United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office Office of Special Investigations author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 1993-10-27 monographic deposited born digital GA 1.13:T-OSI-94-8 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-T-OSI-94-8 P0b002ee18038eb45 f:tos94008 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-T-OSI-94-8 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-T-OSI-94-8 T-OSI-94-8 Fraud Educational grants Private schools Higher education Program abuses Documentation Student aid programs Ineligible grantees Immigrants Institution accreditation Pell Grant New York (NY) Guaranteed Student Loan Program National School Lunch Program Testimony OSI The Department of Education must take the lead in marshalling its own resources and enlisting the support of the states in protecting federal student financial aid programs from fraud and abuse. GAO discovered that many Orthodox Jewish schools, or yeshivas, in New York City were involved in misconduct relating to the Pell Grant Program, which is supposed to help finance the postsecondary education of low-income undergraduates. The yeshivas had been submitting documentation to the Department of Education for (1) "ghost" students--students who had never applied for Pell Grants or persons who had never enrolled in or attended the yeshivas that were using their names; (2) ineligible high school students; (3) persons whose biographical information had been sold to yeshivas by "brokers" for use in obtaining Pell Grants; and (4) misrepresentation of their academic programs and other eligibility criteria. Between 1983 and 1993, the 23 institutions GAO investigated obtained more than $300 million in Pell Grant funds; 60 percent of this money--$197 million--was obtained within the last three years. During this period, the Department of Education failed to adequately screen or review schools for participation eligibility. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-T-OSI-94-8/html/GAOREPORTS-T-OSI-94-8.htm GAO/T-OSI-94-8 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-T-OSI-94-8 Testimony GAO/T-OSI-94-8; Student Financial Aid Programs: Pell Grant Program Abuse; Fraud Educational grants Private schools Higher education Program abuses Documentation Student aid programs Ineligible grantees Immigrants Institution accreditation Pell Grant New York (NY) Guaranteed Student Loan Program National School Lunch Program