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• Standards of Progress Policy • Title IV Refund Policy •

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In order to comply with Title IV Department of Education regulations, JJC Financial Aid Office (FAO) has set Standards of Progress policy for financial aid. According to federal and state guidelines, students must maintain these standards in order to be eligible to receive and maintain financial assistance. Continuing students at JJC and students who are transferring from other schools must meet all criteria of the Financial Aid Standards of Progress policy each enrolled semester to be eligible for financial aid. These three requirements pertain to all students applying for financial aid whether or not you received financial aid in the past.

THE FINANCIAL AID PROGRAMS LISTED BELOW FOLLOW THESE GUIDELINES.

Federal Direct Student Loans
Federal Pell Grant
Federal SEOG Grant
Federal Work Study
ISAC MAP (Illinois Student Assistance Commission Monetary Award Program)
ISAC IIA (Illinois Student Assistance Commission Illinois Incentive for Access)

1. COMPLETION RATE REQUIREMENT - at the end of each semester, a student must have satisfactorily completed 66.66% of cumulative attempted hours. If a student completely withdraws from his/her courses, he/she may have to repay a portion of his/her financial aid. Before withdrawing from a course, a student should consult with a financial aid advisor to check future financial aid eligibility. In addition, if you stop attending class, you are not automatically dropped from your courses. Students are responsible for withdrawing from their courses. Note: Besides letter grades of A, B, C, and D, cumulative attempted credit hours also include "F", "W", "I" (equivalent to a F until complete), "TE" grades and any accepted transfer credits from other institutions.  In addition, remedial courses are counted toward the total number of hours permitted under financial aid.

Examples:

*For incompletes, a student must notify the FAO when he/she has received the final grade. Incompletes are converted to F’s, if not completed by 3 weeks into the next semester . 

2. GRADE POINT AVERAGE (GPA) REQUIREMENT - a student must maintain a grade point average that is consistent with the graduation requirements for his/her program along with the minimal grade point average as indicated below:

3. ATTEMPTED CREDIT HOURS REQUIREMENT – a student who has attempted credit hours in excess of 150% of the program's required hours is immediately terminated and ineligible for Title IV financial aid. NOTE: Beside letter grades of A, B, C, and D, attempted credit hours also include “F”, “W”, “I”, “TE” grades and any accepted transfer credits from other institutions. In addition, remedial courses are counted toward the total number of hours permitted under financial aid.

Example:
A student pursuing a 64 credit hour Associate degree program may attempt 96 credit hours for that particular degree program. The calculation is as follows:

Number of credit hours for degree from catalog X 1.5 = total amount of attempted credit hours 
             (64 credit hours X 1.5 = 96 hours)

If a student changes his/her major, the number of attempted credit hour limit may also change. Please consult with a financial aid advisor if this should occur.

NOTE: If a student does not comply with all the three requirements at the end of the semester, he/she will be placed on either financial aid probation or termination status. If placed on probation, a student will receive aid for one semester. While on probation, if a student fails to comply with the standards for a second consecutive semester, the student will be terminated from financial aid. When terminated, a written notice of ineligibility will be mailed to the student along with a copy of the of the appeal procedures. A student can appeal for reinstatement of his/her financial aid. Please follow reinstatement procedure # 1 below.

REINSTATEMENT PROCEDURE – Please review the options below carefully.
1. A student may appeal his/her termination status only. An appeal form and required supporting documentation must be submitted to the Standards of Progress Appeal Committee. The form can be obtained from the financial aid office. Please follow the steps closely on the appeal form. The committee will review all complete appeal requests. The decision of the Standards of Progress Appeal Committee is final.

Submission of an appeal form does not guarantee reinstatement of financial aid. A student is still responsible for payment of classes until the appeal committee has reviewed the appeal and supporting documentation. A student may seek out other funding sources (ex: Dislocated Workers, Department of Rehabilitation Services, Displaced Homemakers, etc.) or use his/her own resources to pay for the classes. If the appeal is approved, the student will be reimbursed accordingly.

2. If a student does not appeal or the appeal is denied, a student must meet all standards of progress guidelines during the semester(s) in which he/she does not apply for and/or receive financial aid. This means the student must maintain his/her GPA, complete 66.67% of his/her coursework and do not exceed the attempted credit hour limit for his/her program. The student must contact the Financial Aid Office in writing so a financial aid advisor can review the student’s academic record and consider him/her for reinstatement.

ACADEMIC SUPPORT
If a student is having difficulty with his/her courses, he/she should seek out assistance from his/her instructor and/or contact one of the following departments for academic support:

OFFICE	LOCATION	PHONE NUMBER
Counseling	J-1037	(815) 280-2673
Career Planning and Placement	D-1010	(815) 280-2756
Project Achieve	H-1001	(815) 280-2456
Academic Skills Offices	J-2033	(815) 280-2284
StAR	J-2009	(815) 280-2613

 

 

 

 

PLEASE TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THESE SERVICES.

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