| PublicationDate: 7/1/95 ChapterNumber: 2 ChapterTitle: General Institutional Responsibilities SectionNumber: 5 SectionTitle: Institutional Policies and Procedures Manual PageNumbers: 40-42 2.5 Institutional Policies and Procedures Manual ((Required written policies)) The law requires schools to have written policies and procedures related to many aspects of administering Title IV programs, including: - student consumer information, - verification, - satisfactory academic progress, - institutional refund and repayment, - Title IV refund and repayment, and - loan disclosure statements and fact sheets (this particular requirement does not apply to Direct Loans). ((Advantages of policies and procedures manual)) Although the law does not require schools to maintain these written policies and procedures in a manual, schools generally find that creating such a manual helps them be more effective, efficient, and consistent in managing financial aid programs. A comprehensive institutional policies and procedures manual is a valuable tool that can: - document how and when the school's required written policies and procedures were established, - provide the content of all required written policies and procedures in one location, - standardize general operating procedures for consistency and fair treatment of all students, and - serve as a reference guide and training resource. A policies and procedures manual can also prove extremely valuable when the school undergoes a compliance audit or program review. ((Business procedures manual)) Many institutions have business procedures manuals to cover fiscal matters, such as accounting, budgeting, payroll, personnel, and the like. However, due to the broad scope and complexity of financial aid programs, it is wise to develop a separate financial aid policies and procedures manual. This manual should address policies and procedures that affect all aspects of financial aid administration from the perspectives of both the business office and the financial aid office. ((Suggested topics for manuals)) In addition to the required written policies listed at the beginning of this section (section 2.5), a comprehensive policies and procedures manual would include: - an overview of the institution itself, its mission, its students, and its philosophies, - descriptions of all federal, state, and institutional aid programs, including application procedures, award amounts, and eligibility requirements, - descriptions of the organizational structures of the financial aid office and the business office, - a statement of the institution's policy for awarding financial aid (commonly referred to as the "packaging policy"), - procedures for processing financial aid applications, - all procedures used in recordkeeping and reporting, - calendars of activities, including dates and deadlines for students, - procedures for evaluating business office and financial aid office operations, and - copies of forms, applications, standard correspondence, and other printed materials routinely used by the financial aid office and business office and/or distributed to students. |