctor of Dental Sciences, or a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program are not eligible for tuition reciprocity under this program.

HEAB electronically sends out two reports necessary for the administration of the program. They are the Certification List and the Enrollment Report. The Certification List is generated by HEAB on a regular basis and sent electronically to all participating Minnesota schools. The list gives each school a complete list of approved reciprocity students listed by HEAB as attending that school. New approvals are marked with the numeral “1”. This list is information only and requires no response. The Enrollment Report is generated by HEAB three times a year in the fall, spring and summer and sent electronically to all participating Minnesota schools. The report is a complete list of all students that HEAB have as attending that school.

The school is required to verify that each student is or is not attending for the current semester and, if the student is attending, verify the correct number of credits the student is taking and the tuition the student was charged.

CERTIFICATION LIST

There are eleven fields on the Certification List. Following is a field by field breakdown on how to read and use the Certification List.

1. SSN

   The student’s social security number.

2. NAME

   The student’s last name, first name and middle initial.

3. STREET

   The student’s street address.

4. CITY

   The student’s city of residence.

5. ZIP

   The student’s zip code.

6. APPDATE

   The date the application was entered into the HEAB computer system.

7. REPORT CODE

   If the number in this column is a "1" this student is a new add for the Certification List for this school.

8. FSTELTRM

   The first term the student is eligible for reciprocity in the current academic year.

   1 = Fall
   2 = Spring
   3 = Summer

9. TYPE

   A student’s reciprocity status type.

   Initial = A new application has been processed for the student.
   Renewal = The student has been rolled over from the previous year.

10. YRIN

    The student’s current year in school.

    1 = Freshman (Undergraduate)
    2 = Sophomore (Undergraduate)
    3 = Junior (Undergraduate)
    4 = Senior (Undergraduate)
    5 = 5th Year or Special
    6 = Graduate
    0 = Law (Graduate)

11. COUNT

    A number used by HEAB to calculate total numbers of students.

ENROLLMENT STATUS REPORT

There are nine fields on the Enrollment Report. Following is a field by field breakdown on how to read and use the Enrollment Report.

1. TERM CODE

   The 3-digit code that relates specifically to the semester in which the Enrollment Status Report has been generated. It combines the academic year with the semester.

   Example:
   2002-03 Fall Semester = 231
   2002-03 Spring Semester = 232

2. SCHOOL CODE

   The school’s three digit school code as assigned by HEAB.

3. PG#

   The page number. There are 20 lines per page.

4. SSN

   The student’s social security number

5. NE/WD

   If a student did not enroll or withdrew during the academic term covered by the report, this information should be entered in this column by the school. Students who have had their residency status changed to Minnesota resident should also be reported here.

   NOTE: Only students who withdrew before the end of the refund period should be reported. Students who withdrew after the end of the refund period should be reported as though they remained for the entire semester. If a school changes the resident status of a student to MN RES, they should NOT fill in the credits earned or tuition paid columns.

   NE = Not enrolled
   WD = Withdrawn
   MN RES = Minnesota Resident

6. STUDENT NAME

   The student’s last name, first name and middle initial.

7. STUDENT’S YEAR IN SCHOOL

   The student’s current year in school. This area should be filled in by the school.

   1 = Freshman (Undergraduate)
   2 = Sophomore (Undergraduate)
   3 = Junior (Undergraduate)
   4 = Senior (Undergraduate)
   5 = 5th Year or Special (Undergraduate)
   6 = Graduate
   0 = Law (Graduate)

8. CREDITS

   The number of credits the student took for the time period covered by the report. The credits can be reported in three categories:

   Undergraduate
   Graduate
   Professional

9. TUITION

   The amount of tuition the student was charged for the time period covered by the report. Tuition charges can be reported in three categories;

   Undergraduate
   Graduate
   Professional

back to Table of Contents

Every year, near the end of the fall semester, HEAB sends out a request to all participating schools asking for an estimate of the total dollars that a school thinks it will voucher for the current academic year.

This information is important as it allows HEAB to project spending levels for the current year and ensure that there will not be a short fall in funding. In addition, it allows HEAB to project future levels of spending and helps in the setting of formulas for the next year as well as funding level requests for future budgetary cycles.

This request is sent electronically via e-mail. It can be completed and returned via e-mail or it can be printed off and returned to HEAB by mail.

Following is sample text of the of the request:

back to Table of Contents

One of the responsibilities given to HEAB is to audit participating schools to ensure that all rules and regulations are being followed in a consistent manner. The audit also gives HEAB the opportunity help school staffs identify and solve any problems that might be occurring. HEAB's goal is to audit all participating schools at least once every three years. Any school selected for an on-site audit by HEAB will be notified at least 2 weeks prior to the date the audit team will be visiting.

Following is an outline of the procedures (not inclusive) that are included in a HEAB audit:

1. Select all students who meet the following requirements:
   1. the student was selected for federal student financial assistance testwork, and

   2. the student received State of Wisconsin HEAB funds from a HEAB program.

2. Review the documentation in the student files selected for testing to assure that the school complied with the following requirements:
   1. Student recipients of State grant aid were Wisconsin residents within Section 36.27 of the Wisconsin statutes; met federal citizenship requirements for Title IV participation; were undergraduates or graduate students depending on the individual program requirements; and were enrolled at least half-time in a degree granting program.

   2. Student recipients of State grant aid did not exceed the maximum length of eligibility.

   3. Any adjustments to student status including: marital classification, EFC, dependency status, size of household, and the year in school were sent to HEAB.

   4. Student recipients had sufficient financial need, as documented by the financial aid officer, to qualify for the amount of State grant aid received.

   5. Student recipients met all other program specific requirements, e.g. minority status.

   6. All adjustments to the family contribution and needs analysis as made by the financial aid officer were documented to the standard required by the Federal regulations.

   7. State student aid checks were recorded, processed, disbursed and, if necessary, refunded to HEAB with standard accounting and security procedures and within the time standards set by HEAB.

At the conclusion of an on-site audit, there will be an exit meeting to discuss the preliminary findings with school staff. A written report will be issued in a timely manner once HEAB staff returns to the office.

In lieu of an audit, HEAB has the option of collecting an annual internal audit that includes information on the handling of student financial aid. This can be on an individual school or system-wide basis.

HEAB currently requests that each individual school or sector submit an annual audit document for review.

HEAB has developed an audit guide to be used by the schools and their auditors. This guide is available on the HEAB webpage in the "Information for Financial Aid Administrators" section.

back to Table of Contents

At times, circumstances may occur when a financial aid official may be in a position where he or she will be reviewing a financial aid application for him/herself or an immediate family member. This type of review contains the possibility of a conflict of interest for the FAO involved. It is very important that there be no conflict or the appearance of a conflict.

To avoid a conflict of interest, the FAO must:

1. NOT award or process any state aid for him/herself or an immediate family;

2. Have a supervisor review the circumstances and make the eligibility determination; and

3. If it is determined that there is eligibility for aid, have the supervisor write a letter to the Executive Secretary of HEAB explaining the circumstances involved and asking for an exception to award the aid.

The decision of the Executive Secretary of HEAB is final.

back to Table of Contents

Every year, per state statute, HEAB is required to collect financial aid data. The collection of this data is extremely important to all sectors of post-secondary education in Wisconsin. This information is used by HEAB, schools, and the Executive and Legislative branches of the state government in order to track trends in financial aid in Wisconsin. The information collected includes all types of aid (state, federal and institutional need and non-need-based).

In order to accomplish this mandate, HEAB annually sends out a Wisconsin Student Support Information System (WISSIS) Data Form. This form is sent out each year to all participating Wisconsin schools in August. The form is to be completed by the school and returned to HEAB by the date specified on the form.

This form is sent electronically via e-mail. The form can be completed and returned via e-mail or it can be printed off and returned to HEAB by mail.

There are a number of questions asked on the WISSIS Data Form. Following is an explanation of each question.

1(a)	The total number of undergraduates enrolled at the school in a degree or certificate program for the academic year who took at least six credits.
1(b)	Using the same student base as 1(a), indicate how many of these students were Wisconsin residents.
2(a)	Using the same student base as 1(b), indicate the number of students who filed a FAFSA and received need-based financial aid. This information should be broken down by class (freshman, sophomore, etc) and by dependent and independent students.
	The number of students broken down by class should equal the total of dependent and independent students.
The rest of the questions are all based on the information in 2(a).
2(b)	Using the same dependent and independent student bases as 2(a) indicate the total cost of attendance. This is done by taking the individual financial aid budget set by the school to determine financial need for either a dependent or independent student and multiplying by the number of dependent and independent students. Once there is a total for the dependent and independent students, these two numbers should be added together to form a total budget for all students at the school.
2(c)	Using the same dependent and independent student bases as 2(a), indicate the total expected family contribution (EFC). This is done by taking the individual EFC's for both the dependent and independent students and adding them. The school should calculate an individual total for both the dependent and independent students. The school should then add the individual totals for a grand total.
2(d)	Using the same dependent and independent student bases as 2(a), indicate the total amount of need-based aid and the number of students who received need-based aid by individual program. If there is need-based aid that is not part of one of the programs listed, please indicate the source of the aid in the space available.
2(e)	Using the same dependent and independent student bases as 2(a), indicate the total amount of non-need-based aid and the number of students who received non-need-based aid by individual program. If there is need-based aid that is not part of one of the programs listed, please indicate the source of the aid in the space provided.

Definitions of Selected WISSIS Terms

Dependent/Independent Student - a student is dependent if he/she does NOT meet at least one of the following criteria:

• born before January 1, 1978,
• married,
• enrolled in a graduate or professional education program,
• have legal dependents other than a spouse,
• orphan or ward of the court (or were a ward of the court until age 18), or
• veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces

Cost of Attendance - the cost of attendance is the sum of:

• the actual tuition and fees or the school's average tuition and fees,
• the cost of room and board (or living expenses for the students who do not contract with the school for room and board),
• the cost of books and supplies,
• an allowance for transportation, and
• an allowance for miscellaneous expenses.

See the Over View of Financial Aid section for more information.

Need-Based - need-based aid is any aid awarded to the student on the basis of financial need. Financial need is calculated by taking the total cost of education and subtracting the EFC. See the Over View of Financial Aid section for more information.

Expected Family Contribution (EFC) - the amount the student and the student's family (if the student is dependent) are expected to contribute to the student's education. This calculation is based on federal methodology. See the Over View of Financial Aid section for more information.

back to Table of Contents

back to Table of Contents

This manual is a working document and will be revised on an ongoing basis.

In those cases where a revision considered for this manual may affect schools and their operations or may affect students receiving aid, the input of the schools will be sought and reviewed. HEAB will make every effort to work with the schools to ensure that any revised policy or procedure has no adverse effects on HEAB customers.

HEAB encourages schools and other customers to suggest possible changes, revisions or additions to the manual. This document is meant to be used by school financial aid officers. To achieve this goal, HEAB wants to produce a manual that meets their needs.

back to Table of Contents

back to Table of Contents

APPENDICES

1. State Statute 36.27 (Residency Determination)

2. Residency Determination Form
   Microsoft Word document [111K]

3. AES Fact Sheet, Rights & Responsibilities of Scholarship Recipients
   Microsoft Word document [195K]

4. Loss of Academic Excellence Scholarship Letter
   Microsoft Word document [266K]

5. Application for Wisconsin Hearing/Visually Handicapped Program
   Microsoft Word document [30K]

6. Application for Indian Student Assistance Grant
   Microsoft Word document [41K]

7. Tribal Education Programs

8. Eligible Minnesota Schools for Tuition Reciprocity

9. Application for Minnesota-Wisconsin Reciprocity Fee Status
   Microsoft Word document [103K]

10. Application for Minority Retention Grant Program
    Microsoft Word document [33K]

11. Minority Teacher Loan Program Recipient Agreement
    Microsoft Word document [37K]

12. Nursing Student Loan Program Recipient Agreement
    Microsoft Word document [30K]

13. TIP Institutional Nomination Form
    Microsoft Word document [61K]

14. Teacher of the Visually Impaired Loan Program Recipient Agreement
    Microsoft Word document [267K]

15. WHEG and TG Formulas

16. File Maintenance Template
    Microsoft Excel template [14K]

17. File Maintenance Template for TG Schools with Multiple Tuition Levels
    Microsoft Excel template [14K]

18. Voucher Procedure Template
    Microsoft Excel template [14K]

19. Refund Template
    Microsoft Excel template [20K]

back to Table of Contents