Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Return of Title IV Funds: Taking Attendance

Objective of the Integrity Rule

Use the best date available to determine the amount of time a student is in attendance for Title IV purposes.

Using the most accurate attendance information available ensures the most equitable treatment of students.

Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Return of Title IV Funds: Programs with Modules or Compressed Courses

Objective of the Integrity Rule

Provide for more consistent and equitable treatment of students who withdraw from a program measured in credit hours, regardless of whether courses in the program span the entire term or consist of shorter modules.

The law specifies that a student earns Title IV funds on a pro rata basis through 60 percent of a period, based on days completed in a credit-hour program or clock hours completed in a clock-hour program.

Title IV funds are awarded to a student to attend an entire payment period or period of enrollment and the funds are intended to cover the student’s educational and living expenses for the entire period.

Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Misrepresentation

Objective of the Integrity Rule

Strengthen the Department’s regulatory enforcement authority against a school that engages in substantial misrepresentation by providing more specific, clear and comprehensive guidance in the regulatory provisions.

A potential student needs to have a clear understanding of any program in which he may enroll.

A school is responsible for providing complete and accurate information about its programs.

Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Incentive Compensation

Objective of the Integrity Rule

Clearly prohibit incentive-based payments from a school to any person or entity involved in recruiting or admitting students or awarding financial aid, including payments to management responsible for these activities.

Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Gainful Employment: Reporting and Disclosure Requirements and New Programs

Objective of the Integrity Rule

Establish school reporting and disclosure requirements for programs intended to prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation. Nearly all programs at for-profit schools are considered “gainful employment” programs.

Provide prospective students with answers to the following types of questions:

1.    What specific job(s) is the program designed to prepare its graduates to perform?

2.    How successful have the program’s graduates been in finding employment in the targeted job(s)?

3.    Do students generally graduate from the program within the expected (normal) amount of time?

4.    What is the total cost of the program that students will need funding to cover?

5.    How much loan debt (federal, private and school-based) do students typically incur in the program?

Require schools to notify the Department of Education of any plans to offer new programs.

Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Evaluating the Validity of a High School Diploma

Objective of the Integrity Rule

Ensure that a student who reports having a high school diploma for purposes of establishing eligibility to receive Title IV aid does, in fact, have a valid high school diploma.

A school must develop and follow procedures to evaluate the validity of a student’s high school program completion, if the school or Department has reason to question the legitimacy of the student’s diploma.

Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Disbursements of Title IV Funds for Books and Supplies

Objective of the Integrity Rule

To provide timely access to Title IV funds for needy students with credit balances to obtain books and supplies.

When smart phones first came out, many people wondered whether a TV-addicted culture would care to watch video on such a small screen.

New data from the Nielsen Company indicate that watching mobile video is indeed getting more popular, but it’s far from a threat to the TV business.

In the fourth quarter of 2010, 22 million Americans watched video on a mobile device — just under 10% of U.S. mobile phone users. Meanwhile, according to Nielsen, during this same period, 286,648 million Americans watched TV at home.
So to put this in perspective: The U.S. mobile video audience is about 0.07% the size of the U.S. TV audience.
Still, a mobile video audience of 22 million people is nothing to sneeze at. And that group is growing.
According to Nielsen, “In the fourth quarter of 2010, more Americans watched video on their mobile devices than ever before. On a year-to-year basis, the number of people watching mobile video increased more than 43%, while the amount of time spent doing so was up almost 7%.”

Nielsen reported that Americans who watch video on mobile devices do so for an average of 3½ hours per month, but that varies greatly by ages. Americans age 17 and under who watch mobile video do so for more than seven hours per month; for those age 50 and over, it’s just more than two hours per month.

Nielsen didn’t say which kinds of videos people are watching on mobile devices, but it probably comprises mostly YouTube videos and news, music or sports footage, rather than full-length movies and TV shows.

Nielsen’s numbers include video viewed through smartphone and tablet apps. But they do not include mobile games, which are a hugely popular and often video-rich mobile activity.

Final regulations on a collection of 14 topics intended to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs were published in late 2010 by the Department of Education. These new rules primarily impact schools — both financial aid professionals and their colleagues with other campus administration responsibilities.

Starting this week and subsequent weeks, Becker Media will outline the objectives of each of the 14 Integrity Rules.

Definition of a Credit Hour

Objectives of the Integrity Rule

Define minimum standards for a credit hour to determine eligibility and funding for federal programs.

Improve consistency among all schools in quantifying student work to receive credits in federal programs.

Permit reasonable, school-determined equivalencies that are reviewed and evaluated by a school’s accreditor.

Provide limited flexibility in defining a credit hour for federal program purposes.

Effective date: July 1, 2011. Although for students currently enrolled in programs subject to the clock-to-credit-hour conversion provisions, a school may: (1) Apply current regulatory standards until those students complete their programs or (2) Apply the revised regulatory standards for all students enrolled in payment periods in the 2011-2012 award year and subsequent award years.