On March 15, 2020, the U.S. Department of Education published additional guidance for postsecondary institutions extending and clarifying regulatory flexibilities contained in the CARES Act and related to COVID-19.
Key components of the guidance include:
- Extension of the time frame for authorization by the Department of temporary distance education approval for previously on-ground programs to include payment periods that overlap March 5, 2020, or that begin on or between March 5, 2020, and December 31, 2020.
- Waiver of the Department’s requirement that an institution offering at least 50% of a program by distance education to be accredited for distance education by an accrediting agency that has distance education in the scope of its recognition. The waiver is effective for payment periods that begin on or before December 31, 2020.
- Six month extension of the Title IV financial statement and compliance audit deadlines.
The guidance also includes important new information concerning:
- Accreditation site visit extension flexibilities and requirements.
- Extension by six months of the “materially complete application” requirements following a Title IV change of ownership and control to allow additional time for the institution to remain TItle IV certified while secure state and accreditor approvals as well as the audited same day balance sheet.
- Waiver of MCAT score requirement for foreign graduate medical school admissions for students admitted to medical school during an admissions year in which the MCAT was unavailable to students for some period of time during that year due to COVID-19 related interruptions.
- Additional flexibilities concerning verification of high school (or equivalent) completion status that applies until December 31, 2020, for both the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 award years.
- Treatment of the PPP loan forgiveness amount in calculating the institution’s composite score.
- Treatment of student workers when determining the number of employees for PPP loan eligibility.
- Tax treatment of HEERF and emergency financial aid grants to students.
- Clarifications regarding Campus-Based Waivers/Reallocation and FSEOG Emergency Aid Grants.
- Clarifications regarding Leaves of Absence (LOA) flexibilities.
- Return of Title IV Funds (R2T4) guidance and processing detail.
- Clarifications regarding Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) flexibilities.
- Clarifications regarding Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program flexibilities.
Institutions should carefully analyze the full guidance document and related Q&A , available here: https://ifap.ed.gov/electronic-announcements/051520UPDATEDGuidanceInterruptStudyRelCOVID19May2020