Effective: May 14, 2007
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a. General Program Benefits. The Employee
Grant Program is an employee benefit provided to all regular
full-time employees and their dependents. It is not an entitlement.
Funding for this program each year is dependent upon the
availability of adequate institutional financial aid funds.
Program benefits are immediate upon regular full-time employment.
The employee must begin full-time employment prior to the
beginning date of the term in which the employee/dependent
is applying. Employee Grant funds may be used for undergraduate
and graduate coursework.
While the Employee Grant Program is an employee benefit,
it is managed in accordance with federal, state and institutional
financial aid policies and procedures. All recipients of
the Employee Grant Program who attend full-time or part-time
in the undergraduate program must submit a FAFSA (Free Application
for Federal Student Aid) each year prior to June 15 as a
condition of eligibility and comply with these policies and
procedures to receive funding. All recipients of the Employee
Grant Program who attend full-time or part-time in a graduate
program, will only need to complete the FAFSA if they are
interested in taking out loans. Should the employee begin
full-time employment after June 15 but prior to the beginning
date of the fall semester, he/she must still submit the FAFSA
for that term. Employee/Dependents may apply on-line at www.fafsa.org.
Requests for exceptions to filing the FAFSA must be submitted
in writing by June 15 to the Vice-President for Enrollment
Management. Students beginning in the spring semester must
submit a FAFSA by December 15. Should the employee begin
full-time employment after December 15 but prior to the beginning
date of the spring semester, he/she must still submit the
FAFSA for that term. Likewise, requests for exceptions must
be submitted in writing by December 15 to the Vice-President
for Enrollment Management.
b. Program Limits:
1. Eligibility:
a. Employees. Regular full-time employees, full-time faculty
and non-faculty personnel on contracts of at least 10 months
annually are eligible, providing all other criteria is
met. Temporary employees, visiting professors or lecturers
are not eligible.
b. Dependents. A “dependent” for purposes
of eligibility for an Employee Grant is a person who meets
dependency status per federal guidelines OR is claimed
on an eligible employee’s Federal Income Tax Return.
The Federal guidelines are as follows:
Must be:
• Under the age of 24
• Working on an undergraduate degree
• Single with no dependents
• Not attained veteran status
• Not be considered a ward of the court
c. Admissions. All employees and dependents utilizing
the Employee Grant Program must apply for undergraduate
or graduate admission to the University and be accepted
for admission based on current admission standards. This
includes regular, foundation studies and special status
students, i.e., non-degree seeking, transient, etc. All
applicants must pay the application fee.
2. Maximum Institutional Award. Each employee has a maximum
amount of institutional aid that may be used annually (fiscal
year) for the employee and his/her dependents. The combined
total of Employee Grant funds that may be used by the employee
and his/her dependents during a fiscal year (June 1 to May
31) cannot exceed the equivalent of the annual full-time
tuition rate for one person for the Fall and Spring semesters.
Multiple dependents may receive funds from the Employee
Grant Program during a single fiscal year as long as the
total funds do not exceed the annual full-time tuition rate
for one individual for the fiscal year.
3. Attendance Criteria:
a. Employees. Employees may take undergraduate or graduate
classes outside their normal working hours during any term
with permission from the appropriate Senior Officer and
the President of the University. Permission is to be obtained
on the Employee Grant Form that must be submitted prior
to the beginning of each term. The Employee Grant Form
may be downloaded from the university website at www.charlestonsouthern.edu.
The document is located under the Faculty and Staff section.
b. Dependents. A dependent of an employee, as defined
above, may attend either part-time or full-time as an undergraduate
or graduate student during any term with permission from
the appropriate Senior Officer and the President of the
University. Permission is to be obtained on the Employee
Grant Form that must be submitted prior to the beginning
of each term. The Employee Grant Form may be downloaded
from the university website at www.charlestonsouthern.edu.
The document is located under the Faculty and Staff section.
4. S.C. Hope/S.C. Life and Palmetto Fellow Scholarship Recipients.
a. Book Allowance. Employees/Dependents who are eligible
to receive funds from the Employee Grant Program and qualify
by the State of South Carolina to receive the S.C. Hope
Scholarship, will be allowed to use $150 per year of their
scholarship for books. Employees/Dependents who are eligible
to receive funds from the Employee Grant Program and qualify
by the State of South Carolina to receive the SC Palmetto
Fellows Scholarship or the SC Life Scholarship, will be
allowed to use $300 per year of their scholarship for books.
The amount of funds each year will be based on the amount
of funds allocated by the SC Legislature for this purpose.
This will be awarded above the full-time tuition benefit
of the Employee Grant Program.
b. Housing Allowance. Employees/Dependents who have met
all eligibility to receive funds from the Employee Grant
program and qualify by the State of South Carolina to receive
the S.C. Hope Scholarship, S.C. Life Scholarship or the
S.C. Palmetto Fellow Scholarship, will be allowed to use
fifty percent of their scholarship funds toward their room
and board charges providing the student lives in the Charleston
Southern University residence halls. This will be awarded
above the full-time tuition benefit of the Employee Grant
Program. If the student chooses to use the book allowance,
the remainder of the fifty percent will be used toward
room and board.
5. Other Program Provisions. The employee receiving an employee
grant for himself or his dependent(s) does so under the following
provisions:
a. If the employee/dependent is attending in part-time
status and withdraws from a course or courses after drop/add
or receives a grade of FA, the employee will be responsible
for payment of all tuition charges for the course(s). Financial
aid will be reduced for the courses not completed. The
award will automatically be adjusted if the course withdrawal
is prior to drop/add. The employee/dependent must maintain
financial aid satisfactory progress as defined in the University
Catalog to remain eligible for the benefit in subsequent
semesters.
b. If the employee/dependent is attending in full-time
status and completely withdraws from a course or courses
after drop/add, but remains in full-time status, the employee/dependent
must meet financial aid satisfactory progress as defined
in the University Catalog to remain eligible for the benefit
in subsequent semesters.
c. If the employee/dependent is attending in full-time
status and takes any action that reduces them to part-time
status after drop/add, the employee will be responsible
for payment of full tuition charges although financial
aid will be adjusted to part-time status. (Note: Awards
will automatically be adjusted if such action occurs prior
to drop/add).
d. If full-time employment ceases for any reason during
a semester, the Employee Grant Program will cover the remainder
of the semester for which it has already been approved.
e. Any unused portion of the annual Maximum Institutional
Award in any year cannot be applied to an earlier fiscal
year nor carried forward for use in a later fiscal year.
f. When requests for employee grant funds exceed the availability
of institutional funds for this purpose, employee grants
will be awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis. Also,
eligible employees will be given priority over dependents
in awarding employee grants.
g. Graduate Students: Employees/dependents receiving a
graduate tuition waiver under the Employee Grant Program
are responsible for paying taxes on the fringe benefit
amount. As such, the payroll office will add the value
of such grants to your pay record for income tax withholding
purposes. The fringe benefit amount will be split between
paychecks and the amount will be included in your W-2 at
the end of the year. This will decrease your net pay for
these pay periods, since your taxes on this fringe benefit
will be withheld, with no corresponding increase in your
gross salary amount.
Revised 5/14/07 dbw
