Eastern Cluster of Lutheran Seminaries (ECLS)
Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg (LTSG)
Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary (LTSS)
The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (LTSP)

Guide to Cluster Student Exchange Procedures

January 30, 2004

Directory to Key Campus Personnel for Exchange Students

BY PRIMARY TITLE

BY FUNCTION

LOCATION OF FUNCTIONS/RESPONSIBILITIES BY SEMINARY

GENERAL EXCHANGE ADMINISTRATION

1. Annually, each seminary will forward as early as possible, but not later than May 1, the following to each of the other seminaries:
   1. Listing of course offerings for the year following, and the schedule for same.
   2. Three copies of the current Catalog.
   3. Two sets of financial aid application materials.
   4. Two sets of campus housing request materials.
   5. The schedule of fees for the year following.
   6. The academic calendar for the year following (with separate notice of financial aid and housing application deadlines if not included in any of the above).
2. The Dean at each seminary will receive the above materials and distribute them as appropriate to other offices and/or to students.

ACADEMIC/PROGRAM ADVISING, APPROVAL, RECORDS

1. The prospective exchange student shall consult with his/her ELCA synod candidcy committee (or analagous entity for non-ELCA students) in advance of application.
2. The Home Seminary Dean (supplemented, as appropriate, by other faculty advisors, and in consultation with the Host Seminary Dean) is the principal source of advice for the exchange applicant.
3. By April 1 (for Fall entry) or by November 1 (for Winter or Spring entry), the student applicant completes a Request for Cluster Exchange form (attached as Appendix) and submits it to the Home Seminary Dean. If the request is approved by the Home Seminary (according to locally determined process), the Home Seminary Dean signs the form to indicate approval and forwards copies of the form to the student and to the Host Seminary Dean. The Host Seminary Dean uses copies of this form to notify appropriate local offices of the exchange.
4. If the Host Seminary requires identifying data in addition to those provided in the Request for Cluster Exchange, it is the responsibility of the Host Seminary to obtain same directly from the student.
5. The exchange student is responsible for filing financial aid and housing applications with the Host Seminary by Host Seminary deadlines.
6. Cluster exchange students will continue to be carried on the roll of the Home Seminary and counted there in the enrollment statistics (for matriculated students) reported to various agencies, including the ELCA Division for Ministry. Exchange students will not be counted in Host Seminary admission statistics, nor counted among matriculated degree candidates at the Host Seminary; the Host Seminary will enroll such students in the category used locally for other such students (e.g., "special," "non-matriculant").
7. Students will be registering for courses at the Host Seminary and paying to the Host at Host rates. This is not, in conventional usage, "cross-registration." The credits will be transferred from Host to Home Seminary by means of an official transcript, and will be recorded at the Home Seminary as transfer credits.

FINANCES

1. The Host Seminary will bill the student directly for the student’s tuition, room/board, rent, and mandatory local fees. Sanctions for unsatisfactory account status will be applied by the Host Seminary or, on request as appropriate, by the Home Seminary on advice of the Host Seminary (e.g., prohibition of registration, withholding of grades). Permission for the exchange itself will be denied by the Home Seminary if justified by unsatisfactory student account status prior to the exchange.
2. To facilitate awareness of unsatisfactory student account status and the potential need for sanctions:
1. The Home Seminary Dean will consult the Home Seminary student accounts administrator before approving the exchange proposal of a student.
2. The Host Seminary Registrar will consult the Home Seminary student accounts administrator prior to each term’s registration.
3. Health Insurance: The Home Seminary will charge the student’s account for the premium and will conduct all roster transactions with the Plan Administrator.
4. Seminary grant funds (scholarships): The Home Seminary will forward grant funds to the Host Seminary for credit to the student’s account when requested by the student.
5. Stafford Loans:
   1. The Home Seminary will process the student’s application, consulting with the Host Seminary Stafford Loan administrator to establish the expense budget.
   2. The Home Seminary will obtain student endorsement of disbursement checks by mail via the Host Seminary Stafford Loan administrator, then credit the student’s Home Seminary account.
   3. The Home Seminary will refund Stafford Loan credit balances directly to the student when requested by the student, who is responsible for making timely payments to satisfy balances due to the Host seminary.