Al Collins Graphic Design - court case

I noted a report filed against this school, and then happened to
file this court case judgement against them on the internet at the
following link.

http://www.ed-oha.org/cases/1996-62-sp.html

Below is a plain text version of the decision....


UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20202


_________________________________________

In the Matter of Docket No. 96-62-SP

AL COLLINS GRAPHIC DESIGN SCHOOL, Student Financial
Assistance
Proceeding
Respondent.
__________________________________________ PRCN: 199510900006

Appearances:

Ralph H. Vieau, President, Al Collins Graphic Design School,
Tempe, Arizona, for
Respondent.

S. Dawn Scaniffe, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, United
States Department of
Education, Washington, D.C., for Student Financial Assistance
Programs.


Before:

Frank K. Krueger, Jr., Administrative Judge.


DECISION

The Respondent appealed Finding # 8 of the Final Program Review
Determination (FPRD)
issued by the Student Financial Assistance Programs (SFAP), U.S.
Department of Education
(ED), on March 27, 1996. The finding concerns the alleged failure of
the Respondent to
collect the necessary documentation to verify that Student # 6 was
registered with the
Selective Service System. SFAP contends that Respondent must return
to ED $1,200.00 in
Pell Grant funds disbursed to this student. For the reasons provided
below, I agree with
SFAP.

Discussion and Findings

Respondent makes no effort to contest the facts as put forth in
the FPRD. Student # 6 was
required by Federal law to register with the Selective Service
System. Student # 6 began his
program of study at the Al Collins Graphic Design School on June 8,
1992. On June 20, 1992,
Respondent received an Electronic Student Aid Report indicating that
the Selective Service
System was unable to verify that Student # 6 was registered with the
Selective Service
System. On August 3, 1992, Student # 6 withdrew from the
institution. Sometime in August
1992, Student # 6 signed a statement in the Electronic Student Aid
Report certifying that he
was registered with the Selective Service System.See footnote 11
Again, sometime between
June 8, 1992, when Student # 6 began his program of study, and
August 3, 1992, when he
withdrew, Respondent awarded $1,200.00 in Pell funds to Student #
6.See footnote 22

Under 34 C.F.R. 668.7(a)(8) (1992), a student is not eligible
to receive student financial
assistance under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as
amended, unless the student
has filed a Statement of Selective Service Registration Status in
accordance with 34 C.F.R.
668.33 (1992). Under 668.33 (a)(1), a participating institution
may not disburse Title IV
funds to any student until such a Statement is filed. The Statement
shall certify either that the
student is registered with the Selective Service System or that, for
a specified reason, the
student is not required to register. An institution may waive the
requirement that a student file
a Statement of Selective Service Registration Status if the
institution determines, based on
clear and unambiguous evidence, that the student is not required
to register. Id. at
668.33(b). However, any waiver is at the institution's peril since
it may be liable for any
funds disbursed if it is ultimately determined that its waiver was
not reasonable in light of all
available information. Id. at 668.33(f). Similarly, an institution
may disburse assistance to a
student who has submitted the required Registration Statement from a
student who is required
to register with the Selective Service System, but who has not
registered, if the institution had
information which conflicts with the student's Statement, and
acceptance of the Statement was
not reasonable in light of all available information. Id. at
66.33(g).

In the case at hand, Respondent may have disbursed the Pell
Grant funds before it received
Student # 6's Registration Statement, which would be a clear
violation of 34 C.F.R.
668.7(a)(8) and 668.33(a)(1). However, since it is unclear as to
when the Pell Funds were
actually distributed, and it is unclear as to the exact day in
August when Student #6 signed the
Registration Statement on the Electronic Student Aid Report, there
is the possibility that the
Pell funds where distributed after Respondent's receipt of the
Statement and before the student
withdrew from the institution on August 3, 1992 -- i.e. August 2,
1992. Notwithstanding this
possibility, Respondent would still be in violation of 34 C.F.R.
668.33 since, as noted
above, 668.33(g) provides that an institution is liable for any
Title IV aid awarded to a
student who has submitted a Registration Statement indicating that
the student was registered
with the Selective Service when the student was not registered and
acceptance of the student's
Statement was not reasonable in light of the conflicting information
in the institution's
possession.

Although the Respondent acknowledged that the Selective Service
could not confirm the
student's registration, its defense is that data match problems
were not unusual during 1992-
93, and reliance on the student's certification was reasonable.
Respondent makes no effort to
discuss or define the so-called data match problems which are
cryptically mentioned in its
submission or otherwise offer any evidence in support of its
position. In light of the evidence
in the record, I find that Respondent's Pell Grant award to Student
#6 was unreasonable and in
violation of 34 C.F.R. 66.33 (1992).

Order

ORDERED, that Respondent pay ED $1,200.00.

July 29, 1996

_____________________________
Frank K. Krueger, Jr.
Administrative Judge



_________________

S E R V I C E
__________________

A copy of the attached initial decision was sent to the
following by registered mail, return
receipt requested:

Ralph H. Vieau, President
Al Collins Graphic Design School
1140 South Priest Drive
Tempe, AZ 85281

S. Dawn Scaniffe, Esq.
Office of the General Counsel
U.S. Department of Education
600 Independence Ave., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20202



Footnote: 1 1 The day of Student # 6's signature is unclear (it
could be August 2, 3, 21, or
31), but the month and year are clear. See ED Exhibit 2-1.

Footnote: 2 2 As with the date of the signature on the Electronic
Student Aid Report, the
record does not reveal the precise date that the Pell funds at issue
were disbursed.