Posted Date:January 17, 2018
| Author: | Federal Student Aid |
Subject: Application for Participation in the Work Colleges Program
This Electronic Announcement provides information about the application process for schools interested in participating in the Work Colleges Program under the Federal Work-Study Program for the 2018–19 Award Year. To participate in this program the school must comply with all provisions of Section 448 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and the applicable program regulations included in Subpart C of 34 CFR Part 675.
Any school interested in participating in the Work Colleges Program for the 2018–19 Award Year (including schools that are participating in the 2017–18 Award Year) must apply electronically, no later than March 5, 2018, and the application must be signed by the school’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Important: The Work Colleges Application is not an application to participate in the Federal Work-Study Program.
Applying for Participation in the Work Colleges Program for the 2018–19 Award Year
A school interested in participating in the Work Colleges Program must submit a completed "Institutional Application and Agreement for Participation in the Work Colleges Program" for the 2018–19 Award Year to the Department of Education (the Department) electronically via the eCampus-Based (eCB) website. To access the application, log in to eCB, click on "Setup" at the top right side of the screen, and then click on "Work Colleges Application."
Instructions for completing the "Institutional Application and Agreement for Participation in the Work Colleges Program" are attached to this Electronic Announcement in the document titled "2018–19 Work Colleges Application Instructions." The application provides a detailed definition of a Work College. The Work Colleges Application form (also attached below) is provided for reference only. As noted above, the application must be submitted electronically through the eCB website.
Note: Due to the transition of the Campus-Based programs to the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System in March 2018, the eCB website will be closed to schools effective February 6, 2018. If your school is unable to complete the electronic submission of the Work Colleges Application and Agreement in eCB by February 5th, but still wishes to apply before the March 5th deadline, contact the Campus-Based Call Center for assistance, using the contact information provided at the end of this announcement.
See the December 21, 2017 Electronic Announcement: eCampus-Based Transition #2 – Campus-Based Process Transition Timeline December 2017-March 2018 for more information.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Signature Required
In addition to electronic submission, the application and agreement must be signed by the school’s CEO using either of the two signature options described below. The CEO is the person designated as such on the school’s Program Participation Agreement (PPA/ECAR) as submitted through the Department’s Electronic Application for Approval to Participate in the Federal Student Financial Aid Programs (E-App) at https://eligcert.ed.gov.
- eSignature: After the application has been submitted through the eCB system, it may then be signed by the CEO electronically through the eSignature tab within eCB. Instructions for completing the eSignature process are available through the Help Tab.
- Manual Signature: If you choose to submit the signature for the Work Colleges Application manually, you must print the submitted Work Colleges Application and Agreement form from the “Work Colleges Application” link at the top of the “Setup” page within eCB. Manual signature pages must be postmarked by March 5, 2018.
The original signature must be mailed or hand delivered to:
United States Department of Education
Federal Student Aid
Grants & Campus-Based Division
Work Colleges Program
830 First Street, NE, Rm 63C5
Washington, DC 20202-5453
If the printed and signed application and agreement is to be hand delivered by a commercial courier, you must use the address provided above, except the zip code will be 20002. Hand-delivered signature pages must be received by 4:30 p.m. Eastern time (ET) on March 5, 2018.
Approval of the Application and Agreement
If a school's application and agreement is approved, we will notify the school’s Financial Aid Administrator via email in the spring 2018. In the email, we will inform the school that its 2018–19 Statement of Account is available for viewing on the COD Web Site. The Work College award will be reflected as an increase to the school’s Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program award.
Contact Information
If you have questions about the information in this announcement or its attachments, contact the Campus-Based Call Center at 1-877-801-7168. Customer service representatives are available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. ET. You may also email CBFOB@ed.gov.