Overview

Starting with Regent Award Release 5.4.0, Regent Award supports automated awarding and disbursement of Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) awards. Introducing automation into the state grant processing is expected to result in significant cost savings as well as increased awarding accuracy for schools. The process starts with a Maryland institution pulling down a roster from the Maryland College Aid Processing System (MDCAPS).  That roster file is then uploaded by the institution to Regent (through either a manual or automated process) with the expectation that Regent will either add or update pertinent information to determine eligibility for a student - no data is updated in Regent at any point in this process.  Data passes through Regent and is used to create export roster file(s) with updated student information (ex. GPA, credits, etc.).  The resulting export rosters include a file to be uploaded back to MDCAPS and a file for the institution to review any records that failed to be updated (ex. Student does not exist in Regent, GPA is blank, etc.).  This functionality also includes the consumption of the MHEC Award Roster, which will insert MHEC award amounts onto the student’s Academic Plan and cancel existing ineligible awards according to configuration settings.

Background

The Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) is the State of Maryland's higher education coordinating board responsible for establishing statewide policies for Maryland public and private colleges and universities and for-profit career schools.  MHEC administers a variety of statewide financial aid programs, including grants, scholarships, and tuition waivers, for Maryland residents attending two- or four-year public or private colleges/universities in Maryland.  Most MHEC awards are based on financial need and/or merit and are awarded in addition to aid offered by the institution.

MHEC Award Eligibility

Information that may impact a student’s eligibility for state awards includes:

• Housing status – on campus, off-campus, or with relatives
• Enrollment status – full-time or less than full-time
• Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) standing
• Verification status/outcome – changes to a FAFSA due to conflicting data

Import Rosters

GPA Roster

The GPA Roster will use data from Regent to provide an updated GPA back to MDCAPS to determine a student's eligibility for an MHEC award.  

Example file - GPA Roster-2020-2021_GPA_Roster_Sample, 20200927 (2).csv 

Verification Roster

The Verification Roster will use data from Regent to provide housing plan, dependency status, EFC and verification status back to MDCAPS to determine a student's eligibility for an MHEC award.

Example file - Verification Roster-2020-2021 Verification Roster Sample, 20200927 (3).csv 

Credit Completion Roster

The Credit Completion Roster will use data from Regent to provide credits back to MDCAPS to determine a student's eligibility for an MHEC award.

Example file - UC_FA_MHEC_CREDITS_RPT_UP_Regent_Sample_210107_v1 (2).csv 

Billing Roster

The Billing Roster will use data from Regent to provide enrollment status, grade level, SAP, etc. back to MDCAPS to determine a student's eligibility for an MHEC award.

Example file - Billing ROster 2020-2021 Fall Billing Roster Sample, 20200928 (1).csv 

Award Roster

The Award Roster will be used to add, update or cancel an MHEC award based on the above rosters determining eligibility information.

Example file - Award Roster-2020-2021 Fall Award Roster Sample, 20200927 (4).csv 

Manual Import

To import an MHEC Roster via the UI, on the Processes menu → Import Process screen, select "Import State Grants" under the Process Type drop-down.  Select "Maryland" under the State Province drop-down, and select the name of the Roster (e.g. Billing, GPA, Verification, etc.) to import under the File Type drop-down.  Only users with the "Import State Grants" permission can access this process.

SFTP Folders

MHEC Award data that is not valid for RNA at time of import will be permanently deleted after the related MHEC Award Exception export is complete.  The imported data is permanently deleted at the end of this extended process therefore no records will be available for review on the process log.  

Folder Name	Process Type	FileWatcher Monitored	Description
StateGrantLoadMD_MHECAward_FW	Import		State Grant MD files processing Files uploaded from the UI (where REM calls DEX to process them) Also, files that have processed via being loaded into the _FW folder Files only exist in this folder when they are processing
StateGrantLoadMD_MHECBilling_FW	Import		State Grant MD files processing Files uploaded from the UI (where REM calls DEX to process them) Also, files that have processed via being loaded into the _FW folder Files only exist in this folder when they are processing
StateGrantLoadMD_MHECCreditCompletion_FW	Import		State Grant MD files processing Files uploaded from the UI (where REM calls DEX to process them) Also, files that have processed via being loaded into the _FW folder Files only exist in this folder when they are processing
StateGrantLoadMD_MHECGPA_FW	Import		State Grant MD files processing Files uploaded from the UI (where REM calls DEX to process them) Also, files that have processed via being loaded into the _FW folder Files only exist in this folder when they are processing
StateGrantLoadMD_MHECVerification_FW	Import		State Grant MD files processing Files uploaded from the UI (where REM calls DEX to process them) Also, files that have processed via being loaded into the _FW folder Files only exist in this folder when they are processing
StateGrantExport	Export

MHEC File Layout

The following table contains the fields for all rosters that will be imported/exported for MHEC.  The file must be in a Comma-Separated Values (CSV UTF-8) format to be consumed by Regent.  

External Term Code

External Term Code in Term Setup will align with the MHEC term value + FAY.  For example, Fall 2022 would be '242022' for matching purposes.  The MHEC term values are listed below:

1. 23 = Leading Summer
2. 24 = Fall
3. 25 = Spring
4. 26 = Trailing Summer
5. 1 = Annual (will not be used)

Configuration

MHECID - Unique Identifier

A new field in Regent Award has been created to display the unique MHECID provided via the import rosters.  ‘RosterExternalID1’ is located on the Student Summary Tab in Regent Award.  This field is non-editable and is an information only field.  ‘RosterExternalID1’ is searchable from the Student Search page.  Configuration of the ‘RosterExternalID1’ is located under Institution Setup -> Student ID tab.

For all rosters, Regent will match on the MHECID stored in Regent as ‘RosterExternalID1’.  If 'RosterExternalID1' exists, then it will be used for matching purposes upon import to MHECID.  If 'RosterExternalID1' does not exist, then Regent will match students on the Rosters using SSN AND Federal School Code and persist the MHECID in the 'RosterExternalID1' field.

Alternate Enrollment Level Setup

Configuration has been added to Enrollment Level Setup to be used for MHEC export purposes.  Alternate Enrollment Level Setup is used to calculate enrollment status for the billing roster export and for calculating enrollment status at the time of disbursement.  The alternate anticipated enrollment fields are not required.

Institution State Tab

Under Institution Setup, there is a tab called ‘State’ where you can edit MHEC settings.  If ‘Enable MHEC Settings’ is selected, then the subsequent fields on the page are editable. 

• ‘Roster Student Matching’ – The selection in this field will be used to match the unique student roster ID to the RosterExternalID selected for roster processing.
• ‘Roster Fund Matching’ – The selection in this field will be used to match the award on the roster to the Agency Program ID on fund configuration.
• ‘Enrollment Level Setup’ – The selection in this field will determine if the Standard Enrollment Setup or the Alternate Enrollment Setup will be used when determining the enrollment status for roster processing.
• ‘Roster Processing Options’ – The selection in this field will be used to determine if all students on the roster should be processed or whether students for whom the only cancellation code is for insufficient enrollment status should be excluded from the resulting export file until the roster processing offset date for the term.
  • ‘Offset Days for Roster Processing’ – The number of days represented by the value entered in this field will be added to the start date of the term to determine the date on which Regent will begin including all students on the resulting export file - even those for whom the only cancellation code is for insufficient enrollment status.
• ‘Housing Plan’ – The option selected for this field will be used for the Housing Plan for roster processing.  If 'Always use ISIR' is selected, the housing plan from ISIR will be used.  If 'Use Off Campus and 'With Parent only from ISIR' is selected, the housing plan from the ISIR will be used, except when On Campus or no value is listed and will default to Off Campus.  If Always use Off Campus is selected, the housing plan will always default to Off Campus.  If the Use UDF Housing Plan is configured and added to a student, this value will override the Housing Plan configuration for that student.
  • ‘Use UDF Housing Plan’ – All UDFs configured for your institution will be available via a dropdown.

Export Rosters

GPA Roster

Two export .CSV files are created upon import of the GPA roster.  The MHEC Export file plus the Exception Report will equal 100% of the students on the original imported file from MHEC.

1. GPA Roster MHEC Export
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv
2. GPA Roster Exception Report
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv

The GPA MHEC Export file updates 2 fields, Campus Student ID (with ExternalID1) and GPA.  GPA is updated with current cumulative GPA as provided from the latest SBL imported into Regent.  If a student’s program for the roster term is undergraduate, Regent will use the Cumulative Undergraduate GPA.  Undergraduate includes programs configured with the programTypeCode equal to one of the following:

1. Undergraduate
2. Prep-Undergrad
3. Ed Licensure
4. Post Baccalaureate certificate
5. CTP Programs
6. Prep-Grad

If a student’s program for the roster term is Graduate, Regent will use the Cumulative Graduate GPA.  Graduate types include programs configured with programTypeCode equal to one of the following:

1. Graduate
2. Post-Graduate

A student will appear on the GPA Roster Exception Report if any of the following exists:

1. Specified term does not exist
2. GPA is blank
3. Student does not exist in Regent

Verification Roster

One export .CSV file is created upon import of the Verification roster:

1. Verification Roster MHEC Export
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv

The Verification Roster MHEC Export is created for submission to MHEC and consists of an updated version of the imported file.  If the imported row cannot match the student OR the student has no active ISIR for the FAY, Regent will still export the row so the import file is a 1:1 match with the export file.  This export updates 6 fields as follows:

1. Campus Student ID with ExternalID1
2. Housing Plan using the Housing Plan configuration from the State tab
3. Dependency Status from the Active ISIR
4. ISIR ID and Transaction with ISIR Field #2 (Original SSN) + ISIR Field #3 (Original Name ID)+ ISIR Field #4 (Transaction Number)
5. EFC from the Active ISIR
6. Verification Status from the Active ISIR

Credit Completion Roster

Two export .CSV files are created upon import of the Credit Completion roster.  The MHEC Export file plus the Exception Report will equal 100% of the students on the original imported file from MHEC.

1. Credit Completion Roster MHEC Export
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv
2. Credit Completion Roster Exception Report
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv

The Credit Completion Roster MHEC Export is created for submission to MHEC and consists of an updated version of the imported file.  The Credit column is updated as follows:

1. Credit Column, uses totalSuccessfullyCompletedUnits CE Rollup in Regent Award for the term indicated on the roster as follows:
   1. If term is 'Fall', sum the units for the Header Summer Term (MHEC Term ID = 23) and Fall Term (MHEC Term ID = 24).
      1. If sum of units = 0, report 0.
   2. If term is 'Spring', sum the units for the Trailer Summer Term (MHEC Term ID = 26) and Spring Term (MHEC Term ID = 25).
      1. If sum of units = 0, report 0.
2. Identify 'Fall' and 'Spring' terms by using the beginning portion of the MHEC Term ID Roster value and matching to the External Term Code configured in Term Setup and applying the following logic:
   1. If MHEC Term ID begins with 'Fall'; (i.e. Fall Term 1), match to a term where the External Term Code includes the number 23 + FAY (e.g. 232022 where the FAY is 2021-2022) to identify a Header Summer Term (Note:  MHEC refers to this term as a Leading Summer term.).
   2. If MHEC Term ID begins with 'Fall'; (i.e. Fall Term 1), match to a term where the External Term Code includes the number 24 + FAY (e.g. 242022 where the FAY is 2021-2022) to identify a Fall Term.
   3. If MHEC Term ID begins with 'Spring'; (i.e. Spring Term 1), match to a term where the External Term Code includes the number 25 + FAY (e.g. 252022 where the FAY is 2021-2022) to identify a Spring Term.
   4. If MHEC Term ID begins with 'Spring'; (i.e. Spring Term 1), match to a term where the External Term Code includes the number 26 + FAY (e.g. 262022 where the FAY is 2021-2022) to identify a Trailer Summer Term (Note:  MHEC refers to this term as a Trailing Summer term.).

A student will appear on the Credit Completion Roster Exception Report where any one of the following exists: 

1. Students with missing grades

   1. Course is not completed

   2. Course is not a transfer

   3. Course is not withdrawn (any date)

   4. Course is not repeat disqualified (use current repeat logic, see Remedial and Repeat Units)

   5. Course has no Quality Points (QP >0, Total Successfully Completed Units)

2. Student does not exist in Regent Award
3. Specified term does not exist 
4. Credits could not be determined

Billing Roster

Two export .CSV files are created upon import of the Billing roster.  The MHEC Export file plus the Exception Report will equal 100% of the students on the original imported file from MHEC.

1. Billing Roster MHEC Export
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv
2. Billing Roster Exception Report
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv

The Billing Roster MHEC Export is created for submission to MHEC and consists of an updated version of the imported file. 

Note: The following must be true for the record to appear on the MHEC Export file:

• Student exists and is matched to a roster

• Term exists and is matched to a roster

• Fund exists and is matched to a roster

• Enrollment record exists on the student's plan

  • Could be an Enrollment = None or have 0 units

• MHEC Enrollment Status can be determined (never blank)

  • Depends on Enrollment + Alternate config existing

• Fund Min Enrollment Level is configured (on Fund Setup, "Amount Per Payment Period" = Yes)

• Institution roster processing option is configured (on the Institution → State tab)

• Enrollment level setup (mapped from the Enrollment) has Alternate enrollment level min/max values configured

• Student has a Disbursement record in Regent for the Term

• Roster Processing Options evaluate to true

  • Either = ‘ProcessAll’

  • or ‘StudentsMeetMinimumFundEnrollmentStatus’ and offset date has been reached

  • or ‘StudentsMeetMinimumFundEnrollmentStatus’ and Fund min Enrollment level has been met

• The MHEC Degree or Certificate can be determined (never blank)

The Billing Roster MHEC Export file updates 9 fields as follows:

1. Enrollment Status
   1. MHEC Value = 1 = Full-time in Regent
   2. MHEC Value = 2 = Three-quarter time in Regent
   3. MEHC Value = 3 = Half-time in Regent
   4. MHEC Value = 4 = Less-than-half-time in Regent
   5. MHEC Value = N = Not enrolled in Regent
2. Certification/Cancellation Code (if applicable, multiple cancellation codes must be separated by a comma with no spaces)
3. Campus Student ID (Data field maps to ExternalID1)
4. Housing Plan (use Housing Plan configuration from the 'State' tab to determine current Housing Plan)
5. Grade Level (Can be blank if Certification/Cancellation code is 'CX')
6. Degree or Certificate (cannot be blank on the output file)
7. Credits (leave blank unless reporting for "Veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq Conflicts" (VAIC))
8. New Award Amount (must be blank)
9. SAP

The Billing Roster Exception file identifies and includes the following:

1. No Registration
2. Mismatch Disbursement
3. Specified Term Does Not Exist
4. Does Not Meet Min Enrollment Status but prior to <Date>
   1. All students that do not meet the minimum enrollment status from the MHEC Billing Roster Export due to today's date being prior to the calculated offset date.
      1. <Date> is equal to Today's date (date roster being imported).
5. Potential MSFAA
   1. All students for whom no Active Valid ISIR is on file for the FAY
      1. Valid ISIR = ISIR with EFC (not rejected)
6. Insufficient MHEC Enrollment
7. Student does not exist in Regent
8. No Matching Fund
9. MHEC Enrollment Status cannot be determined
10. No Disbursement record in Regent for the Term
11. MHEC Degree or Certificate cannot be determined
12. <Configuration Name> is Missing
    1. <Configuration Name> will include one of the following:
       1. Enrollment Level Setup
       2. Term Setup
       3. Fund Setup
       4. Program Setup

Award Roster

One export .CSV file is created upon import of the Award roster:

1. Award Roster Exception Export
   1. Filename format:  {IOProcessTypeCode}_{FAY}_{DEX App Id}_{REM IOProcess TransactionId}_{Export date & time}.csv

The Award Roster Exception Export includes both MHEC Roster values and Regent Award values.  A 'Results' column identifies mismatched data between MHEC and Regent, Action Taken (e.g. Award Added) and No Action Taken.  The Exception Report identifies the following:

1. Results
   1. Award Increase
   2. Award Decrease
   3. Mismatch Award Status
   4. No Matching Fund
   5. Award Added
   6. Disbursement to be Cancelled on or after <Date>
   7. Student does not exist in Regent 
   8. Specified Term does not exist
   9. Invalid Residency
   10. Invalid SAP 
   11. No Results

Awarding

Awards are updated via the MHEC Award Roster.  A student can have multiple award types/fund types listed in the file, and the file contains a separate record for each award/fund a student receives.  A separate roster is received for each term.  Regent will act on the MHEC Program Status as follows to:

1. Add an award (Awards in 'Accepted' status on the roster)
2. Cancel an award (Awards in 'Cancelled' or 'Declined' status on roster)
3. Adjust an award (Awards in 'Accepted' status on roster that exist in Regent but are different amounts)
4. Ignore an award (for awards that are neither added nor canceled)

Eligibility Validation 

MD Residency and SAP eligibility are checked prior to disbursing an award.  

Adding a Disbursement/Award

Awards will be added from the Award Roster to Regent if the following conditions are true:

1. If fund and term match for existing awards and term matches for new award
2. MHEC Status is 'Accepted'

Awards will be added during packaging in the order in which they are specified by the Packaging Philosophy.  Repackage other awards following the MHEC award to ensure need and cost of attendance (COA) are not exceeded.  If an award already exists in Regent, add a new disbursement to the already existing award for the corresponding term in a 'Scheduled' status.  The FAY for the fund will be the same FAY as the roster FAY.  Increase the Accepted and Offered amount of the fund to the total of the disbursement amounts.

Canceling an Award

Awards will be canceled from the Award Roster in Regent as follows:

1. Student, fund and term match, the award is on the student's plan and the MHEC status is 'Ineligible' (for all cancellation codes except 'CX', 'SK' and 'SX') or 'Declined'
2. Cancel disbursements depending on the configuration 'Offset Days for Roster Processing'
   1. If 'Offset Days for Roster Processing' is configured under the State tab, then a value entered in this field will be added to the start date of the term to determine the date to begin cancelling disbursements for the 'CX', 'SK', 'SX' cancellation codes.
   2. If no 'Offset Days for Roster Processing' is configured, 'CX', 'SK' and 'SX' cancellation codes will be included in the cancellation process for the Ineligible statuses

Adjusting an Award

Awards will be adjusted from the Award Roster in Regent as follows:

1. Adjust awards to the amount on the MHEC Roster for which the student and term match, the award is on the student’s plan, the MHEC status is Accepted, and the Regent Award disbursement amount for the term and the MHEC 'Award Amount' column are not the same.
   1. Note:  If award amount changes to $0, expectation is that it will have a cancellation code and will follow the cancellation process noted above.  If for any reason an Accepted amount has a $0 Award Amount listed on roster, the disbursement in Regent Award would be updated to $0 and would remain in a 'Scheduled' status.  

Ignoring an Award

Regent will not take action on an award if any of the following conditions are met:

1. Award Status does not equal 'Accepted', 'Ineligible', 'Declined' OR
2. Award Status = 'Ineligible' AND prior to the calculated 'Offset Days for Roster Processing'