Maintained for Historical Purposes

This resource is being maintained for historical purposes only and is not currently applicable.

Federal Work-Study Program - Introduction

AwardYear: 1997-1998
EnterChapterNo: 7
EnterChapterTitle: Federal Work-Study Program
SectionNumber:
SectionTitle: Introduction
PageNumbers: 1-3


[[34 CFR 673.1]]
The Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program encourages the part-time
employment of undergraduate and graduate students who need the
income to help pay for their cost of education, and encourages FWS
recipients to participate in community service activities. Since the
beginning of the 1994-95 award year, schools have been required to
utilize money from their FWS Program funds to compensate students
employed in community service jobs. (See below.)

RECENT CHANGES TO THE FWS PROGRAM

[[NEW]]
Part 673 has been added to the regulations as "Part 673--General
Provisions for the Federal Perkins Loan Program, Federal Work-
Study Program, and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity
Grant Program," published in the Federal Register (Part IV) on
November 27, 1996. Part 673 consolidates common provisions of the
campus-based programs (formerly found in Parts 674, 675, and 676),
and eliminates duplicate provisions for each program. The
regulations, which are effective July 1, 1997, are discussed in the
Introduction to Chapter 5 of this Handbook.

[[34 CFR 675.26(d)(2)]]
The regulations published November 27 also add a new provision,
authorizing a 100% federal share of FWS wages earned by a student
who is employed as a reading tutor for children who are in preschool
through elementary school. The work performed by the student must
be for the school itself, for a federal, state or local agency, or for a
private nonprofit organization. (See Section 5 of this chapter.)

[[34 CFR 668.163]]
Requirements for maintaining and accounting for Student Financial
Assistance (SFA) program funds are included in regulations
published in the Federal Register November 29, 1996 and become
effective July 1, 1997. The new cash management requirements that
apply specifically to the campus-based programs are discussed in
Chapter 5, Section 3. The new provisions that apply to all SFA
programs are discussed in detail in Chapter 3, Section 3. Section 5 of
this chapter also provides information on fiscal procedures and
records.

[[Recordkeeping--34 CFR 668.24 and 34 CFR 675.19]]
New recordkeeping requirements for all SFA programs were
published in the Federal Register November 27, 1996 and become
effective July 1, 1997. These regulations specify the length of time
records must be kept and the formats in which they must be kept.
These new requirements as they apply in general to all SFA
programs are discussed in Chapter 3, Section 7. For information on
how these requirements apply specifically to the campus-based
programs, see Chapter 5, Section 3.

Work-Colleges Program

The Higher Education Amendments of 1992 authorized the Work-
Colleges Program. Schools that satisfy the definition of "work-
college" may apply with the U.S. Department of Education to
participate in the program. A work-college may transfer funds from
its allocation for the FWS Program and/or Federal Perkins Loan
Program to fund the school's Work-Colleges Program.

[[Purpose of Work-Colleges Program]]
The Work-Colleges Program recognizes, encourages, and promotes
the use of comprehensive work-learning programs as a valuable
educational approach when used as an integral part of the school's
educational program and as a part of a financial plan that decreases
reliance on grants and loans. The program also encourages students
to participate in community service activities.

[[Definition of work-college]]
The term "work-college" is defined as an eligible institution*1* that

- is a public or private nonprofit school with a commitment to
community service;

- has operated a COMPREHENSIVE WORK-LEARNING
PROGRAM for at least two years;

- provides students participating in the comprehensive work-
learning program with the opportunity to contribute to their
education and to the welfare of the community as a whole;

- requires all students who reside on campus to participate in a
comprehensive work-learning program; and

- requires providing services as an integral part of the school's
educational program and as part of the school's educational
philosophy.

A "comprehensive student work-learning program" is defined as a
student work/service program that

- is an integral and stated part of the institution's educational
philosophy and program;

- requires participation of all resident students for enrollment,
participation, and graduation;

- includes learning objectives, evaluation, and a record of work
performance as part of the student's college record;

- provides programmatic leadership by college personnel at levels
comparable to traditional academic programs;

- recognizes the educational role of work-learning supervisors; and

- includes consequences for nonperformance or failure in the work-
learning program similar to the consequences for failure in the
regular academic program.

Additional requirements for the Work-Colleges Program are
found in 34CFR 675, Subpart C.


*1* See Chapter 3, Section 1 for the definition of an eligible
institution.