According to regulations governing the federal financial aid programs, a student must be enrolled in a program of study leading to a degree or certificate and must be making satisfactory academic progress according to the standards and practices of the institution in order to continue to be eligible for the federal programs (Federal Pell Grants, Academic Competitiveness Grant, Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, Federal Stafford, Federal PLUS, and Federal Work-Study), as well as all state and institutional programs. All students participating in federal aid programs must comply with the standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress as outlined in this policy for full-time/part-time status or regardless of program of study.

 Satisfactory Academic Progress is defined as progressing in a positive manner toward fulfilling requirements for the degree or certificate in a given program of study. Satisfactory progress is the measurement of a student’s performance (credits completed and cumulative grade point average) in meeting the institutional degree requirements.

• Students must successfully complete 67% of credits attempted. Grades of Incomplete (I), Failing (F), Official Withdraw (W), Audit (AU), No Credit (NC), or high school transfer (AR) do not count toward successful completion. This review takes place after the end of fall and spring terms.
• A student must maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 2 .0. This review takes place after the end of fall and spring terms.

A student will be placed on Financial Aid Probation who:

• Fails to maintain these standards at the end of the review period.
• Fails to remove himself/herself from Financial Aid Probation, but does complete a term of acceptable academic work.

A student will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension who:

• Does not satisfactorily remove himself/ herself from Financial Aid Probation and does not complete a term of acceptable academic work.  (Please note:  Students must have a 2.0 career GPA to graduate.)

A student is eligible for Reinstatement of Aid after suspension who:

• Has satisfactorily completed acceptable academic work (2.0 GPA and 67% completion) in a minimum of 6 credit hours taken in the same semester and at the same institute.  Note:  This re-instatement is effective for only one semester, after which your cumulative GPA must be 2.0 or higher, and your successful completion rate must by 67% or higher.  All coursework must apply towards the student’s program and be at least 100 level (preparatory coursework and remedial classes are excluded).
• All federal financial aid students must complete their STI degree program with credits attempted that are no greater than 150% of the degree requirements. For example, a degree program requiring 64 degree credits completed has a maximum of 96 credit hours attempted for the degree program.

Appeal of Financial Aid Suspension

• Appeal of Financial Aid Suspension can be granted only in instances in which extenuating circumstances (i.e., medical) can be clearly documented. When a student desires to appeal the Financial Aid Suspension due to extenuating circumstances, he/she must submit a formal appeal to the Financial Aid Officer prior to the established deadline. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that the letter is submitted prior to the deadline; failure to do so will result in the appeal not being heard. The meeting of the Financial Aid Committee for the purpose of hearing appeals will be held on an as-needed basis.