Why Is This Important to The College?

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1 This manual should be used to understand why the College must report enrollment information AND to provide a step-by-process for Faculty to document attendance and grade reporting. College s has (3) online systems as indicated below and explained in this manual. 1. Initial Verification/Attendance Confirmation 2. Tracking Unofficial Withdrawals during the term 3. End of Term Grade Reporting System Why Is This Important to The College? Broward College receives an excess of $100M dollars in federal monies (student financial aid, grants, etc.) for more than two-thirds of its full-time student population recorded by IPEDs Integrated Postsecondary Data System in The numbers of students receiving aid both partand full-time has increased exponentially in the past three years. It is expected that the numbers of students receiving aid will be much higher than prior years. The students expect that the College of their choice has the ability to administer Federal aid programs so that they can afford to supplement their costs of attendance with this aid. The colleges that administer federal and state aid programs are required to comply with guidelines set forth by the respective governmental agencies. The State follows the federal guidelines. These programs are also audited annually for program compliance by the State of Florida and can be also audited by the Federal government through a comprehensive program review if selected for such. FEDERAL GUIDELINES Student aid eligibility is determined by the information provided on the FAFSA (Free Application for Student Aid). Colleges and universities authorized to package, award, and disburse aid to eligible students must follow some BASIC guidelines: 1. Disburse aid to only those students whose attendance can be verified within a specified period at the beginning of the term 2. Adjust the awards for students in all classes on their schedule where attendance cannot be verified, and 3. Return any aid for students who withdraw after the initial enrollment verification period through to the 60% period. Students who receive Federal aid at Broward College, in many cases, receive amounts of aid in excess of the tuition. This is not only true at Broward, but at most community and other state/private colleges and universities where tuition may be less than the amounts of aid students may be eligible to receive through multiple sources. When the latter happens, any excess aid less tuition, fees and books, must be disbursed to students within a specific time frame. This disbursement can be from grants (Federal PELL and other Supplemental Need and Academic Grants and Student Loans). Last updated March 2, 2011

2 The administration of Federal Student Aid programs is a very complex process. However, put quite simply, some action is required from each of the following stakeholders within an educational institution that is authorized to administer these Student Aid Programs. For Students Federal aid cannot be disbursed by the College and students cannot keep aid that has been awarded unless the following occurs: For Faculty Students can demonstrate that attendance has begun in all classes for which they registered Students whose attendance is validated must remain enrolled through the 60% period in order to keep 100% of all aid received for the term and sessions within that term or face loss of that aid. Complete the enrollment verification process using the web-based tools provided within the timeframe specified by the College in compliance with Federal guidelines. Maintain a method (either through taking attendance or a documented assignment) that the student has initially attended during the enrollment verification period. For the College The college has developed web-based systems to assist faculty: initial verification /attendance, enrollment changes during the term for unofficial withdrawals, and end of term grade submission. Initial Verification/Attendance Confirmation Faculty can verify their roster and confirm that the student attended during the enrollment verification period. If the student s attendance does not show a definitive pattern of the student s intent to remain enrolled in the course, the faculty should not verify the student as attended. If the class only meets once while the attendance window is open, and the student does not show for that first class, the faculty should record that student as not attended. It is suggested that the students notification to the faculty they will show up the following week should not be considered in the decision to determine attendance. The Federal guidelines are clear that students must attend the class to be verified as attended, not communicate their intent to attend. 2 of 19

3 Tracking UNOFFICIAL Withdrawals During the Term The College has created a special reporting window that is a modified version of the end of term grade reporting window to assist faculty in documenting unofficial withdrawals of students who stopped attendance after the initial verification period and for students who violate the faculty member s attendance policy up to the 60% period. This reporting window opens after the initial verification window closes and remains open up until the last day to withdraw with a W. The faculty can only record the W status for students in this window. The day after the 60% date, this window closes and the W and XC are no longer an option through any of the online systems. Unofficial Withdrawals Scenario A The student attends all of his classes on this schedule at least one time during the initial enrollment verification period and then never shows again. This student is considered an unofficial withdrawal because no withdrawal was initiated by the student. Note: For this example, we will assume that this student s pending disbursement is $8,625 for one term and as such would be eligible for an equal amount for the following term if enrollment Is verified. Impact Since the student s enrollment was validated at the beginning of the term, the student is deemed eligible and the College MUST disburse excess funds (less tuition, fees and books, etc) to eligible students on a date certain after the official census is taken. The College disburses $8625 to the student. The student receives the money. When unofficial withdrawals are tracked, this student s aid will be returned to the Federal government and the College will create a receivable on the students account for the amount disbursed. Unofficial Withdrawals. Students are considered as unofficial withdrawals if they stop attending without notifying school of their intent to withdraw. These students are also considered to have dropped out. If a faculty member determines that a student stopped attending anytime up to the 60% period, the faculty can use a special window of the grade reporting system to report these changes. Once the enrollment verification/attendance confirmation process is completed, it is the student s responsibility to withdraw from individual courses they stop attending or from the College. And when students officially withdraw, the College can process those withdrawals as they occur. However, faculty can unofficially withdraw students who stop attending/drop out or those who fail documented attendance policies as stated on course syllabi. Consider scenario A in the left column. When the College cannot track unofficial withdrawals for students who receive Federal financial aid funds, the impact is noted. Official Withdrawals. Students may do this online or in person at any campus Registration office. It is important to note that any student who changes their enrollment status, and officially withdraws or is unofficially withdrawn by faculty during the term before the 60% date, will see their aid award adjusted based on the date the withdrawal is initiated. Students who withdraw anytime up to 60% period will lose a portion of their disbursed aid based on a prorated formula determined by the Federal government. Since the aid has already been disbursed to the student, the College must return this portion of aid to the Federal government and in turn the College bills the student for the amount returned. All subsequent registrations will be blocked and transcripts held until the monies are paid. 3 of 19

4 End of Term Reporting End of Term Enrollment Status Changes for W Per College policy and State of Florida Statute, the last date for W and audit is the 60% point. The online end of term grading system will NOT allow the faculty to enter the enrollment status W after the 60%. The (W) recorded after the 60% point should only be given by faculty after the students have provided the faculty with documentation of extenuating circumstances. This enrollment status can only be inputted by the Registrar s office at the end of term with the appropriate form and documentation. Faculty who wish to give the student an end term enrollment change can do so by completing an ENROLLMENT CHANGES AFTER LAST DAY TO WITHDRAW form, which is available from the Academic or Discipline Dean. Documentation of all extenuating circumstances must be provided with the form. Faculty to inform the students of the impact of end of term withdrawals (W): 100% of aid will be returned on all students who are given end of term W, Students will be billed and failure to pay for the course could block future registrations, Withdrawals (W) constitutes lack of forward progress and are calculated in the Standards of Academic,progress calculation (SAP) to determine continued eligibility for financial aid students, and This solution might be the best approach for their academic difficulty at the moment, but it has financial and forward progress implications. Financial aid cannot be used to pay for W (withdrawal) or X and XC (audit) enrollment statuses regardless of when these are recorded. Students whose enrollment status is adjusted by changes of this nature will be billed for the course. This end of term action would create a receivable on the student s account that could block future registrations. Enrollment Status/Grades W Explanation Documentation Required Last date of Attendance Needed Student stopped attending sometime before the 60% period in the term. Faculty can withdraw a student when this happens. And a student can withdraw as well online or in person. NO. Just last date of attendance up to the 60% period. Yes Record in grade reporting window up to the 60% period. System will not allow students or faculty withdrawals after the 60% period. 4 of 19

5 End of Term Grade Reporting for F WF I and U Grades The Federal guidelines also require institutions that administer Title IV Financial Aid programs to have a grading policy and procedure in place to track whether a student has earned a non-passing grade (F, WF, I or U). The grade reporting window is available to faculty to enter these grades the day after the 60% date. In order to fully comply with Federal regulations, the College now requires faculty to report a last date of attendance (LDA), for all students awarded non-passing grades (F, WF, I and U) at the end of the term. Faculty should determine the LDA using the student s last graded assignment, log in for online courses or other class participation activity. Even though faculty is not required to take or have an attendance policy, faculty should be able to define class participation/engagement. The system will prompt the faculty to record a LDA next to the F, WF, I and U grades. Document Retention: Federal guidelines require faculty to retain documentation of all failing grades (F, WF, I and U). The minimum timeframe to retain class documentation of failing grades is 1.5 years or a minimum (current academic year, plus one semester). NOTE: The College s audit term is always Fall semester enrollment. The State auditors audit Title IV Financial aid programs in the summer months of July and August of the following calendar year. See Chart on Next Page for a detailed explanation of end of term Failing grades. 5 of 19

6 Enrollment Status/Grades Explanation Documentation Required F Student earns the "F" Must have because of failure to meet documentation of course academic objectives submitted assignments and/or faculty s course and/or tests during the attendance requirements semester, along with before the 60% point*. documentation of the last date of attendance, class activity or log-in for online courses. Last date of Attendance Needed Yes Record in final, end of term grade reporting window when all grades are available to record after 60% period. U Student earns the U because of failure. The U grade option is ONLY for course(s) designated by curriculum committee as eligible for the U grade. Same as F grades Yes. Same as F grades I WF An I grade may be given when a student with documented extenuating circumstances has not completed the course work by the end of the term. *NOTE: Faculty members must have an attendance policy documented on their syllabus as supporting evidence in any student grade appeals. Student attended past the 60% period, but stopped attending sometime before the end of the term. At the time of withdrawal, the student was failing the course. Same as F grades Must have documentation of submitted assignments for attendance past the 60% point. Yes. If no change is initiated during the next full term, the I will automatically become an F on the student s academic record. If the course work is completed, the amended grade will be posted on the student s academic record. Yes Record in final, end of term grade reporting window, when all grades are available to record after 60% period. 6 of 19

7 1. INSTRUCTIONS FOR WEB-BASED SYSTEM PROCESSES Web- Based Initial Enrollment Verification/Attendance Confirmation System Broward College has developed an easy, user friendly, web based online enrollment verification system so that faculty can verify attendance of all students on their roster. The enrollment verification must take place during a specific period of time that begins the day after the drop/add for 100% refund date and continues for up to 6 calendar days. Faculty are asked to verify that the students on their roster attended class at least once for on-campus classes and logged on to complete some specific required activity for online courses. This function allows you to view class rosters, and record students who have attended or never attended classes for which they registered. Classes will only be shown for which you are the primary instructor. HOW TO LOG ON TO THE EMPLOYEE INTRANET AND ACCESS CLASS ROSTERS STEP 1 Log on to the BC EmpIoyee Intranet (myintranet Login) from the Broward College homepage at 7 of 19

8 STEP 2 Click CLASS ROSTERS and refer to the calendar dates for processing attendance and grades. 8 of 19

9 STEP 3 Select current Term 9 of 19

10 The Attendance Confirmation column is the column that will be used to verify enrollment of the students who have attended classes at least one time. This column displayed above is explained as follows: Open The enrollment verification window is open for faculty to report attendance. This window is ONLY open for a limited period of time. Complete The attendance confirmation process has been completed by faculty. Closed The enrollment verification window is closed and no longer open and accessible for this purpose. Or, the closed button will show for all courses in sessions not yet started. 10 of 19

11 HOW TO BEGIN THE ENROLLMENT VERIFICATION/ATTENDANCE CONFIRMATION PROCESS On the attendance confirmed screen, follow the steps below to complete the process. STEP 4 Open Click the button under Attendance Confirmation column for the class you are submitting attendance verification. Repeat all of these steps for each course in a session that has begun. STEP 5 Faculty can select one of the following options from the attendance confirmation page. 1. Select individual student/s to flag as Never Attended by clicking the box next to their name. IMPORTANT: Making this selection will immediately withdraw the student from the class -- OR If applicable, click the RED button All Students Have Attended STEP 6 Once you have completed entering this screen, press button. Save Changes 11 of 19

12 The following will be displayed. Click the OK button of your choice. Your Never Attended indicator for class xxxxxx have been saved Return to entering Never Attended indicators for this class If complete, return to your instructor schedule OK OK Complete This button indicates that the enrollment verification/attendance process for this course has been entered. If you find that you missed a student, you may click the COMPLETE button, and then check mark those students as Never Attended that may have been missed previously. IF A STUDENT IS SELECTED AS NEVER ATTENDED BUT HAS ATTENDED TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTION: the Registrar s Team: - Willie Alexander, Jr. AVP/College Registrar at walexand@broward.edu - Karen Lee Murphy, Associate Registrar at kmurphy@broward.edu - Jennifer Neita, Supervisor, Transcript Evaluation at jneita@broward.edu REPEAT STEPS 4 6 for additional courses. Closed The Attendance Confirmation button will display as CLOSED after the reporting window closes. The Attendance Confirmation page is displayed only. NO more change are permitted Faculty should verify enrollment/attendance for ALL their courses at any time during the attendance verification period. Check the employee intranet for a calendar of verification periods for each session within the term. 12 of 19

13 1. Web-Based Tracking Unofficial Withdrawals During the Term The College has created a special reporting window to assist faculty in documenting unofficial withdrawals of students who stopped attendance after the initial verification period and for students who violate the faculty member s attendance policy up to the 60% period. This reporting window opens after the initial verification window closes and remains open up until the last day to withdraw with a W (60% period). HOW TO LOG ON TO THE EMPLOYEE INTRANET AND ACCESS CLASS ROSTERS STEP 1 Log on to the BC EmpIoyee Intranet (myintranet Login) from the Broward College homepage at 13 of 19

14 STEP 2 Click CLASS ROSTERS STEP 3 Select current Term 14 of 19

15 STEP 4 Indicate unofficial withdrawal tracking Web-Based End of Term Grade Reporting System This option is available the day after the 60% withdrawal date. Faculty should use this window to report end of term grades (A, B, C, D, F, WF, I and U). NOTE: Fall of 2010, the College now requires faculty, who record F, U and WF grades to provide the Last Date of Attendance (LDA). In order to fully comply with Federal regulations, the College now requires faculty to report a last date of attendance (LDA), for all students awarded non-passing grades (F, Uand WFs) at the end of the term. Faculty should determine the LDA using the student s last graded assignment, log in for online courses or other class activity. The system will prompt the faculty to record a LDA next to the F, Uand WF grades. Faculty should be prepared to respond to State or Federal compliance audits with documentation of non-passing grades. Faculty must also retain documentation for 1.5 years to justify all F, U and WF grades. Additionally, faculty who record F grades for attendance policy failures must have their attendance policy documented on their syllabi as this documentation will be needed for any grade appeals. It is understood that students can still withdraw prior to the 60% point and prior to the faculty recording the F grade for non-attendance purposes. HOW TO LOG ON TO THE EMPLOYEE INTRANET AND ACCESS CLASS ROSTERS STEP 1 Log on to the BC EmpIoyee Intranet (myintranet Login) from the Broward College homepage at 15 of 19

16 STEP 2 Click CLASS ROSTERS STEP 3 Select current Term 16 of 19

17 The Grade column is the column that will be used to enter the grades for every student enrolled in the course. This column displayed above is explained as follows: Open The grading window is open for faculty. If the Instructor Withdrawal window or the Final Grading window is open for a class, a green OPEN button will appear in the Grade column. Final The grading process has been completed by faculty. Faculty may continue to make modifications to the final grades until the grading window closes. Posted The posted button will show for all courses where grades have been processed. BEGIN THE GRADING PROCESS On the grade screen, follow the steps below to complete the process. STEP 4 STEP 5 Open Click the button under grade column for the class you are submitting grades. Repeat all of these steps for each course. Faculty is then taken to their Web Grade Roster. 17 of 19

18 All grades from the class grading method will appear in the Grade column dropdown. Instructors can either choose grades from the drop-down, or type the appropriate grade (that must match what is on the drop-down). Students registered for a class with options (i.e., Writing, Honors, Both) will have the option listed in the drop down box. To remove the option (Writing and Honors), please click on the drop down box and then click anywhere in the blank area within the box. NOTE: Beginning Fall 2010, all assigned F, U and WF and grades will require a Last Date of Attendance (LDA). Failure to include a LDA will result in an error prompt: O P T I O N G R A D E L D A STEP 6 Once you have completed entering this screen, press button. Save Changes Faculty can Save Changes and come back to the Roster to make changes at a later date, throughout the Grading window. However, once the deadline date/time has passed, all grades will be rolled recorded to students Academic History/Transcript during the grade roll jobs. Any students for which grades were not entered will receive an NR. The following will be displayed. Click the OK button of your choice. 18 of 19

19 Your grades for class xxxxx have been saved. or You have completed grading class xxxxxx. Do you want to make these grades FINAL? Return to grading class Return to your instructor schedule OK OK OK 19 of 19