Students who fail to maintain satisfactory academic progress will lose their eligibility for further participation in any Title IV or State Financial Aid Program. Students may file an appeal to request reinstatement of their financial aid eligibility if they meet certain criteria according to the following procedure:
Appeal Procedure The student must complete the . The student must clearly indicate the circumstances of his/her failure to meet the Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress standards and must furnish specific dates, events and documentation to support the appeal. The student must clearly defend their change of circumstances which now support their ability to be successful in attaining Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress. Appeals submitted without specific dates, events or documentation will be denied. Only unanticipated and unavoidable circumstances will be considered in the appeal review. Such circumstances must be beyond the student’s control and directly responsible for the student’s failure to meet the required standards. The following are examples of circumstances that may be considered:
- Serious illness/injury to the student
- Serious illness/injury or death in the student’s immediate family
- Change of employment or work schedule
- Divorce or separation of student or parent
- Any special circumstance of a unique and substantial nature
The completed appeal packet with attached documentation must be submitted to the Financial Aid Office located on either the Pensacola, Warrington or Milton Campus. If the appeal is granted the student will be required to meet certain conditions in order to continue their eligibility. If denied, the student may not reappeal during that current academic year.
Should the student disagree with the Appeal Committee decision and have substantive additional documentation that was previously not submitted, the student may request in writing that their appeal packet be forwarded to the Director of Financial Aid/Veteran Services/Scholarships for further consideration. The student must submit this request within 10 days of the date on their letter of denial and must provide additional substantive documentation for the circumstances that were beyond their control which caused their failure to meet the standards required for financial aid eligibility. The Director will notify the student in writing of their decision via PirateMail with a copy to their home of record on their college application.
The denial decision by the Director of Financial Aid/Veteran Services/Scholarships may be appealed by submitting a written notice of disagreement within 10 days of the date on their denial letter to the Director of Financial Aid/Veteran Services/Scholarships with the request that the student’s denied appeal paperwork be provided by the Director to the Vice President For Business Affairs. The decision of the Vice President For Business Affairs is final and is not appealable to the United States Department of Education.
The student should allow four (4) weeks for the appeal process to be completed and longer if the appeal is submitted during a period of registration.
