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Missouri Western reports FAFSA decline and warns FLSA threshold changes could affect 19 positions
Summary
Administration reported FAFSA completions are down compared with 2023 and that Department of Labor changes will shift 19 positions from exempt to nonexempt on July 1; officials said the January threshold increase could affect more roles and carry a budgetary impact.
Missouri Western State University administrators told the Board of Governors that FAFSA completions and enrollment pipeline metrics are down from last year and that impending changes to the Department of Labor’s FLSA salary thresholds will change the pay status for a number of employees.
"As of the June, we had received 3,081 FAFSAs compared to 4,509 at the same point in 2023," Daniel Holt (Administration) said, describing a decline he said mirrored state and national trends. Holt credited financial aid staff for rapid aid-offer activity after software updates and said the university had sent thousands of awards and status letters once systems were ready.
Holt also warned of effects from the Department of Labor rule changes. He said 19 positions "will move from exempt to nonexempt as of July 1, because the income threshold moves from $35,568 to $43,888." Holt said a further threshold increase to $58,656 on Jan. 1 would affect additional positions and could produce "more than $1,000,000" in potential impact if all affected roles remained exempt, with roughly half that amount applying as of January in one scenario.
Administration said it will offer Q&A sessions for affected employees, examine allowable exceptions (for example, some teaching roles) and work with HR and finance to model specific impacts and policy responses before reporting back to the board.
