Everyone who works at a college looks forward to graduation because it means the campus will be quiet for a couple of months, allowing time to rest, catch up, and prepare for the fall semester.
Not this year. It’s all storm and no calm.
First, there’s the FAFSA disaster, which used to be a “debacle,” but it’s only gotten worse. As of this writing, about 25 percent fewer FAFSAs (the federal financial aid form virtually every student submits) have been completed in South Carolina than last year. Without the FAFSA information, colleges can’t calculate students’ financial aid packages.
This year the form was revised and the U.S. Department of Education botched the rollout to the point that only now are many colleges in a position to send students what financial aid they could expect. Financial Aid and Admissions staff are still communicating with prospective students and trying to get a sense of who actually intends to enroll. Without accurate enrollment projections the chief financial officers can’t predict revenue and develop next year’s budget.
The financial aid teams are also responsible for compiling and submitting massive amounts of student data the Education Department wants in order to gauge the cost of a college education – by major – and calculate the return on investment. Originally due on July 31, the Education Department granted an extension, but only to October 1. The staff now working overtime to get the financial aid packages done will have to turn around and submit all this student-level data to the feds, who have yet to distribute the guidelines for this new program.
Speaking of overtime, the U.S. Department of Labor just released the new minimum salary requirements to qualify for certain exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Known as the “Overtime Rule,” the Labor Department has drastically increased the number of employees who will have to “punch a clock” and keep track of their hours. The first increase goes into effect July 1, demanding that Human Resources are scrambling to figure out which employees are impacted and how to adjust their payroll systems.
If that weren’t enough, the Education Department is also imposing an overhaul of Title IX regulations, which govern how campuses treat gender discrimination. The new regulations greatly expand what’s covered under Title IX and alter the requirements regarding how campuses respond to allegations of discrimination. These regulations go into effect August 1.
Summer? What summer?
South Carolina update – Progress on the state budget