The U. S. Department of Education believes that the cost of a student’s education rests primarily with the student and the student’s family. The primary goal of Emory & Henry College’s financial aid program is to assist students in obtaining the necessary funds to enable attendance at the college. A variety of sources for financial aid, such as federal, state, institutional, and private or outside, creates opportunities for students to finance their education. A student must maintain satisfactory academic progress in order to retain eligibility for financial aid. For a full description of types of financial aid available, application procedures, timeline, and other requirements, please see the Emory & Henry College Financial Aid Handbook found on the college website under Costs & Financial Aid, Resources: http://www.ehc.edu/admissions/cost-financial-aid/resources/handbook.
In compliance with NCAA Division III regulations, the composition of the financial aid package of student-athletes shall be consistent with the established policy of the institution and financial aid procedures for student-athletes shall be the same as for non-athletes. Institutions may not consider athletics ability, leadership, participation or athletic performance in the financial aid packaging. Institutions must submit an annual report to the NCAA that includes data regarding financial aid packages for student-athletes, as well as for non-athlete students. For a summary of NCAA regulations, see: http://gowasps.com/information/compliance/index
Student Responsibilities
A student who desires aid has the following responsibilities: Be a newly admitted or continuing student at the college.
Read the Emory & Henry College Financial Aid Handbook found online under Costs & Financial Aid, Resources.
Apply for financial aid each year by filing a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.gov (beware of any site other than a .gov site).
Complete and submit all required documents to the Financial Aid Office or appropriate agency prior to each semester of enrollment or as requested.
Enroll in a minimum of 12 semester hours each semester or notify the Financial Aid Office in writing of the intent to be less than full time. Some types of aid (see the Emory & Henry College Financial Aid Handbook online) may not be available for less than full-time enrollment.
Maintain satisfactory academic progress, as defined below.
Notify the Financial Aid Office of any unusual change in the family’s financial situation, including any types of aid or outside scholarships being received from sources other than Emory & Henry College, whether paid directly to the student or to the college. This assures that no student is receiving an over-award of federal, state, or institutional funds that may have to be repaid in the future. Over-awards can impact eligibility for future federal, state, or institutional aid.
Use financial aid funds, including student and parent loans, solely for educational purposes, including personal expenses supporting student education.
If an over-award of a loan or grant occurs, repay any amount due within that semester.
If any student loans were taken, complete exit counseling for student loans, when no longer enrolled at least half time.
Provide the Office of the Registrar with current mailing and email addresses, along with home and cellular telephone information.
Students should beware of any person or agency offering scholarship search services for a fee.
Satisfactory Academic Progress
For the purpose of satisfactory academic progress, financial aid includes all federal, state, and Emory & Henry College funded scholarships, grants, discounts, work, and loans.
The 150% Rule
The maximum timeframe for undergraduate students completing degree requirements is six years for full-time study and twelve years for part-time study. Therefore, financial assistance will not be available beyond the maximum timeframes. For a degree requiring 120 credit hours to complete financial aid eligibility ends after 180 credit hours are attempted. For a degree requiring 124 credits to complete financial aid eligibility ends after 186 credit hours are attempted. Withdrawals, and repeated courses, will be counted toward total credits attempted.
Emory & Henry College institutional aid (scholarships and grants) is not available for more than eight (8) semesters - four (4) full-time years of study.
Students should also be aware that by completing the minimum 24 credit hours per year on a full-time basis would not allow the degree to be completed in four (4) years. Students enrolling for 12 credit hours per year on a part-time basis will not be able to complete the degree in eight (8) years.
Quantitative Standards
To be eligible for continued receipt of financial aid, full-time students enrolled in a degree program must complete at least 75% of all attempted credit hours.
Satisfactory progress standards are cumulative and will include all semesters of the student’s enrollment, even those for which the student did not receive student aid.
Qualitative Standards
Grant Point Average Requirements
When progress is reviewed, full and part-time students must meet the cumulative GPA requirement at their level of study. Students are required to have a 1.7 cumulative GPA after their first semester of enrollment. Students are required to have a 1.8 cumulative GPA after their second semester of enrollment; and a 1.9 after their third semester of enrollment. Students are required to have a minimum of a 2.0 cumulative GPA after four semesters of enrollment. If the required CGPA is not met, the student is not eligible for financial aid until it is achieved.
Measurement of Academic Progress
Academic Progress measurement includes the Fall and Spring semesters and will be measured at the end of each semester.
Failures and withdrawals are courses attempted, not completed. Incompletes are not counted towards credits completed until after the coursework is successfully completed and posted by the Registrar. Repeat courses will not count toward credits completed for SAP since the credits were already counted toward the standards the first time the course was completed and the student already received aid for these courses.
When Minimum Standards of Academic Progress are NOT achieved:
The Financial Aid office will notify students who fail to meet these requirements when information on academic progress is available at the end of each semester. Students who fail to meet these requirements the first time will be placed on Financial Aid Warning for the following semester. If the student is still not meeting the minimum standards, their financial aid will be suspended and will not be considered until all standards have been achieved or a successful appeal has been granted. If an appeal has been granted, then the student is placed on Financial Aid probation for the following semester. Under no circumstances will student aid be awarded retroactively to the semester(s) in which the standards were not met.
Students who fail to meet these requirements are encouraged to make up the hours and grade point requirements during the summer sessions at their own expense. Once the Registrar posts the grades and credits for the summer coursework, and if the requirements have been met, the student will be considered for financial aid for the next academic year. Only coursework attempted at Emory & Henry College will contribute to the grade point average. Students with an approved Application for Transfer Credit will receive unit credit only from coursework taken at another institution.
A student who has not made progress may submit an appeal request to the Director of Financial Aid for an extension to meet the progress requirements, if they feel there were circumstances that contributed to not making progress.
Students are encouraged to meet with their Academic Advisor and/or the Dean of Student Success and Retention to create an academic plan to regain satisfactory academic progress. A student filing an appeal must explain, and document, any unusual/extraordinary circumstances that prevented their academic success and also submit their advisor approved academic plan. All appeals should be sent to the Director of Financial Aid. The student will be contacted in writing regarding the outcome of the appeal.
Dropped Courses
A course that is dropped during the drop/add period will not be considered as an attempted course. A course that is dropped after the drop/add period will be considered as attempted and not completed. Therefore, that course will count against a student’s completion rate.
Readmitted Students
In order for a readmitted student to be eligible to receive financial aid that student must meet SAP standards at the time of readmission. If a student left the college in an ineligible status then, the student is still required to attain the required SAP standards before becoming eligible to receive financial aid.
Transfer Students
A transfer student who enrolls at Emory & Henry will be considered to be maintaining satisfactory progress for their first academic year of their enrollment. At the end of a transfer student’s first academic year of enrollment, progress will be reviewed in the same manner as for all other students.
Transfer Credits and Credit by Exam
Credits earned through courses transferred from other institutions, through examination or testing (such as Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) exams) or through dual credit programs will be considered when determining a student’s completion rate and maximum timeframe. Only the GPA earned on hours completed at Emory & Henry will be considered when evaluating the cumulative GPA.
Withdrawals
A student who withdraws from Emory & Henry after a semester has begun will have his or her satisfactory academic progress standing re-evaluated at the end of the academic year in which the withdrawal occurred. A student who was in good standing prior to the withdrawal will remain eligible to receive financial aid until their standing is re-evaluated. If a student withdraws from Emory & Henry while on financial aid probation, he or she will be immediately declared ineligible to receive financial aid and must submit an appeal to have his or her standing re- evaluated.
Incomplete Courses
A course in which a student receives an “incomplete” grade will be counted against the student’s completion rate for the period being evaluated. An “incomplete” grade will not be included in calculating the cumulative GPA used for the period being evaluated. When the “incomplete” grade is replaced with a final grade in the course, that student’s SAP status will be re-evaluated to determine his or her final standing.
Failed Courses
A course in which the student receives a failing grade will be considered toward the cumulative GPA, semester hours attempted, and whether a student is making satisfactory academic progress.
Repeated Courses
The hours attempted/earned for a repeat course will be considered toward the cumulative semester hours attempted/earned. The grade earned in the most recent satisfactory completion of the course will be included in the cumulative GPA.
Terms for Disbursement of Aid
All financial aid administered by Emory & Henry College is credited directly to the student’s tuition account in the college’s Business Office, with the exception of Federal work-study wages which are disbursed in the form of paychecks or direct deposit to the students each month following submission of a timesheet. For each regular semester a student is enrolled in at least 12 semester hours and eligible to receive aid, one-half of his or her total financial aid award for that academic year is credited to his or her account after the end of the registration add/drop period, as actual funds are received from the source of the financial aid. All financial aid funds are disbursed with priority given to students who complete the application process by the deadlines specified in the Financial Aid Office. Late applicants, even if qualified, may fail to receive funds. Students who have not previously made arrangements to be less than full time and had their aid appropriately recalculated will find their financial aid adjusted after the end of the add/drop period of registration, based on the number of hours for which they actually enroll.
The college may withhold payment of financial aid funds, in whole or in part, for any semester during which any of the following conditions is found to exist:
The student fails to comply with all federal aid regulations;
The student is not maintaining satisfactory academic progress as defined above;
The student is in default on a loan made from any student loan funds or on a loan made, issued, or guaranteed under any of the federal loan programs; or
The student is not enrolled at least half-time in a degree program.
Veterans Benefit Delayed Policy
Students using Chapter 33 Post 9/11 GI Bill or Chapter 31 Voc Rehab benefits will be allowed to enroll even though VA has not yet paid tuition and fees to the college by the published payment deadline. These students will not be assessed a late penalty fee. The student must produce the VA’s Certificate of Eligibility by the first day of class in order for the tuition amounts to be certified. The VA certifying Official will notify the Business Office of all students that are eligible for Chapter 33 and Chapter 31 benefits.
For more detailed information on any financial aid program or on application procedures, visit the Costs and Financial Aid section of the college website (particularly the Financial Aid Handbook under Resources) or contact the Financial Aid Office at Emory & Henry. Current or prospective students and their parents are welcome to make an appointment to talk in person with the Financial Aid Staff. Please write the Financial Aid Office, Emory & Henry College, P. O. Box 947, Emory, Virginia 24327-0947; email ehfinaid@ehc.edu; or call 276-944-6940.
Refunds in the Event of Withdrawal from the College
The college operates on an annual budget that necessitates advance planning and financial commitments to teaching staff and others whose services are essential to its operation. For this reason, no semester charges are removed for those persons who are dismissed from the college for disciplinary reasons. Likewise, students who withdraw from the college, even for illness or other emergencies, receive no refunds of room rent or other fees. Adjustments for tuition and board are pro-rated as indicated below. The date of withdrawal used to compute a student’s balance is the date on which the Dean of Students signs the official college withdrawal form. The student who leaves school at one date and waits to withdraw officially at a later date receives appropriate adjustments based on the date of official withdrawal. For an explanation of the procedures for official withdrawal, consult the catalog section on Academic Policies.
Student Account Adjustments for College Withdrawals During the Regular Academic Year
Before the first class 100% (less advance deposits)
Before end of first week of class 90% adjustment to tuition and meals
Before end of second week of class 75% adjustment to tuition and meals
Before end of third week of class 50% adjustment to tuition and meals
Before end of fourth week of class 25% adjustment to tuition and meals No adjustments are made to tuition or meals after the fourth week of class.
During Summer Session
During first week of session 75% adjustment to tuition No adjustment to tuition after first week of summer session
Financial Aid Adjustments
Federal regulations require financial aid funds to be awarded under the assumption that a student will attend the institution for the entire period in which federal assistance was awarded. When a student withdraws from all courses for any reason, including medical withdrawals, he/she may no longer be eligible for the full amount of funds that he/she was originally scheduled to receive. The return of federal funds is based upon the premise that students earn their financial aid in proportion to the amount of time in which they are enrolled. A prorated schedule is used to determine the amount of federal student aid funds he/she will have earned at the time of the withdrawal. Thus, a student who withdraws in the second week of class has earned less of his/her financial aid than a student who withdraws in the seventh week. Once 60 percent of the semester is completed, a student is considered to have earned all of his/her financial aid and will not be required to return any funds to the federal government. Federal law requires schools to calculate how much federal financial aid a student has earned if that student completely withdraws OR stops attending before completing the semester. Therefore, return of federal funds may result in a balance due to the college. In such case, the entire balance is due to the college immediately.
Refunds in the Event of Withdrawal from a Class
The schedule of refunds for withdrawal from a class is different from the above. No adjustments are granted for a course dropped later than seven calendar days after registration day. For full details on the procedures to be completed for official withdrawals, see the catalog section on Academic Policies. Note that the timetable for withdrawal from class without academic penalty is different from the timetable for withdrawal accompanied by refund.
Refunds of Excess Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid funds, including student and/or parent loans, are entitled to a refund of any excess funds remaining after all current charges, in accordance with federal regulations, have been paid in full. Please note that financial aid may be subject to change before refund calculation if a student is not enrolled full time at the end of the registration drop/add period. Refunds will not be made from any funds that have not been credited to the student’s account in the Centralized Student Assistance Office. A refund will automatically be issued for an account with a credit balance unless the student (or parent for a PLUS loan) signs an Account Authorization Form which authorizes the college to hold the funds in excess of current charges on the student’s account, or refund only the credit balance after bookstore and other authorized charges are deducted. Any student whose refund is the result of a parent PLUS Loan must have that parent authorize in writing if the refund goes to the student rather than to the parent(s). Refunds will be generated within fourteen days after financial aid is transferred to the student’s account.
Perkins Loan Exit Interviews
Students receiving Perkins Loans while at Emory & Henry must complete an exit interview at mycampusloan.com upon leaving the college, in accordance with federal regulations. All students will be notified by email with appropriate information regarding the interview process. All students who fail to complete the interview will be ineligible to receive transcripts and/or diplo