Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy for Students Receiving Federal or State Financial Aid

Satisfactory Academic Progress

The U.S. Department of Education requires institutions of higher learning to establish standards of satisfactory academic progress for students receiving financial aid. Students must declare a major and be working toward the completion of that major in order to receive financial aid. Failure to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) will result in the loss of federal and state aid after the Warning term.

This SAP policy applies to all students regardless of status, e.g., full-time, part-time, undergraduate and education programs established by Lanier Technical College. In order to receive aid, a student must be making SAP regardless of whether he or she has previously received aid. NOTE: New students and/or transfer students are considered to be making Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).

Students who wish to receive financial aid from Lanier Technical College must be making satisfactory academic progress, as outlined below.

Students are responsible for maintaining an acceptable level of progress regarding quality, quantity and time frame of work. Satisfactory Academic Progress will be reviewed at the end of every payment period. Records are reviewed after grades are posted at the end of each payment period.

SAP includes three components:

Qualitative Grade Point Average (GPA) (Cumulative): Students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0. The GPA is computed by the Registrar’s office on a scale of 4.0. The GPA is cumulative (includes entire Academic history at Lanier Tech). Students must have a minimum GPA of 2.0 when they transfer programs in order to receive financial aid for the new program.

All attempts of repeated courses are included in the GPA calculation. Grades for Learning Support courses are not included in the GPA calculation for financial aid purposes. Grades included in the GPA calculation for SAP purposes are: A, B, C, D, and F.

Credit hours for which a student earns a grade of I, IP, W, and WF are counted as hours attempted for SAP purposes but are also considered unsuccessful completions.

Quantitative Hours Completed (Cumulative): In order to receive financial aid, students must have passed at least 66.6% of all credit hours, both transferred and attempted, at Lanier Technical College to maintain satisfactory progress. The completion rate is calculated by dividing the cumulative number of credit hours the student has successfully completed by the cumulative number of credit hours the student has attempted. Transfers of credits that are accepted to the college are counted as credit hours attempted and earned in the calculation. This calculation is performed in Banner after final grades are posted by the Registrar at the end of the payment period.

All periods of enrollment at Lanier Technical College are included when calculating completion rate, including terms in which the student did not receive financial aid. Credit hours for all prior terms of enrollment at Lanier Technical College are included in the calculation, as this is a cumulative measure. All attempts of repeated courses are considered attempted hours in the completion rate calculation. Credit hours for which a student earns a grade of I, IP, and F, as well as all Learning Support credit hours are counted as hours attempted for SAP purposes. Incomplete grades, withdrawals, and failures are considered unsuccessful completions.

Transfers of credit are counted as credit hours attempted and earned in the calculation of completion rate. Exemption exam credit, credit for previous experience, grades for audited courses, and articulated credit are NOT included in the completion rate calculation. Grades which are considered successful completions for financial aid SAP purposes are: A, B, C, D, TR, and P. Grades which are considered unsuccessful completions for financial aid SAP purposes are: F, W, I, IP, and U.

Time Frame: The purpose of the Federal Title IV financial aid programs is to assist students in meeting their educational expenses while they progress toward timely completion of their educational objectives. For that reason, federal regulations require that students must complete their educational objective within a maximum time frame of one and one-half times the length of the program in which they are enrolled. Program length is measured in credit hours and is determined by the number of credit hours required for completion of the program. Maximum time frame is calculated by multiplying the number of credit hours required to complete the program by 150%. For example, if a student is enrolled in a diploma program that takes 50 semester hours to complete, that student may receive financial aid (if eligible) for 75 semester hours before financial aid is suspended.

If it is determined that a student cannot mathematically complete his/her program of study within 150% of the program’s length, then he/she will become ineligible for financial aid. In this situation, an appeal would be possible.

Once a student is found to have exceeded the maximum time frame allowed, he or she will be ineligible for all federal and state aid programs. Students may appeal a loss of financial aid eligibility due to maximum time frame requirements if extenuating circumstances prevented them from completing their program within the specified time frame. If a student has extenuating circumstances, and are within 1-2 semesters of graduating, an extended appeal will be granted.

If a student graduates from one program and re-enrolls in another program, the maximum time frame will be reset. However, all previous credit hours attempted that can be counted toward the new program requirements will be included in the new time frame calculation. (For example, if a student graduates from the Accounting diploma program, and re-enrolls in the Accounting degree program, all previously taken courses that count toward the degree are counted in the time frame calculation for the new program.)

Beginning Fall 2026, student participating in the Dual Enrollment program at Lanier Technical College will be excluded from this component of the SAP policy.

General Provisions & Eligibility Requirements

Students must be enrolled in an eligible program to be approved for federal or state financial aid. Students accepted into the Special Admission status are not eligible for Title IV aid. Regular or provisionally admitted students may receive Title IV benefits if eligible. Technical certificate programs are evaluated on an individual basis to determine if they meet the minimum training requirements for Title IV aid.
Effective with the 2012-2013 award year, a student must have: a high school diploma, or a GED certificate, or completed homeschooling at the secondary level as defined by state law to receive Title IV funds.
Exempted and audited courses may not be counted in the calculation of a student's total credit hours for determination of Title IV financial aid benefits.
Title IV aid can be awarded to students enrolled in diploma, degree and approved certificate programs who are taking online/internet courses.
Transfer students will be assumed to be maintaining satisfactory academic progress for the first payment period enrolled. After the first payment period, the student will be responsible for meeting all Lanier Technical College academic progress requirements.
"I" (incomplete) is used to indicate that the student is doing satisfactory work but has not completed all requirements for the course by the end of the semester. Any course receiving an "I" designation must be completed by the midterm of the following semester or the "I" will convert to a grade of F.
Learning Support courses are included in hours attempted (qualitative assessment). Students are allowed to receive financial aid for no more than 30 semester hours of Learning Support courses and must show academic progress in the remedial coursework. Successful completion of learning support classes requires a C* or better.
Transfer credits that count toward the student's current program must count as both attempted and completed hours.
Academic progress determinations will be made each payment period after grades have been posted.
To maintain eligibility for financial aid at Lanier Technical College, students must successfully complete 66.6% of all cumulative credit hours attempted and maintain a cumulative GPA (grade point average) of 2.0. Any course for which a student registers will be counted in the maximum time frame and percentage calculations. Quantitative and qualitative standards must be cumulative and must include all periods of the student's enrollment; even periods in which the student did not receive SFA funds must be counted. A student will be notified in writing by the Office of Financial Aid if he/she is in violation of the standards of satisfactory progress.
Courses receiving grades of I, W, W*, D*, F, and F* are not considered completed hours. A student who fails to maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or to complete 66.6% of all credit hours attempted will be placed on financial aid warning for one payment period. The purpose of financial aid warning is to alert the student that his or her academic performance is not acceptable. A student placed on financial aid warning must attain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 and achieve the required completion rate by the end of the next payment period in attendance to remove him/her from the warning status. A student on financial aid warning is eligible for Title IV aid.
Students who do not meet SAP standards under the Warning status at the end of the subsequent payment period will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension. Students on financial aid suspension are not eligible to receive financial aid (this includes private loans).
Students have the right to appeal the denial of financial aid if they feel there are extenuating circumstances, which prevented them from meeting the specified requirements. Students have the opportunity to appeal once each Award Year (Summer, Fall, Spring). Appeals must be completed through the online portal. The student can access this through their LTC Experience account. All documentation and/or letters of appeal must be received by the Office of Financial Aid at least one day prior to the committee's scheduled meeting, specified in the suspension letter. The committee will provide a written decision to the student within four (4) calendar days of the committee's meeting.
Students who file an appeal and who should be able to meet the SAP standards by the end of the subsequent payment period will be placed on probation without an academic plan. If the student, based on the appeal, requires more than one payment period to meet progress standards, the student must provide a signed Academic Plan through the online student portal. The student is eligible to receive Title IV aid as long as the student continues to meet the academic plan requirements. A 100% pass rate for the payment period is required. Any withdrawals or failing grades will result in suspension of the academic plan.
Reinstatement of financial aid after a student's aid has been terminated for lack of satisfactory academic progress can be achieved once a student has attained the required cumulative GPA of 2.0 and has successfully completed 66.6% of all credit hours attempted.
Students must complete their educational objective within a maximum time frame based on enrollment status and program length not to exceed 150% of the published length of the program. For example, for a 50 credit hour program, the maximum time frame to receive financial aid is 75 attempted credit hours. Students who change their program of study will be allowed the maximum time frame for the new program of study. No financial aid will be available after the specified limits. However, factors beyond the student's control, such as conflicts in scheduling classes, will be considered. Beginning Fall 2026, student participating in the Dual Enrollment program at Lanier Technical College will be excluded from this component of the SAP policy.
Beginning July 1, 2011 students may receive federal financial aid for one repeat of a previously passed course. For this purpose, passed means any grade higher than an 'F', regardless of any school or program policy requiring a higher qualitative grade. A student may be repeatedly paid for repeatedly failing the same course (SAP policy still applies), and if a student withdraws before completing the course that they are being paid Title IV funds for retaking, then that is not counted as their one allowed retake for that course. However, if a student passed a class once and then is repaid for retaking it and fails or withdraws the second time, that failure or withdrawal counts as their paid retake and the student may not be paid for retaking the class a third time.
Coronavirus Pandemic was handled as outlined below:
1. The grade of Z was given to students who withdrew from a course after the 60% point in the payment period due to COVID-19.
  1. The Z grade are not used in calculating a student’s GPA, but are counted as coursework attempted.
2. Students who earned a Z grade still had SAP calculated at the end of the Spring 2020 payment period.
  1. If suspension was calculated and they were on warning the previous payment period, then the student was automatically put on Warning for the next payment period of attendance.
  2. If suspension was calculated and they were on suspension the previous payment period, then the student was left on suspension.
  3. If suspension was calculated and they were on an academic plan the previous payment period, then the academic plan was automatically extended through summer 2020.

Financial Aid Warning

Students who fail to maintain either a 2.0 cumulative GPA or 66.6% cumulative completion rate will be placed on financial aid warning. Students on financial aid warning will continue to be eligible to receive financial aid for one term only. Students on financial aid warning must meet all SAP requirements by the end of their warning period in order to receive financial aid in subsequent terms. Students placed on financial aid warning who fail to raise their cumulative GPA to a 2.0 or higher and their completion rate to 66.6% or higher by the end of their next term of enrollment will be placed on financial aid suspension and will be ineligible for all forms of financial aid.

Financial Aid Suspension

Students who fail to meet one or more SAP requirements for at least two consecutive terms of enrollment are placed on financial aid suspension and are not eligible for any form of financial aid (Hope, Pell, SEOG, FWS) or private loans. Students have the right to appeal a financial aid suspension if there are extenuating circumstances that have prevented them from meeting the SAP requirements.

State aid programs (HOPE SCHOLARSHIP/HOPE GRANT) have program specific requirements regarding GPA. This minimum GPA requirement is in addition to maintaining the Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements as stated above. Students must earn a 3.0 GPA at all checkpoints in order to maintain eligibility for HOPE SCHOLARSHIP funding. Refer to the HOPE Scholarship regulations for specific eligibility requirements. Students receiving HOPE GRANT must maintain a 2.0 GPA at all checkpoints.

Financial Aid Probation

This status is reserved for students who have successfully appealed and only require one payment period to regain eligibility. After one payment period on probation, if the student does not regain eligibility, the student will go on Financial Aid Suspension.

Appeals

Regulatory Citation: 668.16

Students have the right to appeal the denial of financial aid. This appeal must be turned in through the student’s LTC Experience account using our secure online portal. The appeal must contain a letter from the student explaining their extenuating circumstance and then provide documentation for why they are not meeting the standards of academic progress. Appeals without documentation will be automatically denied.

Only ONE appeal per award year (Fall, Spring, Summer) is allowed.

A student wishing to appeal must do so no later than midpoint of the payment period for which they are appealing. If an appeal is incomplete when the payment period ends the appeal will be expired. The Financial Aid Staff member will present the appeal to the Financial Aid Review Committee. This student will be notified, in writing, of the committee’s decision.

If an appeal is approved and it is determined that a student only requires 1 payment period to either complete, or get back in good standing, then the student will be placed on probation for that 1 term. The system will then calculate after the payment period is over to the correct standing.

If an appeal is approved and it is determined that a student will require more than 1 payment period but no more than 3 payment periods to get back in good standing, then the student will be placed on an academic plan. The system will calculate whether or not the student is meeting their personalized academic plan. The system will calculate at the end of each term whether or not the student is meeting their personalized academic plan.

Financial Aid Review Committee

This institutional committee shall be appointed annually and will serve each term as an appeals committee to review and determine if extenuating circumstances has been established and documented. This committee may include, but is not limited to, one faculty representative, one administrator, and one staff member. The participation of the Financial Aid staff shall be as a non-voting member except in extreme or urgent situations.

Academic Plans

Students can appeal and be approved and placed on an academic plan. An academic plan is meant to help the student obtain Satisfactory Academic Standing within 3 academic terms. Because each student situation is different, each academic plan is catered to get the student where they need to be. For example, a student with a GPA below 2.00 could be required to have a semesterly GPA well above 2.00 to get the overall GPA up to where it needs to be. An academic plan will always require a 100% completion as part of the requirement, which means the student cannot earn an F, W, WF, or I. The student must be able to be in good standing after the academic plan if followed correctly. If the student does not meet the conditions, then their financial aid is automatically denied for the following payment period. Each academic plan must have an end date that is no more than three payment periods from the beginning date.

In some instances, the Review Committee will determine that it is mathematically impossible for the student to get back in good standing within the three payment periods required by the policy. In these instances, the student will be notified that it is mathematically impossible and encouraged to successfully complete course work and pay for it themselves until they have gotten enough hours to make it mathematically possible and appeal again. Only in the case where a student reaches mathematic possibility within the aid year after being denied, due to mathematic impossibility, may there be an exception made for the 1 appeal per academic year. This exception is made at the sole discretion of the financial aid staff person responsible for SAP and the decision is final.