Athletic Scholarships

Loyola offers full scholarships for student-athletes participating in the men's  and  women's basketball programs.  

Starting in the 2009-2010 year, a small number of partial scholarships were awarded to students who are actively participating in other intercollegiate athletic programs (volleyball, tennis,  baseball, and cross-country/track). NEW: Women's Golf will be added for the 2012-2013 academic year with Men's Golf following in 2013-2014.

• Graduation Rates (athletic scholarship recipients. Note: Our athletic scholarship program began during the 2004 fall semester)

 Eligibility and Renewal Requirements:

• An athletic scholarship agreement between Loyola University New Orleans and a student-athlete is limited to one academic year.  At the conclusion of the academic year (and before July 1), the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid will notify all student-athletes as to whether their aid will be renewed, increased, reduced, or canceled for the upcoming academic year.
  • Aid adjustments during the academic year will only be made if the student-athlete :
    • fraudulently misrepresents any information on an application, letter of intent, or financial aid agreement;
    • engages in serious misconduct warranting a substantial disciplinary penalty as determined through other university disciplinary bodies.
• Students receiving athletic aid must enroll as a full-time students, maintain good academic standing and meet all eligibility requirements set forth by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics in order to receive an award. Full time status for undergraduate students is 12 or more hours each semester. Graduating seniors may enroll on a part-time status but their awards will be proportionally adjusted.
• Scholarship funds will be applied to tuition AND on-campus room and board charges only. If a students drops a class AND receives a tuition refund, the scholarship will be proportionally adjusted based on the revised lower tuition cost.
• One-half of the scholarship will be applied to fall tuition charges. The remaining half will be applied to spring tuition charges. Scholarship funds are not available for summer sessions.
• Athletic Scholarship recipients must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 in order to fully renew this award. The Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid will review academic records at the end of each spring semester to determine eligibility for the next academic year. The renewal or non-renewal of this grant-in –aid shall be made before July 1, prior to the next academic year.
• Athletic scholarship recipients must maintain membership on the team, abide by all team rules and regulations as set forth by the coach, the Loyola  Wolfpack Student Athlete Handbook, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, and Loyola University New Orleans'  Student Code of Conduct. Scholarship recipients who decide to voluntarily withdraw from the Athletics Program will forfeit their grant-in-aid and will be responsible for a pro-rated portion of any charges that normally would have been covered by the award.

Renewal Requirements:

An athletic scholarship agreement between Loyola University New Orleans and a student -athlete is limited to a period of one academic year. Loyola's Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid will notify each student-athlete in writing by July 1 regarding whether his/her athletic scholarship will be renewed or canceled for the upcoming academic year.

Any student whose athletic aid is reduced or canceled has the right to submit a written statement to Cathy Simoneaux, Director of the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid  requesting that the Financial Aid Appeals Committee review his/her situation.  There are two potential types of appeals:

Academic Appeal Due to a Cumulative GPA of Less Than 2.0

This policy applies to all institutional scholarships and grants.

The Financial Aid Appeals Committee will review the academic records for all students who do not automatically meet the renewal requirements for their scholarship award.

The Financial Aid Appeals Committee will also review the records of students who have documented disciplinary problems while attending Loyola University New Orleans. Based on information in the disciplinary record, the Committee may reduce or cancel future disbursements of merit funds to these students.

Students will receive written notification if the Committee adjusts or cancels their merit scholarship aid for the upcoming school year. Students have the right to appeal any decision adjusting their merit aid. Appeals must be filed within 30 days of notification that aid eligibility has been adjusted, and it must be made in writing to the Director of the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid. The appeal may not be based upon your need for the assistance of your lack of knowledge that your assistance was in jeopardy. An appeal would normally be based upon some unusual situation or condition which prevented you from achieving your minimum required GPA, or which necessitated that you withdraw from classes.

• Request for Scholarship Reinstatement

Appeal for Any Other Circumstance:

The student must submit this request withing 14 business days of the date on the cancelation notice. This statement should include:

• The student's name, campus wide identification number (or social security number), year in school and sport:
• Reasons for believing that the decision to reduce or cancel the athletic scholarship was unfair, including the names of all faculty and staff members with relevant knowledge about the student's situation; and
• Copies of any relevant documents that support the student's positon.

Upon receipt of this information, the Chair will notify the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, Dr. Michael Giorlando, that an appeal has been submitted and request a written response with any appropriate documentation. This information should be returned  to the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid within 5 business days.

NOTE: Students who lose their athletic scholarships due to their failure to maintain a minimum cumulatve grade point average ("gpa") of 2.0 follow the same appeal process as students on other institutional aid programs.

 Appeal Process:

Composition of the Appeals Committee:

As the non-renewal letters will normally be sent out at the end of May, the documentation that the student and the Athletic Department submits will initially be reviewed by the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid Appeals Committee, chaired by the Director of Financial Aid.

The Committee will make a recommendation to Salvatore Liberto, Vice- President for Enrollment Management as to whether or not the documentation submitted warrants further investigation. If it does, an expanded Committee will be convened which may include members of the faculty, University Ministry, Center for Intercultural Understanding, Women's Resource Center , Academic Resource Center and Student Affairs. No staff members from the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics will be allowed to serve on the Committee.

After reviewing the documentation from all parties, the Committee can recommend that the Vice-President for Enrollment Management:

• Deny the appeal -  The goal of the committee is to determine whether the Athletic Department followed all institutional and conference rules and regulations when they made the decisions to cancel or not renew an athletic scholarship. If these rules were followed and there were no extenuating circumstances present, the student's appeal will be immediately denied. The Committee Chair will send a letter to all parties notifying them of this decision.
• Schedule a hearing - If the Committee finds there are grounds to have a hearing, one will be scheduled. The student and the Athletic Director will be notified of the time and place.

The Vice-President for Enrollment Management may accept,  reject, or modify the Committee's recommendation. The Vice-President can request additional information from either the Student Athlete or the Athletic Director before making a decision as to how to proceed. 

Hearing Process:

The Director of the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid will send a written notice to all parties if the Appeals Committee decides that a hearing is warranted. The hearing should be scheduled within 14 business days of this written notice.

The student will have the right to bring an advisor to the hearing to provide moral support. The advisor must be a member of the Loyola University New Orleans Community (student, faculty or staff) . The advisor cannot speak or otherwise represent their advisees in the hearing. Students who wish to bring an advisor to the hearing must notify the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid at least 24 hours in advance of the scheduled hearing. Advisors may not be lawyers /attorneys (including students from one of Loyola's law clinics). IF the student brings a lawyer/attorney, the hearing will be adjourned and the case will be forwarded to the university's General Counsel.

The Committee Chair shall be responsible for taking the steps necessary to ensure that the heiaring is conducted in a fair and orderly manner. The Chair will rule on proceural matters and the presentation of additional documentation during the hearing.

The Committee has the discretion to deviate from the following hearing format when appropriate to ensure a fair hearing.

• The Committee Chair will introduce himself/herself and the Committee members. All other parties in attendance will be asked to introduce themselves. The Committee Chair will provide a general summary of the format of the hearing and any rules of proceure.
  • All parties are expected to provide truthful information and treat all persons present with dignity and respect throughout the process.
• The Committee Chair will ask the student-athlete to present his/her case and the reason why the decision to reduce, cancel or not renew the student's athletic scholarship should be reversed. The Athletic Director will then explain the rationale behind the Department's decision to reduce, cancel or not renew the student's athletic aid. Both parties, when invited to do so by the Committee Chair,  will have the right to ask  questions of the other party.  All committee members may ask questions of any individual present at the hearing.
• At the conclusion of the hearing, the Committee Chair shall provide both parties with the opportunity to make brief closing remarks. The Chair will then close the meeting to the public .

 

Deliberations and Notice to all Parties:

Immediately following the hearing, the Committee will meet privately to discuss the merits of the student's appeal. The Committee reserves the right to request additional information from either party before reaching a final decision. The Committee will make a final decision within 10 working days of the hearing. The Chair will notify the student, Athletic Director, and Head Coach in writing of the Committee's decision.

Confidentiality and Finality:

All documentation submitted to the Committee and the Committee's deliberations will remain confidential. The Committee's decision is final and not subject to further appeal. However, the Committee Chair reserves the right to reopen the apeal if he/she finds evidence of wrong-doing or misrepresentation by either party.

Updated January 25, 2013