Credit/Refunds on Spring 2020 Semester Costs
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The message below was sent to New Paltz students, faculty and staff, from President Donald P. Christian; Vice President for Administration & Finance Michele Halstead; and Vice President for Enrollment Management L. David Eaton, on Monday, March 16.
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Dear SUNY New Paltz Students and Parents:
In recent days we have been working closely with SUNY leadership to quickly resolve the financial impact that remote instruction, distance learning, and campus housing changes will have on students and families.
We are developing approaches to credit certain unused fees to the accounts of students who will return in the fall, and to refund fees to students who will graduate this spring. We want to be certain that we make decisions that do not jeopardize any student’s financial aid. Those underlying principles are under study and review.
We intend to credit or refund unused room and board fees for students who returned home for the remainder of the semester, effective at the time they check out as prescribed by Residence Life. We are analyzing other fees, such as course fees, some of which have been spent and some not, and to determine approaches that are fair to students who have remained on campus and those who have left. Your Student Association executive board is developing a plan for partial refunds of the Student Activity fee in collaboration with the Student Senate.
We will not be refunding tuition costs because the College will continue to deliver credit for coursework via distance learning and remote instruction. We are taking every measure to make sure you continue to receive a high-quality education. Additionally, for all students, we will not be refunding the technology fee because we will be relying heavily on our technology resources to provide distance learning.
We will provide more detail and clarity as we develop these approaches in the coming days. At the least, we wanted you to know about the general decision to credit or refund room and board fees, and that work is in progress to assure fair and prompt actions. We encourage students or parents who have questions or concerns to contact the college at COVID19Questions@newpaltz.edu.
We encourage you to continue following all guidelines to keep yourselves and friends and family safe during this pandemic. We will promptly notify you if the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation impacts our ability to welcome residents back to campus after Spring Break.
Sincerely,
Donald P. Christian, President
Michele Halstead, Vice President for Administration & Finance
L. David Eaton, Vice President for Enrollment Management