US Department of Education
Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF I, II, III)

HEERF I: CARES Act 
Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students 

Grant: P425E200293
As of December 31, 2020 FINAL 

Quarterly Budget and Expenditure Reporting – OMB Form 1840-0849

Transylvania University reports the following details required by the Department of Education for the Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students in compliance with the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) under Section 18004(a)(1) of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act enacted on March 27, 2020.  

  • An acknowledgement that the institution signed and returned to the Department the Certification and Agreement and the assurance that the institution has used, or intends to use, no less than 50 percent of the funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students.
    • Transylvania acknowledges that the institution signed and returned to the Department the Certification and Agreement and provides assurance that the institution has used, or intends to use, no less than 50 percent of the funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students. 
  • The total amount of funds that the institution will receive or has received from the Department pursuant to the institution’s Certification and Agreement [for] Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.
    • The Department of Education allocated $439,443 to Transylvania for emergency grants to students.  
  • The total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act as of the date of submission (i.e., as of the 30-day Report and every 45 days thereafter).
    • Transylvania has distributed $439,443 to students to date.
  • The estimated total number of students at the institution eligible to participate in programs under Section 484 in Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and thus eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
    • An estimated 891 Transylvania students are eligible to participate.
  • The total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
    • Transylvania disbursed Emergency Financial Aid Grants to 891 students.
  • The method(s) used by the institution to determine which students receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants and how much they would receive under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.

The University developed a methodology to disburse these grants to students that allowed funds to be disbursed in the spirit of guidance provided by the Department of Education.  Specifically, our methodology was to provide emergency grants to eligible students (a) quickly; (b) to those with greatest need and (c) ensuring that funds are distributed as widely as possible. With that as background, the following is the specific way the institution determined which students would receive an Emergency Financial Aid Grant and how much they would receive. 

  • Each eligible full‐time Transylvania student who received a federal Pell Grant for the Winter 2020 term received $1,000
  • All other eligible full‐time, degree‐seeking students eligible to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), whether they filed one or not, received $250
  • Students with additional/exceptional need were encouraged to apply for additional emergency grant funding for eligible expenses.
  • Any instructions, directions, or guidance provided by the institution to students concerning the Emergency Financial Aid Grants.
    • On April 14, 2020, in an email to all students and in a blog posted to the University’s COVID-19 web site, the University announced that students would receive CARES grants (Transylvania University students will receive emergency funds as a result of the recently approved Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The Act provides federal aid to institutions of higher education to help students cover expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to COVID-19 through emergency grants.)
    • In that same email and blog, the distribution method was described. (Each full-time Transylvania student who receives a federal Pell Grant for the current term will receive $1,000 from the CARES Act funding. All other full-time, degree-seeking Transylvania students who were eligible to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), whether they filed one or not, will receive a $250 CARES Act grant. These are one-time grants from the federal government and do not require any repayment. Following the initial distribution of funds to eligible full-time students, individual students with more significant needs will be able to apply for additional funding in accordance with the guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of Education using the university’s online emergency grant application.)
    • In an email on April 24, 2020 Transylvania notified student grant recipient of the grant disbursements, stating that the CARES Act grant from the federal government had been distributed to them either by direct deposit to their bank account or by check and that it is intended to provide relief and does not require any repayment.

HEERF I: CARES Act 
Institutional Portion

Grant: P425F200310
As of December 31, 2020 FINAL

Transylvania University reports the following details required by the Department of Education for the institutional portion of CARES Act HEERF funding in compliance with Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.  

  • Transylvania acknowledges that the institution signed and returned to the Department the Certification and Agreement and provides assurance that the institution has used, or intends to use, no less than 50 percent of the funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students. 
  • The Department of Education allocated $439,443 to Transylvania for the institutional portion of HEERF funding.  Of this amount, $439,443 has been received to date.
  • In compliance with the Certification and Agreement, it is permissible for the institution to use the funds for institutional costs related to refunds made to students for housing and food services the institution could no longer provide upon the closure of campus facilities on March 24, 2020.  Refunds to students issued on March 30, 2020, totaled $1,252,252, including $733,549 for housing and $518,703 for meal plans for the Winter 2020 term.

HEERF II: CRRSAA 
Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students 

Grant: P425E200293
As of March 31, 2021 FINAL

Transylvania University students received emergency grant funds as a result of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA), enacted December 27, 2020.  These emergency grant funds may be used for any component of students’ cost of attendance or for emergency costs that have arisen due to coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health care), or child care.

The CRRSAA requires that each recipient is a US Citizen or Eligible Non-citizen and also requires Transylvania to prioritize students with exceptional need.  To ensure these requirements were fulfilled, Transylvania required that each recipient have a valid Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on file with the university for either the 2020-2021 or 2021-2022 academic year.  Transylvania used the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and information from the Social Security Administration database match to assist with fulfilling these requirements.

  • Transylvania acknowledges that the institution signed and returned to the Department the Certification and Agreement and provides assurance that the institution has used the applicable amount of funds designated under CRRSAA to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.
  • The Department of Education allocated $439,443 to Transylvania for emergency grants to students.  
  • Transylvania has distributed $440,100 of Emergency Financial Aid Grants to 522 eligible students ($657 in student grants was distributed from the institutional portion of funds).
  • The University determined which students receive emergency grants using the following methodology:
    • Students with an EFC of less than $28,310, considered as having exceptional need, received block grants from between $400-$1,000.
    • Students in the same population with EFCs up to $10,000 could apply for additional grants ranging from $300-$1,000.  
  • Transylvania notified student grant recipients of the grant disbursements via email, stating that an emergency relief grant from the federal government had been distributed to them either by direct deposit to their bank account or by check and that it does not require any repayment.

HEERF II: CRRSAA 
Institutional Portion 

Grant: P425F200310
As of June 30, 2021 FINAL

CRSSA Quarterly Budget and Expenditure Reporting – OMB Form 1840-0849

  • The Department of Education allocated $838,681 to Transylvania for the institutional portion of HEERF II funding.  
  • In compliance with the regulations, it is permissible for the institution to use the funds for institutional lost revenue from auxiliary sources including housing, food service and other facilities.
  • Transylvania distributed additional emergency financial grants of $657 to students and applied the remaining $838,024 toward lost revenue for room, board, and other auxiliary facility revenues. 

HEERF III: ARP
Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students 

Grant: P425E200293
As of March 31, 2022

Transylvania University students received emergency grant funds as a result of the American Rescue Plan (ARP), enacted March 11, 2021.  These emergency grant funds may be used for any component of students’ cost of attendance or for emergency costs that have arisen due to coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health care), or child care.

Block emergency grants were provided to all students who were enrolled and degree-seeking during the Winter 2021 term, including students who were enrolled on a less than half-time basis during the term.  The requirement that a student be a US Citizen or Eligible Non-citizen was removed for HEERF III, so Transylvania did not require a completed FAFSA and the Social Security Administration database match on the students’ FAFSA.

Transylvania University prioritized exceptional need by providing larger amounts to the most financially needy based on their 2020-2021 FAFSA filing outcome and status.

  • Transylvania acknowledges that the institution signed and returned to the Department the Certification and Agreement and provides assurance that the institution has used the applicable amount of funds designated under ARP to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.
  • The Department of Education allocated $1,244,371 to Transylvania for emergency grants to students.  
  • Transylvania has distributed $1,244,371 of Emergency Financial Aid Grants to 928 eligible students. 
  • The University determined which students receive emergency grants using the following methodology:
    • Students with an EFC of less than $28,311, considered as having exceptional need, received block grants from between $1,100-$1,700.
    • Students with an EFC greater than 28,310 and non-FAFSA filers received block grants in the amount of $1,000.
    • Students with additional/exceptional needs are able to apply for additional emergency grant funding for eligible expenses.
    • Enrolled students with an account hold (preventing future term registration and academic transcript requests) as of Nov. 4, 2021, and an EFC below $10,000 received grants ranging from $100 to $9,220. Each of these students received an amount sufficient to clear their account balance.
  • Transylvania notified student grant recipients of the grant disbursements via email, stating that an emergency relief grant from the federal government had been distributed to them either by direct deposit to their bank account or by check and that it does not require any repayment.

HEERF III: ARP
Institutional Portion 

Grant: P425F200310
As of June 30, 2022 FINAL

ARP Quarterly Budget and Expenditure Reporting – OMB Form 1840-0849

  • The Department of Education allocated $1,244,370 to Transylvania for the institutional portion of HEERF III funding.  
  • In compliance with the regulations, Transylvania has distributed of $1,244,371 to date for the following purposes:
    • $55,850 for COVID-19 testing
    • $19,867 for contact tracing
    • $401 in Communication and Outreach
    • $1,168,253 for lost revenue from auxiliary sources including housing, food service and other facilities