National Aviation Academy of Tampa Bay’s Use of Professional Judgment

The objectives of our audit were to determine whether National Aviation Academy of Tampa Bay (1) applied and documented its use of professional judgment in accordance with sections 479A and 480 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and (2) reported its use of professional judgment in accordance with the Application and Verification Guide. National Aviation Academy of Tampa Bay did not adequately document special circumstances for 34 of the 37 students for whom it applied professional judgment, including dependency override, for award year 2017–2018 or award year 2018–2019. Because the school did not adequately document special circumstances, its application of professional judgment, including dependency override, was not in accordance with sections 479A and 480 of the HEA. Although it did not adequately document its use of professional judgment, including dependency override, National Aviation Academy of Tampa Bay reported all instances of its use of professional judgment, including dependency override, to the Department’s Central Processing System in accordance with the Application and Verification Guide.