(ANN-19-04) Training Workshops – Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration (Updated May 21, 2020)

Note: As we announced last month, due to the unprecedented disruptions caused by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emergency, we canceled several Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration workshops. We have now made the difficult but necessary decision to cancel the remaining in-person workshops for the current cycle (through September 2020), to ensure the health and safety of both participants and trainers.

If you are registered for one of the canceled workshops, we will be reaching out to you in the near future to provide information about next steps.

If you are not currently registered for a workshop but are required to attend this training to fulfill participation requirements for the Title IV programs, please contact your regional School Participation Division office for further guidance. Contact information can be found on the Electronic Application for Approval to Participate in the Federal Student Financial Aid Programs (E-App) home page.

Please monitor the IFAP website and the Federal Student Aid E-Training website for forthcoming announcements about the status of future workshops.

Thank you for your interest in our training efforts, and we appreciate your understanding. If you have questions, please send an email to coursehelp.fsatraining@ed.gov.

Dear Colleague:

We are pleased to announce our Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration training workshops scheduled for November 2019 through September 2020. Each in-person workshop is three and one-half days in length and is conducted at either one of the Department of Education’s regional training facilities or at a space near a regional training facility.

Please note that all participants wishing to register for and attend a Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration workshop must first successfully complete an online, prerequisite course titled FSA Coach Fundamentals 2019–20. Together, the online course and in-person workshop comprise the Fundamentals Training Series.

We are pleased to announce that we are offering two workshops that are exclusively for schools with clock-hour programs. These clock-hour-only workshops are scheduled for February 25–28, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia and May 5–8, 2020 in Dallas, Texas. Please note that only schools with clock-hour programs will be allowed to attend these workshops. Clock-hour schools may, however, enroll in any workshop that is listed in this announcement and are not limited to the two listed above. All workshops cover material applicable to clock-hour schools.

The following Questions and Answers provide important information about the workshops.

Q1: Who must attend the training?

A1: If your school meets either of the following criteria, you must attend the Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration training:

• Your school is applying to participate in the Title IV federal student aid programs for the first time, and needs to fulfill the Fundamentals training requirement to complete your certification, or

• Your school is undergoing a change of ownership (in some instances).

Questions about these requirements should be directed to the regional School Participation Division office that serves your school. Contact information can be found on the Electronic Application for Approval to Participate in the Federal Student Financial Aid Programs (E-App) home page.

If your school meets one of the criteria above, you must ensure that the Owner/President/CEO (or their high-level school official designee) and Financial Aid Administrator attend and complete Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration training. Both the Owner/President/CEO (or their high-level school official designee) and the Financial Aid Administrator must complete the online course and attend all three and one-half days of the in-person workshop to fulfill the requirement. Please note that these two officials may attend different workshops; they do not need to attend the same session or same location. To get started, see Q6: How do I register for the training?

Q2: Who may attend the training?

A2: Individuals who do not meet the criteria as outlined above but wish to attend as a refresher or as basic training on the Title IV programs may attend.

Q3: I work at a clock-hour school. May I attend any training session?

A3: Yes. A clock-hour school may attend any training listed in this announcement.

Q4: I work at a credit-hour school. May I attend any training session?

A4: A credit-hour school may attend any training listed in this announcement except for the workshops scheduled for February 25–28, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia and May 5–8, 2020 in Dallas, Texas. These workshops are reserved specifically for clock-hour schools.

Q5: What will the training cover?

A5: The online course, FSA Coach Fundamentals 2019–20 and the in-person workshop, Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration, address the following topics:

• What are the Title IV federal student aid programs?

• How does a school obtain and maintain institutional eligibility?

• What must a school do to request and receive funds from the Department of Education?

• What policies and procedures does a school need to have in place?

• How does a school process aid for its students by determining eligibility, calculating financial need, packaging aid, adjusting aid, and recalculating aid?

• What are the requirements for disbursing aid to students?

• What must a school do in regard to exit interviews and calculating a return of Title IV aid (R2T4)?

• What are the reporting requirements for a school?

Q6: How do I register for the training?

A6: Anyone wishing to attend the in-person, three and one-half day workshop, Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration, must first successfully complete the online, self-paced prerequisite course, FSA Coach Fundamentals 2019–20. Please plan ahead and complete the online training so that you can register for the in-person workshop you want to attend.

After successfully completing the online course, you will be provided a link to register for one of the in-person Fundamentals of Federal Student Aid Administration workshops. If you are unable to attend, we require that you cancel your registration so that other individuals who wish to attend may do so. Your seat in the workshop is reserved until you cancel your registration.

Note: Each person wishing to attend the in-person workshop must register with their own, unique email address. The registration system will allow an email address to be used only once for registration.

To access the online FSA Coach Fundamentals 2019–20 course and receive information about the registration process, follow these steps:

Note: The FSA Coach Fundamentals 2019–20 online training course will be available on August 1, 2019.

1. Go to the Federal Student Aid E-Training website, located at https://fsatraining.ed.gov.

2. Log in to Federal Student Aid E-Training with your username and password.

   If you do not have a username and password for Federal Student Aid E-Training, click on "Create new account" on the home page and follow the instructions to create a username and password.

3. After logging in, click on the “Fundamentals Training Series” box in the middle of the home page (identified with a graduation cap icon).

4. Click on the “Let’s Get Started” tab and click on the link in the first bullet.

5. Click on Self Enrollment for the “FSA Coach Fundamentals 2019–20” course and proceed with the training.

Q7: When and where are the in-person training workshops?

A7: The in-person training workshops will be offered November 2019 through September 2020 at one of the Department of Education’s regional training facilities or at a nearby space. The schedule and location information is as follows:

Workshop hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday. Owners/Presidents/CEOs have additional classes Wednesday and Thursday that begin at 8 a.m.

Note: This information is provided for planning purposes only. As a reminder, you may not register for one of the in-person workshops until you have completed the online FSA Coach Fundamentals 2019–20 course and have received the registration link. Directions to each training workshop and information about nearby hotels will be available through our registration system and can also be found at Federal Student Aid E-Training by clicking on the “Fundamentals Training Series” box in the middle of the home page and choosing the “Let’s Get Started” tab.

Q8: Is there a charge to attend the workshop? What do I need to bring?

A8: There is no charge to attend the workshop; please note that meals or refreshments are not provided.

Once you have registered, your registration confirmation email will provide specific instructions for the downloading and printing of all workshop materials. In an effort to reduce cost and provide the most current information in our training, we will not have printed material available the day of training. We recommend you bring pens/pencils, highlighters, and a calculator.

Q9: Will I receive a workshop record of completion?

A9: Upon successful completion of the in-person workshop, attendees may access their “Record of Learning” through the dedicated Dashboard menu link on the home page of the E-Training website. You will be able to view and print your Completed Learning page as proof of completion of the Fundamentals Training Series.

We look forward to your participation in this training opportunity. If you have questions about the Fundamentals Training Series or the registration process, please send an email to coursehelp.fsatraining@ed.gov.

Sincerely,

Federal Student Aid