Educational Assistance

EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE

Your Employer recognizes that the skills and knowledge of its employees are critical to the success of the organization. The educational assistance program

encourages personal development through formal education so that employees can maintain and improve job-related skills or enhance their ability to compete 

for reasonably attainable jobs within their Employer’s organization. Your Employer may provide educational assistance to any eligible employee who has 

completed one year of service in an eligible employment classification. To maintain eligibility employees must remain on the active payroll and be performing 

their job satisfactorily through the completion of each course.  All requests for Educational Assistance must have prior approval by your supervisor

or department head.

Employees in the following employee classification(s) are eligible for educational assistance:

* Regular full-time employees

Individual courses or courses that are part of a degree, licensing, or certification program must be related to the employee's current job duties or a foreseeable 

future position in the organization in order to be eligible for educational assistance. Your Employer has the sole discretion to determine whether a course

relates to an employee's current job duties or a foreseeable-future position. Employees should contact Human Resources for more information or questions

about educational assistance.

While educational assistance is expected to enhance an employee’s performance and professional abilities, your Employer cannot guarantee that participation 

in formal education will entitle you to automatic advancement, a different job assignment, or pay increases.

It is the policy to reimburse employees 50% of expenses at all approved institutions to a maximum of $2,500 per calendar year. Reimbursable expenses

include registration fees, tuition, required textbooks and laboratory fees. If the employee is receiving financial aid from other sources including the GI bill or a

scholarship program, your Employer will reimburse the difference in costs up to the 50% maximum reimbursement. Fees for parking, student activities, etc. are

not reimbursable. All requests for Educational Assistance must have prior approval before course work commences.

CRITERIA FOR REIMBURSEMENT

1. Sponsored by a secondary school, post-secondary vocational or trade school, community or junior college, college or university. If coursework is

       desired at one institution, and similar coursework is offered at lower cost by nearby accredited institutions, the maximum reimbursement will be

       based on the lower cost institution. On-line courses are reimbursable as long as they meet the same criteria noted. Correspondence courses do

       not qualify for reimbursement.

2.  Job related or required for job-related degree and contributes to the employee's career, performance and/or advancement within the organization;

      however, automatic advancement is not guaranteed.

3.  Approved for reimbursement before enrollment as noted above by the employee's supervisor and the Human Resources Department. Courses

      not approved before enrollment are not reimbursable.

4.  Completed with a grade of "B" or better. For courses where no letter grade is given, a certificate indicating satisfactory completion must be

      provided.

NOTE:  

Graduate students enrolled in graduate level course work should be aware that company-paid tuition assistance is considered taxable income per

IRS Guidelines.

Your Employer invests in educational assistance to employees with the expectation that the investment will be returned through enhanced job performance. 

However, if an employee voluntarily separates from his or her Employer after reimbursement is made, the following repayment schedule will be

followed:

1.  Within three  months, 100% repayment necessary

  2.  Three months to six months, 75% repayment necessary

  3.  Six months to nine months, 50% repayment necessary

  4.  Nine months to  twelve months, 25% repayment necessary

  5.  After twelve months, no repayment necessary

For additional details, please contact Ave Maria Human Resources.