Blackhawk Education

Policy & Procedures

J-970.1 Deceased Student

Authority Executive Director of Student Services/CSSO
Effective Date June 17, 2026
Revision Date
Reviewed Date
Related Policies
Related Forms, Policies, Procedures, Statute J-970 – Deceased Student
J-625.2 – Federal Title IX Return of Funds (R2T4)
34 Code of Federal Regulations §668.22 - Treatment of Title IV Funds When a Student Withdraws
Federal Student Aid Handbook, Appendix B, “Actions to Take When a Student Dies”

Purpose

To outline steps for handling the death of any Student in compliance with institutional policy and federal Title IV regulations, while ensuring compassionate communication and support.

 

Immediate Notification

A College Employee who becomes aware of a Student’s death must contact the Executive Director of Student Services immediately, who will notify the Registrar’s and Financial Aid Offices.

 

The Registrar’s Office will attempt to confirm the death through the following sources:

  • County coroner

  • Police agency

  • Funeral home

  • Newspaper obituary

  • Family member

 

The Registrar’s Office will verify the Student’s enrollment status and check for duplicate names.

 

Upon confirmation of the Student’s death, the Executive Director of Student Services or Registrar will notify the following College departments:

  • Accounting
  • Financial Aid
  • President’s Office
  • Care Center
  • Admissions Office
  • Academic Advising
  • Foundation Office
  • Marketing and Communications
  • Other Departments as applicable

 

Faculty Notification – The Student Counselor and Case Manager will send a respectful email to all instructors and instructional supervisors of the deceased Student’s courses, informing them of the situation. The Student Counselor and Case Manager will extend grief support in the following ways:

  • Offering counseling services to Students.
  • Including information on available mental health resources and group support sessions.
  • Utilize resources such as those offered through Districts Mutual Insurance (DMI) for additional grief support, if needed.
  • Coordinate with the Human Resources Office to refer Employees to the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for counseling services, if needed.

 

The following system updates will be completed. The Registrar’s Office will perform the following actions:

  • Mark the Student as deceased in Banner with the date of death.
  • Withdraw/drop the Student from courses as of the date of death if they are currently enrolled.
  • End the Student’s address and email in Banner.
  • Add note to Blackhawk Student email address; delete personal email and phone number.

  • Ensure documentation used to confirm death is added to Banner Document Management.

 

If the Student was a current recipient of Title IV federal student aid, the Financial Aid Office will take the following steps:

  • Suspend all Title IV disbursements immediately upon initial notification pending confirmation of the Student’s death.
  • If the Registrar’s office has been unable to confirm the report of the Student’s death within 30 days of the date of the report:
    • Contact the family listed on FAFSA and the loan references in a further attempt to confirm the report.

If confirmed:

    • Attempt to obtain an original or certified copy of the death certificate.
      • Update National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) enrollment status to “D” within 14 days of obtaining the death certificate, if one is obtained.
    • Perform Return to Title IV (R2T4) calculation and return funds within 45 days of the date the College determined that the Student died.
    • Abstain from making post-withdrawal disbursements to the estate.
    • Resolve any Title IV credit balance per federal cash management rules.
    • If the student has an outstanding Federal Student Loan obligation:
      • Notify the Estate of the actions that can be taken to have the Student’s Title IV loan debt discharged.
      • Notify the loan servicer that the Student is deceased.

 

If the College is unable to confirm a currently enrolled Student’s death, but the Student is no longer in attendance, the College will decide that the Student has withdrawn by no later than 30 days after the earlier of:

Payment or enrollment period.

  • Payment or enrollment period.

  • Academic Year in which the Student was enrolled.

  • Educational program that the Student was attending.