Catalog 2010-2011 - South Texas College

or have had experienced a significant decrease inincome. If conditions such as these apply to you oryour family, contact the STC Financial Aid office.Check with the STC Financial Aid office if youfeel you have any other special circumstancesthat might affect the amount you and your familyare expected to contribute. The Financial AidAdministrator will advise you on how to documentyour situation and forward your information to theFinancial Aid Appeals Committee. The committeewill review all professional judgment requests fromstudents. All decisions made by the committeeare final.Frequently Requested Telephone Numbersand WebsitesThe STC Financial Aid office maintains anextensive website which contains:1. Information about aid programs offered at STCat: http://studentservices.southtexascollege.edu/finaid/2. Information about all subjects related to thefinancial aid process at STC at: http://studentservices.southtexascollege.edu/finaid/faq.html3. All STC financial aid forms in.pdf (AdobeAcrobat) format at: http://studentservices.southtexascollege.edu/finaid/forms/index.html4. Links to important Federal and State AidWe b s i t e s a t : h t t p : / / s t u d e n t s e r v i c e s .southtexascollege.edu/finaid/websites.html5. Links to scholarship databases and scholarshipsources outside STC at: http://studentservices.southtexascollege.edu/finaid/programs/scholarships.htmlThe address of the Financial Aid office main webpage is: http://studentservices.southtexascollege.edu/finaid/If you need answers right away to questions aboutFederal Student Aid, call the appropriate numberlisted below at the Federal Student Aid InformationCenter between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. (Eastern Time),Monday through Friday:1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243)1-800-730-8913 TDD (for hearing impaired)The Federal Student Aid Information Center can:4Answer questions about completing the FAFSA.4Tell you whether a school participates in thefederal student aid programs and thatschool’s student loan default rate.4Explain federal student aid eligibilityrequirements.4Explain the process of determining financialneed and awarding aid.4Send you federal student aid publications4Find out if your federal student financial aidapplication has been processed.4Send you a copy of your Student Aid Report(SAR).4Change your address.4Send your application information to aspecific school.If you have reason to suspect any fraud, waste orabuse involving federal student aid funds, you maycall 1-800-MIS-USED (1-800-647-8733). This tollfreenumber is the hotline to the U.S. Departmentof Education’s Inspector General’s office. You mayremain anonymous, if you wish.FEDERAL PELL GRANTSWhat is a Federal Pell Grant?Federal Pell Grant funds are not required to berepaid like loans. Pell Grants are awarded only toundergraduate students who have not earned abachelor’s or professional degree. (A professionaldegree would include a degree in a field such aspharmacy or dentistry). Eligibility for the FederalPell Grant is partially determined by the number ofcredit hours in which the student is enrolled duringthe semester. South Texas College’s award lettersshow student eligibility for Federal Pell Grant fundsfor eligible students assuming that the students willtake at least 12 credit hours per semester.The Financial Aid office adjusts the amount of PellGrant that students receive if the number of credithours that students are enrolled in changes throughthe census date of each semester. Effective AwardYear 2009-2010 under amendments made by theHigher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA),students may receive up to two consecutiveFederal Pell Grant scheduled awards during asingle award year if the student is enrolled at leasthalf-time for more than one academic year or morethan two semesters or the equivalent time during asingle award year and is in a certificate, associatedegree or baccalaureate degree program.For more information on eligibility requirementsplease refer to the sections that follow, on theaward letter, and on STC’s website at: http://studentservices.southtexascollege.edu/finaid/process/index.html.How do I qualify?To determine if you are eligible, the U.S. Departmentof Education uses a standard formula, establishedby the U.S. Department of Education, to evaluatethe information you report when you apply. Theformula produces an Expected Family Contribution(EFC) number. The lower the EFC number, themore aid the student is eligible for. Your StudentAid Report (SAR) and the Institutional StudentInformation Record (ISIR) contain this number andwill tell you if you are eligible.South Texas College, Office of Financial Aidmonitors requirements that can affect youreligibility for Federal Pell Grant funds, includingbut not limited to:1. Your enrollment status, the number of credithours that you are registered for and in whichyour instructors confirm that you attend classat least once.2. Your continued enrollment within a semester,if you withdraw or are withdrawn from schoolyou may be required to repay funds that havealready been awarded to you.3. Your grades, if you do not earn at least onepassing grade in a semester you may berequired to repay funds that have already beenawarded to you.4. The number of developmental courses thatyou have attempted, STC may only fund 3057