Systems and Procedures
A Division of The Office of Budget and Finance
A Division of The Office of Budget and Finance
The Center for Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) provides counseling for students in need of such services. CAPS has established a fee schedule (Exhibit A) for "extended" services received by full-time students and usage of the service by part-time students as defined below.
Full-time students are eligible for a limited number of CAPS sessions at no charge. The first six (6) individual sessions in any year, including the initial consultation session, are without charge. For each individual session after the first six, full-time students are charged an Extended Services fee. The CAPS service year begins the first day of Summer Maymester Session and ends the last day of finals Week in the Spring Semester for the same academic year.
Part-time students are permitted to receive a Phone Screening, Urgent appointment, Case Management and Group/Clinic services. After the Phone Screening, part-time students will be referred to an Urgent appointment, group/clinic (if space exists), case management, or to outside services.
This procedure details cash controls required to record and report fee collections by the Center for Counseling and Psychological Services.
Upon cash or check payment for services, the staff assistant initiates a computer generated pre-numbered invoice through the CAPS scheduling system. The student receives a copy of that invoice which is turned in to the office manager.
The office manager prepares a Cash Deposit Journal Entry. Checks are restrictively endorsed per University Policy FN01 Cash Revenues and Procedure FN2005 Processing Cash Revenues, when received. In the System for Integrated Management, Budget, and Accounting (SIMBA), all funds are deposited into General Ledger Account 47000100 Psychology Clinic by parked document, using the appropriate Student Affairs Business Area, Cost Center, and Functional Area. Payments for records requests are also processed using GL 47000100 Psychology Clinic.
The deposit is placed in a deposit bag and delivered to 306 Student Health Center, where the bag is dropped into a designated depository locked safe with a witness signature. The deposit is recorded by document number and tracked through the Bank Deposit Bag Tracking system (see Procedure CR2007 Bank Deposit Bag Tracking).
The CAPS director reviews each Cash Deposit Journal Entry and the Summary Reports.
On a regular basis, or at least quarterly, the Financial Officer will audit the computer-generated receipts to ensure that they comply with Penn State policy.
There is no mechanism for CAPS to exempt fees.
Nonpayment at the time of service will result in the Student's Bursar Account being charged.
See Procedure FN2002 Processing Returned Checks.
The Financial Officer is responsible for ensuring that procedures pertaining to the accountability and safeguarding of all cash receipts, cash funds, and other assets are established and followed in accordance with approved University policies and procedures. Regular audits relating to advances, cash, travel, equipment accountability, and other expenditures provide a means to protect University assets. The Financial Officer is responsible for collaborating with Internal Audit when audits are being performed in the administrative area. Audits relating to sponsored activities or other audits performed by external auditors may also be performed. The Financial Officer would also be responsible for collaborating with the external auditor and/or a central university office related to these procedures.
University Records must be retained and managed in accordance with Policy AD35 University Archives and Records Management and the University's Records Retention Schedules that have been approved by the Records Management Advisory Committee (RMAC), the Office of General Counsel, and Senior Vice President and Chief of Staff. These Records Retention Schedules are derived from - or based upon - federal, state, and local statutes or regulations (i.e.; Federal Acquisition Regulations, the OMB Uniform Guidance, Internal Revenue Service, and other regulations governing the auditability and retention of financial records), University Policy, industry standards, and business needs. All University Records must be maintained in such a manner to provide ease of access, establish a suitable audit trail for all transactions, and to be reviewed prior to disposition.
University Records and Transitory/Disposable Records are defined below. See Policy AD35, Definition of Terms for additional information.
Upon completion of the retention period, University Records must be disposed of via secure destruction or transfer to University Archives, unless an exception to the disposition process set forth below applies. In many cases, retention periods and disposition methods may be generally determined by comparing the type of record (i.e., reports, correspondence, etc.) to similar records series with known retention periods listed on the Records Retention Schedule. If the disposition method for University Records states "Review by Archives" on the Records Retention Schedule, the Unit responsible for those records should consult the University Archivist for a final determination of disposition. For University Records that must be securely destroyed, units may arrange for shredding services by either contacting the Inactive Records Center (IRC).
Exceptions to the disposition process are as follows:
To safeguard the privacy of individuals, records that contain Personally Identifiable Information (PII), as defined in University Policy AD53 Privacy Policy, or student records, as defined in University Policy AD11 Confidentiality of Student Records, must be securely destroyed beyond recovery. For additional information regarding privacy and the protection of an individual's personal information, see Policy AD53 Privacy Policy.
Additional questions may be directed to the Office of Records Management.
CAPS Record Retention Policy Since 2018 - According to the Pennsylvania Code (41.57), "a psychologist shall assure that all data entries in professional records are maintained for at least five (5) years after the last date that service was rendered." In accordance with state standards for retention of psychological records and in consultation with professional organization and the Director of Legal, Government, and Regulatory Affairs with the Pennsylvania Psychological Association, it was decided that CAPS will maintain a full record of client and non-client contact for a period of seven (7) years after the last date of any contact either with the client or in regards to a client from a third-party and purge any records when the last point was seven (7) years or greater. CAPS will also abide by other legal requirements for record retention, even if longer periods of retention are required.
For questions or additional details, please contact the Financial Officer, Student Affairs
To request changes to this procedure, please contact the Office of Systems & Procedures, by submitting a GURU Technical Support Request form.
March 13, 2023