In accordance with Federal regulation 34 CFR 688.22, El Paso Community College (EPCC) is required to determine the
percentage of Title IV program assistance that you earn if you withdraw from school. The Title IV programs that are
covered by this law are Federal Pell Grants, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational
Opportunity Grants (FSEOGs), Direct Loans, and Direct PLUS Loans.
Calculation and Percentage of Title IV Earned
Though your aid is posted to your account at the start of each period, you earn the funds as you complete the period.
If you withdraw during your payment period or period of enrollment, EPCC will define these terms for you and tell
you which one applies to you. The amount of Title IV program assistance that you have earned up to that point is
determined by a specific formula provided by the Department of Education. If you received less assistance than the
amount that you earned, you may be able to receive those additional funds in the form of a post-withdrawal
disbursement. If you received more assistance than you earned, the excess funds must be returned by the school
and/or you.
The amount of assistance that you have earned is determined on a pro rata basis. For example, if you completed 30% of
your payment period or period of enrollment, you earn 30% of the assistance you were originally scheduled to
receive. Once you have completed more than 60% of the payment period or period of enrollment, you earn all the
assistance that you were scheduled to receive for that period.
Programs Offered in Modules
A program is offered in modules if a course or courses do not span the entire length of the payment period. Any
student who withdraws or otherwise ceases attendance from a program offered in modules on or after July 1, 2021,
must be evaluated under the new withdrawal exemptions. You will not be subject to returns of your Title IV program
assistance if you meet one of the following exemptions for courses offered in modules:
- A student who completes all the graduation requirements before completing the days in the payment period; is not
considered to have withdrawn. This withdrawal exemption applies to all programs with or without modules.
- A student who successfully completes 49 percent or more of the number of days in the payment period (excluding
scheduled breaks of five or more consecutive days and all days between modules) of one module or a combination
of modules; is not considered to have withdrawn.
- A student who successfully completes coursework equal to or greater than half-time enrollment for the payment
period; is not considered to have withdrawn. Successful completion means earning a passing grade.
A student not meeting any of the above withdrawal exemptions and is considered withdrawn, all standard R2T4
requirements apply.
Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, El Paso Community College is utilizing the Return of Title IV waiver for
students that submit an attestation stating the withdrawal is due to a COVID-19 circumstance. Students can submit
this attestation to the Financial Aid Office.
Post-Withdrawal
Students receiving less federal student aid than the amount earned may be due a post-withdrawal disbursement. If your
post-withdrawal disbursement includes Federal Direct Loan funds, El Paso Community College must get your permission
before it can disburse them. You may choose to decline some or all of the loan funds so that you don’t incur
additional debt. EPCC may automatically use all or a portion of your post-withdrawal disbursement of grant funds for
current outstanding tuition, fees, and room and board charges; if you have contracted with the school by submitting
the Financial Aid Authorization Form. EPCC needs your permission to use the post-withdrawal grant disbursement for
all other institutional charges. If you do not give authorization, you will be offered the funds. However, it may be
in your best interest to allow the school to keep the funds to reduce your debt at the school.
There are some Title IV funds that you were scheduled to receive that cannot be disbursed to you once you withdraw
because of other eligibility requirements. For example, if you are a first-time, first-year undergraduate student
and you have not completed the first 30 days of your program before you withdraw, you will not receive any Direct
Loan funds that you would have received had you remained enrolled past the 30th day.
Amount of Unearned Title IV Aid
Students receiving excess Title IV program funds that must be returned, El Paso Community College must return a
portion of the excess funds equal to the lesser of:
- your institutional charges multiplied by the unearned percentage of your funds, or
- the entire amount of excess funds.
El Paso Community College must return this amount even if it didn’t keep this amount of your Title IV program funds.
For any loan funds that you must return, you will repay the loan funds in accordance with the terms of the promissory
note. That is, you will not be required to repay any loan funds immediately, but instead, you will make scheduled
payments to the holder of the loan over a period of time.
Overpayment
Any amount of unearned grant funds that you must return is called an overpayment. The maximum amount of a grant
overpayment that you must repay is half of the grant funds you received or were scheduled to receive. The student
does not have to repay a grant overpayment if the original amount of the overpayment is $50 or less. The student is
responsible for making any payment arrangements with El Paso Community College or the Department of Education to
return the unearned grant funds.
EPCC Refund Policy and Official Withdrawal Requirements
The requirements for Title IV program funds when you withdraw are separate from any refund policy at El Paso
Community College. Therefore, the student may still owe funds to the school to cover unpaid institutional charges.
EPCC may also charge you for any Title IV program funds that the school was required to return. The El Paso
Community College refund policy, requirements and procedures for officially withdrawing are available at:
Students with any questions about the Title IV program funds, please contact the Financial Aid Office, or the Federal
Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FEDAID (1-800-433-3243). TTY users may call 1-800-730-8913. Additional
information is available at https://studentaid.gov.