The City University of New York



10

Special Programs

|CONTENTS |

Special Programs Guidelines 10-2

Economic Eligibility Criteria for Entering Freshmen 10-3

Economic Eligibility Chart 10-3

Economic Eligibility Documentation for Entering Freshman 10-5

Exceptions to the Economic Guidelines Chart 10-7

Transfer Students 10-9

Period of Special Program Eligibility 10-9

SEEK/CD Financial Aid Awards Eligibility 10-10

Calculation of Semesters of Eligibility 10-11

Loan Defaults 10-12

Pre-Freshman Summer Experience 10-12

CUNY Special Programs Transfer Request Form 10-13

Request to use Fifteen Percent Variation Form 10-14

Request for Additional Part-Time Semester/Enrollment for SEEK/CD a Student form 10-15

Income Eligibility Cover Sheet………………………………………………………………. 10-17

SPECIAL PROGRAM GUIDELINES

Each campus is expected to determine program eligibility and to select students in accordance with the established overall criteria and those set forth in its campus plan for the operation of the program. In cases where eligibility is unclear, a final decision may be requested from the SEEK/CD Director of your local campus in consultation with the Office of Special Programs.

The SEEK/CD Program is in large part an admission/access program, so the determination of eligibility must be made at the time of the student’s application for admission as a first-time freshman.  A student who is ineligible at the point of first admission cannot be designated as an SEEK/CD Program student at a later date. A student who is admitted as a SEEK/CD Program student remains eligible for supportive services throughout his or her semesters of eligibility despite fluctuations in income and academic achievement. To receive Special Program funding, students must demonstrate need by filing a FAFSA and NYS TAP applications each academic year for which funding is desired. Should it be required and/or requested by the US Department of Education or the college, students must complete the verification process as described in the verification chapter of the SAM. Information about Special Programs fund management in CUNY first is not contained in this chapter but is available separately.

Economic eligibility for the SEEK/CD Program is established by application of the income guidelines listed below which is provided annually by the Office of Special Programs. A student is considered economically disadvantaged if he or she is a member of a household whose total annual income falls within the limits indicated on the economic guidelines chart below. A dependent student’s household consists of the student and everyone that is dependent upon the income that supports that student. All economic eligibility criteria apply to the base year (the calendar year prior to the student’s first academic year in college). For 2019-20, income thresholds will be based on the 2017 poverty guidelines and is 185% of poverty level.

Economic Guidelines Chart 2019-2020

|Persons in the 2017 household |2017’s Total Upper Income limit |

|1 |$ 22,459 |

|2 |$ 30,451 |

|3 |$ 38,443 |

|4 |$ 46,435 |

|5 |$ 54,427 |

|6 |$ 62,419 |

|7 |$ 70,411 |

|8 |$ 78,403 |

| For 9 or more persons |Add $7,992 for each additional person. |

In evaluating economic eligibility, the following factors must be considered before a decision for eligibility is rendered: 

1) Household size – the number of individuals living in the student’s residence who are economically dependent on the income that is supporting the student.

2) Total household annual income – all taxable and non-taxable funds that are received by the household for general use.  Such funds may be derived from such sources as wages, dividends, interest, annuities, Social Security, disability, pensions, veteran’s benefits and unemployment benefits.  This amount may be calculated by determining “Total Income” for federal tax purposes and adding any other sources of income the household may have. When determining income from a federal tax return, total annual income refers specifically to the IRS 1040 tax return line titled “Total Income.” All untaxed income declared on a tax return must be added to the tax return’s “Total Income.”

a. The following items are excluded in the total income determination:

i. Funds received specifically for educational purposes such as veteran’s education benefits, education grants from the Office of Vocational Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) and small scholarships or other support provided by community groups, churches and other such organizations;

ii. Public assistance payments received through Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF);

iii. Earned Income Credits (EIC) provided through the application of the Internal Revenue Service Code;

iv. The student’s income is not included in total household income unless he or she is the head of household or the second worker supporting the household.

3) Student Dependency Status

a. For purposes of determining a student’s economic eligibility for Special Programs, a student’s dependency status must be determined in accordance with the federal definition

b. A student may be defined as Independent if he or she:

i. is 24 years of age or older by December 31 of the prior year; or

ii. is an orphan or ward of the court; or

iii. is a veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States; or

iv. is married and will not be claimed as a dependent for income purposes by parents or guardians for the year in which participation in the opportunity program commences; or

v. has a legal dependent other than a spouse; or

vi. has not been listed and will not be listed as a dependent for federal Income tax purposes by any person, except a spouse, for the calendar year in which aid is to be received and for the two calendar years prior and who demonstrates total self-sufficiency and minimum annual resources (other than from parents) of $3,050 for those two years; or

vii. is a student for whom a SEEK/CD program and financial aid counselor has made a documented determination of independence by reason of other unusual circumstances.

4) New York State Residency –

a. An individual who has resided in New York State for twelve months prior to his or her day of registration in college; or who resides in New York State at the time of application and lived in New York State for the last two terms of high school; or who was a resident of New York State when he/she entered military service, Vista or the Peace Corps and re-established New York State residence within six months after completing their term of service.

* Please Note: For College Discovery students, in addition to meeting the New York State residence requirement, the student must also meet the New York City residence requirement as well.

5) Citizenship:

a. There are no citizenship requirements for Special Programs eligibility, however all Special Program students must meet the New York State residency requirement listed above. Students on diplomatic or student visa categories (J-1, F-1) are not eligible for Special Programs.

b. Undocumented students are eligible for Special Program admission as long they meet the specified income guidelines listed above for the designated year.

i. Students’ Eligibility for Federal and NYS financial aid funding is dependent upon the policies and procedures set forth by those programs.

ii. Students are eligible for Special Programs funding awards and must complete the corresponding New York State applications available on hesc.

For Special Program eligibility, only the 2017 income of the dependent student’s parents or the 2018 income of the independent student/spouse need to be documented. The following shall comprise acceptable documentation for determining Special Program economic eligibility:

* Please Note: The applicant’s income is taken into account only when he/she meets the federal definition of Independent.

Documentation of Economic Eligibility

|  |  |

|Items |Documentation Collected |

|  |  |

|1. Income from wages, tips, dividends, interest, rental, |1.IRS forms 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ, a signed copy of 1040TEL or official |

|business profits |transcript of tax return; forms W-2, 1099,W-9 |

|  |  |

|2. No income |2. IRS form 4506-T verification of non-filing letter |

| |OR |

| |Non-tax filers - For independent students, and parents of dependent students |

| |who did not file and are not required to file an income tax return for the |

| |applicable tax year— |

| |A signed statement certifying that the individual— |

| |Attempted to obtain the VNF from the IRS or other tax authorities and was |

| |unable to obtain the required documentation; and |

| |Has not filed and is not required to file a 2016 or 2017 income tax return, |

| |and a listing of the sources of any 2016 or 2017 income earned by the |

| |individual from work and the amount of income from each source; and    |

| |A copy of IRS Form W–2, or an equivalent document, for each source of 2016 or |

| |2017 employment income received by the individual. (*Dear Colleague |

| |letter-January 9th, 2019) |

|  |  |

|3. Pension, annuity or unemployment benefits disability |3. Letter from the appropriate institution stating applicable year’s total |

|benefit |award (If not already reported on a tax return.) |

|  |  |

|4. Social Security, Supplemental Security Income or |4. Letter from the agency stating applicable year’s total award for each |

|Veteran’s Administration non-educational benefits |member of the household |

|  |  |

|5. Public Assistance |5. Letter from the agency stating applicable year’s total award and names of |

| |recipients |

|  |  |

|6. Child Support, Maintenance |6. Signed affidavit, court order |

|  |  |

|7. Additional members in household |7. Birth certificates, marriage certificates, third party verification, along |

| |with proof of income or lack thereof for each member, tax return, school |

| |records, custody orders |

|  |  |

|8. Zero household contribution |8. Needs analysis output from the U.S. Education Department’s approved needs |

| |analysis system |

|  |  |

|9. Unusual circumstances |9. Notarized letters, statements, etc., that corroborate claims |

Additional Members in Household

For persons not listed as an exemption on an IRS document or not referred to as part of the household on a Public Assistance document, the following may be appropriate: birth certificates, marriage certificates, third-party verification, or similar documentation (e.g., Medicaid cards or Immigration documents) may be accepted.

No Income

If an independent student or parent declares no base year income, that/those person(s) must submit an IRS “Verification of Non-filing Letter” or provide a signed statement certifying the that individual does not have a Social Security Number, and Individual Taxpayer Identification Number or an Employer Identification Number and a listing of sources and amounts of earnings, other income, and resources that supported the individual (s) for the tax year 2017 (DCL ID: GEN-19-02, June 7, 2019)

Exceptions to the Economic Guidelines Chart

* Exceptions to using the Economic Guidelines chart can be made if the student falls into one of the following categories and documentation is available:

1) The student’s household is the recipient of:

a. Family Assistance Program Aid or;

b. Safety Net Assistance through the NYS Office of Temporary & Disability Assistance, or a county department of social services; or

c. Family day-care payments through the NYS Office of Children & Family Services or a county department of social services; or

2) The student is living with foster parents who do not provide support for college, and no monies are provided from the natural parents; or

3) The student is a ward of the State or a County.

* Special Exceptions to the Income Guidelines: For Special Program eligibility purposes the following shall not constitute income:

➢ Social services or public assistance payments received through the Family Assistance Program, or Safety Net;

➢ Assistance Program and Family Day-Care Payments;

*Fifteen Percent Variation

A maximum of 15 percent of the SEEK/College Discovery students enrolled at any given time may come from households with income exceeding those listed in the income eligibility table.  Inclusion in this category shall be warranted by unusual and extenuating circumstances (as identified below), documented by a reliable, disinterested third party and judged appropriate by the Program Director in cooperation with campus officials.  Supporting documentation should be obtained prior to enrollment and maintained in original form thereafter. Documentation of these circumstances must be kept on file by the school at which such students are enrolled. In all cases, this documentation must include a statement(s) from a disinterested, reliable third party, such as a member of the clergy, a legal representative or a social worker, who has direct knowledge of the student’s situation. Students accepted into Special Programs under the 15 percent rule must be so designated at the determination of initial eligibility.

Categories into which these variations may fall are limited to the following:

➢ Serious mismanagement of the household income with little of the funds accruing to the interest of the student. Serious mismanagement might be defined as use of a controlled substance by head of household, bankruptcy, or a history of gambling. For this category, the statement from the disinterested third party disinterested, reliable party such as a social worker, lawyer, clergyman, counselor or judge, who is knowledgeable about the student’s financial status and financial aid counselor notes would be acceptable documentation.

➢ A one-time income fluctuation in a household with a history of low income, due to one-time causes such as insurance settlements, severance pay, etc.  Satisfactory evidence that a household’s income in the calendar year prior to the calendar year used for determining the student’s economic eligibility fall within the limits applicable of the household income scale shall be sufficient to establish the existence of a one-time fluctuation in household income, provided that there is satisfactory proof of a history of low income. Documentation of both the base year and the years (at least 2 years) prior to the base year’s income must be collected.

➢ Households with substantial long term, non-reimbursed medical obligations (such as maintenance of children with physical or mental disabilities). This may be documented by the appropriate medical bills or a statement from the facility if the family member is institutionalized.

➢ Families which must maintain two households, one for the wage earner and one for dependents, in order to maintain employment. Documentation required would be leases, utility bills for both residences and a statement from the employer attesting to the job location.

➢ Families where the EFC as computed from base year financial data by a United States Education Department approved need analysis system indicates no parental contribution (from a dependent’s household or zero EFC from an independent student’s household).

If a college wishes to use the 15 percent rule to enroll a student in a Special Program, they should collect the required documentation, complete a 15 Percent Variation Request form [See page 10-14 for sample] to be approved and signed by both the Financial Aid Counselor and an authorized official in the SEEK/CD department.

The primary criteria for transfer are establishing student eligibility for the SEEK/CD program at the time of initial entry as a freshman.  Despite any changes in economic status or in level of achievement after admission to a SEEK, CD, EOP or HEOP program, a students’ eligibility for a Special Program transfer will not be affected as long as they have met the eligibility requirements at the time of initial admission to the institution they are transferring from. Students are eligible to transfer between or into a CUNY Special Program if they are transferring from a college in New York State where they were enrolled in the Educational Opportunity Program, the Higher Educational Opportunity Program, a SEEK or College Discovery program. All students transferring between CUNY Special Programs or from HEOP/EOP programs into CUNY Special Programs must submit a completed Special Programs transfer request to the college of their attendance (see page 10-3). The local Financial Aid Office has the responsibility for reviewing the completed transfer form to determine remaining funding eligibility for CUNY Special Programs.

➢ A SEEK student is allowed ten (10) semesters of program funding eligibility and CD students are allowed six (6) semesters, or the equivalent, of opportunity program eligibility.

o A SEEK student enrolled in an approved Five-year baccalaureate program is allowed twelve (12) semesters, or equivalent, of opportunity program eligibility if enrolled in a registered five-year baccalaureate program.

Exceptions:

▪ When a Special Programs student is set to graduate upon the completion of their 11th semester for SEEK or the 7th semester for CD, that student would be eligible for that additional semester of Special Program services and financial support.

▪ When a Special Programs student has not been a Supplemental Tuition Assistance Program recipient but will be graduating upon the completion of the 11th semester (for SEEK) or the 7th semester (for CD), that student would be eligible for an additional semester of Special Programs financial aid support (SEEK the 11th semester – CD the 7th semester). See TAP/STAP eligibility below.

▪ Requests for exemptions for individuals who do not fall into the above categories should be submitted to the University Office of Special Programs for consideration. Special Program directors are required to maintain records for all exemptions given to students.

The maximum length of leave of absence granted to CD/SEEK students shall not exceed three (3) consecutive semesters. Where special circumstances warrant, requests for exceptions along with appropriate justification shall be transmitted by the College Special Programs Director to the University Office of Special Programs for appropriate approval.

To receive Special Programs financial Assistance, a student must do the following each

Academic year:

➢ Student must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and a NYS Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) application by the deadline date established by the University/College and complete any items requested for verification of these applications. These must be completed to determine eligibility for any SEEK/CD financial aid awards (Summer Stipends, Book Stipends, Fee Waivers and Tuition Scholarship).

➢ Must be enrolled as a matriculated student in a Degree seeking program (a NYS approved Bachelor’s or Associate degree program)

➢ Student must have an EFC and/or Cost of Attendance budget for the academic year/semester that permits the Special Program awards to disburse to the student’s account (i.e. EFC calculated by the FAFSA along with total grant financial aid (TAP and Pell award) cannot exceed the total Cost of Attendance)

➢ Student must be registered as a full-time student for the awarding semester with 12 credits or more (unless a part-time waiver has been requested and granted on the students’ behalf).

➢ Book Funds and Student Fee Waivers/Credits should be disbursed as early in a semester as is possible. Back payments will be allowed throughout the term, however reconciliation of Special Program award disbursements for the academic year should be completed no later than the end of the current fiscal year.

Please Note: Special Programs students must begin attendance in each of the courses used to determine enrollment status each semester. If a student receives a WN grade in a course, that course must be excluded from the calculation of enrollment status for the semester. If after receiving a disbursement of Special Programs funds, a student is found to have not established fulltime enrollment, that semester’s special program funding must be returned.

*Exceptions to fulltime enrollment/attendance requirement

➢ Six credit hours constitute the minimum requirement for participation and funding as a part-time SEEK/CD student. 

➢ The part-time SEEK/CD student is an exception and is expected to undertake or return to full-time study as soon as circumstances permit.  After ONE semester, continued part-time status must be reviewed by the SEEK Director/Counselor for additional approval.

Part-Time Waiver Request:

The Special Programs Director may give written approval:

• For a student to carry only those courses needed for graduation in the student’s last semester of enrollment, even if it is less than full-time.

• For a student to carry less than a full-time load due to extenuating circumstances that are documented in the Special Programs office.

• Allowing a student to drop from full-time to 9 credit/contact hours provided the Special Programs counselor has deemed the action advisable and proper authorization is maintained in the Special Programs office under the student file.

* Part-time status is granted for one semester through the submission of a waiver request form by the SEEK/CD Department with the approval of an authorized Counselor and/or the Director.

Awarding of Special Program funding for Part-time Students:

➢ Student will receive the SEEK/CD Book Advance, however the Student Fee Waiver will be reduced to reflect the correct amount charged on the student account (all student fees except for the technology fee are covered)

➢ The part-time waiver policy and procedure applies to students who enroll part-time at the beginning of the semester; it does not apply to students who enroll full-time and later drop classes thereby becoming part-time.

➢ Student cannot receive a Part-time waiver for any WN grades received in a semester that result in the loss of full-time status

* For students seeking a waiver for a second (or more) part-time semester for reasons other than the three listed above, SEEK/CD Directors must complete and submit the following Request for Additional Part-Time Semester Enrollment for SEEK/CD Student form (See page 10-15).

A student will use one semester of Special Programs eligibility every time he or she registers as a full-time student. To calculate the number of semesters used by students who were required to register part-time (e.g. those on academic probation or for whom part-time status was approved for exceptional reasons), add up the total number of credits or equated credits taken while enrolled on a part-time basis and divide it by fifteen.

Students in active default of Title IV funds or who have other delinquent Federal Student Aid accounts are not eligible to transfer within Special Programs until all delinquent accounts are cleared.

Students provisionally admitted as incoming freshmen into a SEEK, CD Program who fail one or more of the CUNY reading, writing, and/or mathematics skills assessment tests are required to attend a pre-freshmen summer session. Students who are required to, but do not, attend the summer session are not eligible for SEEK/CD admission in the fall semester.

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Economic Eligibility Criteria for Entering Freshmen

Economic Eligibility Documentation for Entering Freshmen

Transfer Students

Period of Special Program Eligibility

SEEK/CD Financial Awards Eligibility

Calculation of Semester of Eligibility

Pre-Freshman Summer Experience

Loan Defaults

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