Appeals of Financial Aid Suspension

A student has the right to appeal if he/she feels that he/she has complied with the requirements of the satisfactory academic progress policy or believes that there are extenuating circumstances that occurred. Examples of extenuating circumstance are the death of a relative, an injury or illness to an immediate family member or student, or similar special circumstances that could affect the academic performance. To appeal a financial aid suspension, the student must submit an appeal letter with supporting documentation to the Director of Financial Aid. Submission of an appeal is not an automatic approval. Student appeals submitted to Academic Services for academic suspension are not sent to financial aid. Please be sure to submit a separate appeal letter to the Director of Financial Aid, for review of the financial aid suspension.

If the appeal is denied, the student will be ineligible to receive Title IV aid until the academic requirements are met.

Probationary Periods

If the student’s appeal is granted, the student will be placed on Financial Aid Probation and will have the next succeeding term of enrollment (semester or quarter) to meet the minimum requirements as stated above. At the conclusion of the term, the financial aid office will ensure the student is now meeting the SAP standards in order to qualify for further federal financial aid funding. If the student is not making SAP standards again at that time, the student will be placed on financial aid suspension again and be required to submit a new appeal, including an academic plan.

Academic Plan

An academic plan will be completed between the student and Academic Advisor. The plan must include benchmarks that students will meet to ensure they are making progress to degree and will render the student eligible for aid again under SAP rules (Qualitative and Quantitative measures).

Re-establishing Financial Aid Eligibility without Appeal

If the student is allowed to attend Lindenwood University academically, they may continue at their own expense to attempt to improve completion rates and/or GPA issues. Once a student is back into compliance with SAP, they may contact the financial aid office for review of reinstatement of their financial aid.