Report 2021-611 Recommendation 10 Responses
Report 2021-611: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund: Some University Campuses Did Not Maximize Available Federal Pandemic Funds, and They Prioritized Students Differently When Awarding Relief Funds (Release Date: November 2021)
Recommendation #10 To: University, California State
In the event of a future emergency federal student aid program that lacks detailed criteria regarding how funds are to be awarded, such as an allocation of additional pandemic-related funds under current requirements, the CSU Chancellor's Office should provide guidance on the priorities and processes for distributing student aid so that its campuses can consistently distribute funds to students in similar situations.
If the hypothetical event suggested in the recommendation should occur, the Chancellor's Office (CO) will provide guidance to the campuses on the priorities and processes for distributing student aid. In addition, we will incorporate any further requirements from the awarding agency to ensure compliance.
With regard to the subject matter of this audit, the campuses have fully complied with the terms and conditions laid out by the granting agency, as well as the guidance on the priorities and processes provided by the CO. The State Auditor recommends a different approach to managing the CSU. The CO will continue to support the campuses' ability to make the decisions that are in the best interest of their campus and student population.
California State Auditor's Assessment of Status: Will Not Implement
We observed wide variations in how campuses distributed HEERF student-aid, and question whether these inconsistencies were in the best interests of the respective campuses' student populations. Had the CSU Chancellor's Office provided more detailed guidance on how campuses should distribute the student-aid, the campuses might have prioritized students in similar situations more consistently. Because it is the systemwide office's role to coordinate activities among its respective campuses, we stand by our recommendation. Finally, as detailed in our report, in some cases CSU campuses did not fully comply with the terms and conditions laid out by the granting agency.
All Recommendations in 2021-611
Agency responses received are posted verbatim.