ctcLink Learning Opportunities & Support Roundup: Oct. 1, 2025

To plan further ahead or find the latest learning opportunities, as well as notices of cancellation or schedule changes:

• See the complete calendar at the ctcLink Training & Learning Opportunities Registration page or
• The SBCTC meetings and events calendar (apply ctcLink Learning Opportunities filters).  

 

 

Learn about how to register, badging opportunities, and more at the Professional & Personal Development Workshops page.

Registering for the workshops is easy!

1. Visit the SBCTC meetings and events calendar
2. Filter by "CTC Professional Development » Personal & Professional Development Suite"
3. Click "Sign up" button to enroll

Travel & Expense Process Alignment Update

Process Alignment: College-Driven | Agency-Supported | Leadership-Endorsed

At the conclusion of the six-week PAW Travel & Expense process proof-of-concept testing, each college’s ctcLink Leader was asked to work with their campus to vote “Yes” or “No” to adopting the alignment.

As of today, 24 college districts and SBCTC voted “Yes” and seven voted “No” (with one agreeing to adopt alignment by end of fall quarter). These numbers are subject to revision in the coming days.

To better understand systemwide objections to ctcLink process alignment, Jason Hetterle, PAW Team Lead, has reached out to the colleges/districts that voted “No” to request a conversation.

Some colleges have expressed concerns with capacity issues, and PAW wants to assure colleges that alignment happens over time, and colleges are not expected to be up-and-running immediately without assistance.

Process alignment activities are a WACTC directive, so the presidents and chancellors will receive a regular update and voting results during the Oct. 2-3 WACTC meeting.

What it means to vote YES on a PAW process

• You agree to the process changes as presented in the Proof-of-Concept environment (Except Expense Type configuration changes, all Enhancement Requests (ERs) are voted on individually.)
• You want SBCTC resources to be spent on the solution
• You will adopt the recommended process at your college
• You commit to initiating and participating in Change Management activities to help your college align

Contact

Please reach out to Jason Hetterle, PAW Team Lead, Director of Technology & Enterprise Solutions, Wenatchee Valley College, if you have any questions or concerns about the Process Alignment Workgroup activities.

Employee Onboarding and Offboarding Process Alignment Task Force Update

The 36 nominees (from 23 colleges) to the Employee Onboarding & Offboarding Process Alignment Task Force were asked to confirm their desire and commitment to be considered.

The task force will be led by Sindie Howland, Associate Director for Change Management & Process Improvement at Everett Community College.

Next steps

PAW is seeking 12 to 15 members who are prepared to dig in and commit to this work on behalf of everyone in our college system.

Stakeholder groups (PAW, ctcLink College Collaboration Group leadership, and SBCTC ctcLink Support functional analysts) will review submitted nominations and give input to make recommendations.

In addition to each candidate’s commitment, the following criteria will be considered:

• Small college and large college
• Technical college
• Colleges using the system and those not using the system
• Local Security Administrators (LSAs)
• HR (onboard/offboard management)
• Training specialists

Given recommendations, PAW Leadership will narrow the field and announce task force membership in mid-October.

Milestones

Contact

Please reach out to Employee Onboarding & Offboarding Process Alignment Task Force Lead, Sindie Howland, Associate Director for Change Management & Process Improvement at Everett Community College, if you have any questions.

Update to Pillar Work Session Canvas Course

For ease of access, ctcLink session information and recordings have been combined into a single, centralized location: the ctcLink Learning Opportunities Information Canvas course (formerly the ctcLink Pillar Work Session course).

Previously, recordings were split between the Canvas course and various pillar-specific Recordings QRGs. This made it difficult for colleges to find what they were looking for, especially when they weren’t aware of the session type or where it had been published.

Because learning opportunities take many forms, this shifts the focus from session type to session topic. This allows users to more easily locate content based on what they need to learn, rather than having to navigate multiple formats or delivery styles.

Each pillar area has now been reorganized into two distinct modules:

Current Learning Opportunities

This module includes all sessions delivered within the past year – trainings, work sessions, open Q&A sessions, and information sessions. These are now consolidated and listed individually by topic and date.

Archived Learning Opportunities

This module features a curated selection of the most relevant or up-to-date sessions from prior years. Each entry is organized in a table format and includes:

• Session title
• Date
• Description
• PowerPoint presentation or documentation
• Session recording with run time

Please note: the Finance module may appear slightly different from other pillar areas due to the volume and structure of its archived content. Adjustments have been made to best reflect the nature of Finance-related sessions and ensure usability remains consistent.

As part of this transition:

• The course name has already been updated to reflect the new structure: ctcLink Learning Opportunities Information.
• The individual pillar-specific recordings QRGs have been unpublished
• A new Learning Opportunities Recordings QRG is now available, providing centralized access to all previously released session recordings.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to Gretchen Fulmer, Associate Director of Training.

PCD Refresh and Your Queries: Get Ready!

The PCD (Production College Development) environment will be refreshed from PRD on Monday, Oct. 6, 2025.

Beginning Friday, Oct. 3, at noon, PCD will not be available for query development until after the PCD is refreshed.

What you need to do

Make sure any PCD queries you want to keep begin with the prefix DEV_ unless you have submitted a ticket requesting backup of queries that will be used for BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, or nVision reports.

Standard Queries

Any queries in PCD that do not begin with DEV_ will be deleted.

• This applies to all standard Public and Private queries. SBCTC will perform a query backup for in-progress queries (private and public) that meet the DEV_ naming convention.
• This backup will NOT be done by folder. This means if a query is in the DEVELOPMENT folder but doesn’t begin with DEV_ it will be overwritten and lost.

BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, and nVision Queries

Any query used in a BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, or nVision report DOES NOT have to follow the DEV_ protocol as it is very time-consuming to change them back when they are ready to migrate.

Instead, please submit a Service Desk ticket under Data Services – Reporting – Other with the title “PCD Refresh Backup Request.”  Provide the name of the query being developed for use in one of the advanced reporting tools in the request.  These queries will be individually backed up on an as-needed basis.

What to expect

• The queries in the backup will be imported back to PCD after the refresh is complete and a notice is received from Application Services.
• Data Services will send a message to you once our work is complete.
• Please do not log back into PCD after Friday, Oct. 3, at noon but wait until you receive a notification from Data Services.
• Queries that do not follow these naming conventions will be lost

Remember! Naming convention for queries

• Being developed in PCD: MUST begin with the prefix DEV_
• Used for training in PCD: MUST begin with QXX_TRAIN
• Being developed for use in BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, or nVision reports in PCD: MUST begin with the appropriate convention based on the reporting tool being used. Do not follow the DEV_ convention. Request must be sent to Data Services via Service Desk ticket.

Why you need to do it

Queries that do not follow this convention will not be backed up and will be lost.

Contact Emily Mullins, Reporting and BI Solutions Analyst for ctcLink, if you have any questions.

Gear Up for Fall: Replenish Your Resiliency Toolkit

Take a moment to take care of yourself! Professional and Personal Development Suite workshops are open to all Washington state community and technical college employees, whether faculty, staff, or exempt.

This series of soft-skill workshops was initially developed to support SBCTC IT staff. Once the workshops were discovered on the agency calendar by other SBCTC and college employees, they asked if they, too, might participate on a case-by-case basis.

Learn more about how to register, badging opportunities, college requests for group training, and more at the Professional & Personal Development Workshops page.

The workshops are cross-linked from the SBCTC Professional Development page and the ctcLink Training & Learning Opportunities page.

Questions? Reach out to Corinne Taylor, Professional/Personal Development Trainer.

Upcoming offerings

Are You Receiving ctcLinkAlerts?

SBCTC uses the ctcLinkAlerts eList to send notices about planned downtime for system updates, production alerts, urgent issues, and any unplanned downtime.

Each college maintains a local ctcLinkAlerts email distribution list (e.g., ctclinkalerts@columbiabasin.edu, ctcLinkAlerts@spscc.edu) which your ctcLink College Leader maintains as needed.

These college lists, not individuals, are subscribed to ctcLinkAlerts@lists.ctc.edu.

Each college chooses who to include, but typically colleges include their local ctcLink leadership, local ctcLink committee or task force members, key subject matter experts, IT, Help Desk, and PIO.

New to ctcLink or Ready to Upskill? Make a ctcLink Training Plan

The ctcLink Customer Support Training team developed tools to assist colleges with employee onboarding in response to recommendations and requests.

Although learning a new software system can be challenging, these documents provide new staff with the information needed to locate, understand, and participate in the various training and learning opportunities available from the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC). 

• The Staff Training Participation (STP) application helps supervisors track ctcLink Canvas course training progress for staff and assign ctcLink Canvas courses for staff enrollment. Learn more about the Staff Training Participation Application
• Onboarding Training Manuals assist new college staff in their training journey through ctcLink (PeopleSoft). Learn more about the ctcLink Onboarding Training Manuals

About the Onboarding Training Manuals 

Onboarding Training Manuals can be found in the ctcLink Reference Center “Welcome to ctcLink – Start Here” section. Manuals are available for users in all PeopleSoft pillars, as well as for general staff:

• General Staff Onboarding Training Manual
• Campus Solutions Core Onboarding Training Manual
• Finance Onboarding Training Manual
• Financial Aid Onboarding Training Manual
• Human Capital Management Onboarding Training Manual
• Student Financials Onboarding Training Manual

Each manual is divided into sections highlighting specific topics and information necessary to become more comfortable with our ctcLink system. Section topics may include: 

• Onboarding checklist 
• Welcome to ctcLink Training 
• Each pillar’s place in ctcLink 
• Prerequisite ctcLink courses 
• Role-based training content and requirements (i.e., required and recommended ctcLink self-paced training courses) 
• Additional onboarding resources

How to use the onboarding manuals

The intent is for supervisors to work with staff to provide clarity around staff roles and functions of their job based on the onboarding manual. 

Each ctcLink module lists required and recommended self-paced ctcLink Canvas training courses which directly align to roles and functions performed at the colleges. For example, each staff member is required to complete general prerequisite courses to introduce them to the ctcLink system.

The checklist included allows supervisors to identify which required and recommended courses should be completed by each staff member. Additional training resources are provided to assist new staff in their onboarding activities. 

The ctcLink Training and Support teams look forward to partnering with the colleges and SBCTC agency staff to provide enhanced onboarding and training experiences for new and current employees. 

Please reach out to ctcLink Training Management if you have questions or concerns. 

How to Check the Status of an Enhancement Request

The ctcLink Customer Services Teams have documented all Enhancement Request (ER) forms submitted.

The ctcLink Enhancement Request Status lists are updated the first and third Wednesday of each month to align with the ctcLink Working Group calendar.

You can see where each Enhancement Request is in the governance review process, approval status, and/or any other actions taken in a couple of different views.

High-Level Summary At-a-Glance

The Full Enhancement Request List is sorted by status.

CS Core Updates

ctcLink Downtime Notice – CS, OAAP, HCX, CampusCE

Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, 6 a.m. to 3 p.m.

SBCTC will be performing maintenance on ctcLink to deploy Campus Solutions Image 35 and HighPoint Campus Experience (HCX) mobile updates.

• The Campus Solutions (CS) pillar will be unavailable during the maintenance period.
• Admissions (OAAP), HighPoint HCX mobile pages, and Campus CE integration will be unavailable during the maintenance period.
• The Portal, Finance (FSCM), and Human Capital Management (HCM) pillars will remain online during the maintenance period.
• Canvas will not be impacted.

College in the High School (CiHS) Guidance Document Q&A Webinar

Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, 2:30 to 3:30 p.m., Join the Zoom session

To support legislative mandates, as well as streamline and standardize college business processes across the system related to CiHS, SBCTC and a college workgroup of systemwide experts created the Business Practice Guidance Document for College in the High School.

We recognize changes may need to be made and all are encouraged to attend this webinar to share feedback and ask questions about the entire document. The team especially seeks input on the section concerning students enrolled in full-year courses, as this portion is still under development.

The Business Practice Guidance Document for College in the High School is live on the SBCTC CiHS Webpage under “Resources” and will be updated periodically.

In addition to the Business Practice Guidance Document for College in the High School, the following resources launched last week for colleges offering CiHS programs:

• Online Admission Application Portal (OAAP) Admit Type for CiHS
• New CiHS Plan Code

Reminder: The SBCTC ctcLink Support CS Core team has configured the OAAP Terms to Display for those colleges that responded to their request. Colleges offering a CiHS program should have an OAAP Admin log in to OAAP to verify the terms are accurate. If any terms are missing, please update them as needed. Note that the new CiHS academic plan is set up under Non-Award Seeking.

Questions?

Please reach out to Stephanie Rock, SBCTC Policy Associate, Student Services & K12 Alignment.

Campus Solutions (CS) Core Pillar Support Web Page

Visit the Campus Solutions (CS) Core pillar support web page at ctcLink Support for all things CS Core-related:

• ctcLink Reference Center Quick Links
• ctcLink Onboarding Training Manual
• Learning Opportunities & Training
• Lists and groups
• Pillar newsletter
• Oracle and PeopleSoft resources

Running Start Series

SBCTC Dual Credit presents monthly virtual sessions for college Running Start staff. Each session includes SBCTC/OSPI updates and time for Running Start college staff to come together and connect. Participants cover a wide range of topics, including Campus Solutions - Student Financials.

The presentation portion is recorded and posted to the SBCTC Dual Credit YouTube playlist.

Feel free to contact Stephanie Rock, SBCTC Student Services & K12 Alignment Policy Associate, with any questions.

CS Core Learning Opportunities

CS Core Training

CS Core Trainings, a valuable learning opportunity, are held on the third Wednesday of every month from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. The dates may change, and notifications will be sent in advance. The CS Core training alternates between refreshers and different process approaches. We highly value your participation and welcome all end-users to attend these training courses. You can find details about upcoming meetings on the SBCTC Calendar, CS Core Weeklyish COREspondence, and CS Core listserv. Please visit the QRG Campus Solutions Learning Opportunities Recordings for a list of previous recordings.

CS Core Training: Preventing NSC Errors: Using Queries to Validate Student Data

Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, 8:30 – 10 a.m., Learn more and join the session

Avoid mistakes before they occur! Join us for a targeted training session on how to use critical PeopleSoft queries to identify and fix data issues that can affect National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) reporting. These proactive measures are vital to ensure accurate and timely reporting.

In this session, we'll review the following topics:

• Run and interpret NSC error-prevention queries
• Fix student record errors that could cause reporting issues
• Incorporate query checks into your standard NSC reporting process

Module(s): Student Records

Primary Audience: Staff responsible for Student Records and NSC Reporting

Related QRGs: Reducing Errors Before Generating the NSC Report

NEW! CS Core Training: Understanding Post Enrollment Requirement Checking (PERC) in PeopleSoft

Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, 8:30 – 10 a.m., Learn more and join the session

PERC determines whether students have completed the enrollment requirements for a class. The process generates the Enrollment Requirement Roster page in PeopleSoft, providing the Post-Enrollment Requirement Status for each enrolled student. Staff can use this status field to guide decision-making about next steps.

We’ll also review how to handle situations where students must be dropped—whether individually through the Enrollment Requirement Roster or in batch processing.

Primary Audience: Student Records

Related QRGs: PERC: Running the Post Enrollment Requirement (PERC) Process, PERC: Enrollment Requirement Rosters, PERC: Dropping Students Who Do Not Meet Enrollment Requirements

Questions? Contact facilitator/trainer, Tanjagay Martin.

CS Core Work Sessions

Campus Solutions (CS) Core Work Sessions, open to ALL end users, are generally held the first Thursday of each month, from 1 to 3 p.m., but may be offered on an alternative schedule (e.g., to accommodate holidays).

The CS Functional Support team facilitates, alternating between functional team delivered content and college user delivered content with functional team support. Each meeting includes time for colleges to ask questions about other topics or service tickets.

CS Core Work Sessions features

• Include community engagement within each session (rather than having a formal, predetermined college panel). When possible, we will post the anticipated questions ahead of time so that you can be prepared.
• Dedicate at least the last half hour (2:30 to p.m.) to Open Q&A.
• If the scheduled session ends early and all related questions have been answered, Open Q&A will begin (i.e., it may begin earlier than 2:30 but will begin no later than 2:30 p.m.)

Find details on the SBCTC Calendar and in the CS Core Weeklyish COREspondence (sent on Fridays to the CSSupport listserv).

Core Sessions: College System & SBCTC Calendar

Coming up next!

Join us for CS Core Work Session: 3C Troubleshooting Session on Thursday, Oct. 2.

This will be a live 3C troubleshooting session, but it will only be liveLY if you come prepared with content!  To maximize the value of this session, start gathering your thoughts related to your 3C configuration wishes, questions, and issues now.

Is your 3C causing you difficulty? Do you have a communication, comment, or checklist not working as you’d like? Then this session is for you!

Please join us as our problem-solving panel helps with your issue. With many eyes looking and minds working together, we’re more likely to put a finger on the hiccups and identify a solution.

This session requires YOU to bring the content. While there will be no prepared presentation, we have a panel prepared to help! If everyone comes with the intention of just listening to OTHER people’s questions it will be a very quiet, short session.

Primary audience: CS Core staff. While SF and FA staff are welcome to attend, this session is targeted toward CS Core staff and will not go over SF/FA module-specific guidance or requirements.

Presenters/Facilitators: Jill Hammit, Highline; Jessyka Bridges, Bates; Kael Godwin, Highline; Michael Taing, Shoreline.

Questions? Contact CS Core Support.

Finance Pillar Support Web Page

Visit the Finance (FIN) pillar support web page at ctcLink Support for all things FIN-related:

• ctcLink Reference Center Quick Links
• ctcLink Onboarding Training Manual
• Learning Opportunities & Training
• Lists and groups
• Oracle and PeopleSoft resources

FIN Learning Opportunities

Travel and Expenses Q&A & Mini Training

Recurring every last Monday of the month, 11 a.m. to noon, join us for a collaborative, interactive and troubleshooting drop-in support session on everything Travel and Expenses. This session may be partially recorded.

• 11 – 11:30 a.m. Training: The first half of the meeting is typically a short training focused on a particular topic/process in Travel and Expenses. This portion of the meeting is usually recorded. The recording and associated QRGs are posted to the ctcLink Pillar Work Session Information Canvas Course. End-users are welcome to listen in and learn something new.
• 11:30 a.m. - 12 p.m., Q&A: Second half of the meeting will not be recorded. Please come with your questions or issues and be ready to share your screen.

This open time is for college end users to collaborate with functional support and other Travel and Expense staff/supervisors to troubleshoot issues, discuss workflow or process questions, and/or even share your screen. Some examples of topics:

• Canceling EX Payments
• Initial Setup and the Importance of updating Expenses Profiles
• Applying Cash Advances to an Expense Report
• Cash Advance Reconciliation
• On & Off-boarding Employees for Expenses
• Why your Approved Expense Report Won't Stage for Payment

Module: Expenses / Travel & Expense

Primary Audience: Staff, Travelers, Travel Admins/Staff

Related QRGs: FIN - Expenses section of the ctcLink Reference Center

Prerequisite Courses: EX100, EX101 and/or EX102

Contact Alec Risk, ctcLink Functional Trainer.

FIN Work Session: Grants/Projects Mini Training and Open Q&A

Recurring every second Monday of the month at 11 a.m. join the ctcLink Finance Customer Support team for a collaborative, interactive, training and troubleshooting drop-in session on everything Grants/Projects.

• 11 – 11:15 a.m., Training: First part of the meeting will be a Mini Training and will be recorded. End users are welcome to listen in and learn something new.
• 11:15 a.m. – 12 p.m., Q&A- Second half of the meeting will not be recorded. This open time is for college end users to collaborate with Functional Support and other Grant/Project Staff to troubleshoot issues, discuss workflow or process questions, and/or ready to share your screen. Some examples of topics:
  • Grant Billing
  • Modify Grant Award or Capital Project Budgets
  • Amending Awards
  • Project-related Budget/Commitment Control Errors
  • Grant-related Combo Codes
  • Grant-related Item Types

You are invited to drop in with any questions related to grants and projects at the open Q&A sessions.

Need help with setting up FY25 grants? Feel free to reach out to Michele Rockwell, MSML, ctcLink Finance Functional Analyst.

Questions? See the contact information listed in the event calendar listings below.

Finance College Users Production Support Meetings

Meetings are held every Tuesday, from 2 to 3 p.m.

These sessions are open to ALL Finance (FIN) end users. The ctcLink Finance Customer Support team provides updates on Service Tickets, PeopleSoft enhancements, and open forum time to ask questions or request future topics.

The ctcLink Finance Subject Matter Experts list received a calendar invitation to Upcoming Finance Users Production Support meetings.

Didn’t get the invitation? Reach out to Shon Dicks-Schlesinger, Associate Director of Finance Functional Support.

Monthly Student Finance/General Ledger SF/GL Open Forum

Every second Wednesday, 2 to 3 p.m., the SBCTC Business Operations Accounting team invites you to bring your questions (and solutions) to share during this open forum meeting space for all things Student Financials/General Ledger (SF/GL) related.

There is no formal agenda as we welcome all questions about everything from item types and second journal sets to waivers, queries, or internal cash reconciliation.

See the SBCTC meetings and events calendar and look for ctcLink Accounting Team: SF/GL Open Forum Meeting.

Accounts Receivable (AR) and Billing (BI) Open Q&A

Every other Thursday, these recurring Accounts Receivable and Billing work sessions aim to provide accounting support and guidance regarding, but not limited to, the various reconciliation topics and processes.

Bring your AR and BI questions and get functional support or listen-in and collaborate with your community college peers.

Module(s): FIN [AR and BI]

Primary Audience: Accounts Receivable and Billing Staff

Related QRG: FIN - Accounts Receivable, FIN - Billing

ctcLink Accounting Team Presents

Every first and third Thursday, these recurring work sessions aim to provide accounting support and guidance regarding, but not limited to, the various reconciliation topics and processes. Each session covers a specific topic(s) and then moves to open Q&A.

FIN Work Session: Asset Management Q&A

Every second Thursday from 11 a.m. to noon (except where noted) join the ctcLink Finance Customer Support team for a collaborative, interactive and troubleshooting drop-in session on all things Asset Management.

• 11 – 11:30 a.m., Training: Come learn or share something new.
• 11:30 a.m. - 12 p.m., Q&A: Please come with your questions or issues and be ready to share your screen.

Some examples of topics:

• Tagging Active Assets
• Excel to CI Asset Upload
• Processing issues
• General questions

FA Support Updates

R2T4 Resource: Award Adjustments that Include Cents

The Award Adjustments that Include Cents QRG at the ctcLink Reference Center covers how to make adjustments to awards primarily when performing R2T4 of Pell or awarding Pell with cents and whole dollars where the system discards the cents with error message “9405 PELL award reduced by Aggregate limits” when aggregates are not truly met.

Other possible uses could be making adjustments to Federal Work-study awards that include cents.

When adjusting for awards that include cents this process should be used in place of the practice of validating, adjusting awards then posting without re-validating. Awards should always be validated prior to posting. This practice can result in batch disbursement failing or could possibly result in the “no buffer” error which locks up the award screen and shows the “deceased” service indicator.

Please review this QRG in full when making award adjustments that include cents.

NEW! Pell Troubleshooting Guide

The new Pell Troubleshooting Guide at the ctcLink Reference Center is a first steps guide to the most common troubleshooting Pell Validation Errors as they display in the Message Text when you run PELLOUT.

From the basic FA pages, to configuration, this guide shows you where to look when you are hunting for reasons why your Pell record failed Validation. This guide will be helpful to newer and advanced ctcLink users alike, users who are responsible for managing the Federal Pell Grant program.

COMING SOON! Direct Loans Troubleshooting Guide

A new Direct Loans Troubleshooting Guide is under development. Keep an eye out for an announcement in the FA Weeklyish Bulletin when the new guide is published to the ctcLink Reference Center

FA Weeklyish Bulletin

Trying to recall that important thing you read in the ctcLink Financial Aid listserv FA Weeklyish Bulletin? Don’t miss a thing! Revisit past editions in the FA Weeklyish Bulletin Archive at the ctcLink Reference Center.

Financial Aid (FA) Pillar Support Web Page

Visit the Financial Aid (FA) pillar support web page at ctcLink Support for all things FA-related:

• ctcLink Reference Center Quick Links
• ctcLink Onboarding Training Manual
• Learning Opportunities & Training
• Lists and groups
• Pillar newsletter
• Oracle and PeopleSoft resources

FA Learning Opportunities

Gear up for a fresh batch of financial aiding training and work sessions this fall. Contact Kelly Forsberg, ctcLink Functional Trainer (Financial Aid), if you have any questions.

Fin Aid Training: Pell MRR Processing Refresher

Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, 9-10:30 a.m., Learn more and join the session

Audience: New FA Staff and staff needing a refresher on Pell MRR processing in ctcLink

This session will help participants understand:

• The steps in the Pell Multiple Record Reporting (MRR) process
• How to read the MRR report
• How to find students from the MRR report

Prerequisite Canvas Course: FA104 Processing Pell Payments and Direct Loans

Cross-Pillar FA-SF Training: Customer Account Review Basics

Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, 1-2 p.m., Learn more and join the session

This Cross-Pillar Training Session is a back-to-basics review on the Customer Accounts page and its features in ctcLink for newer FA Staff and SF Staff responsible for reviewing and adjusting Customer Accounts

Understand how to

• Review the Account Summary in Student Center
• Review the View Customer Accounts page
• Define Debits and Credits in View Customer Accounts
• Define Charges and Payments in View Customer Accounts
• Review Account Details in the View Customer Accounts page
• View FA Refund Adjustments in View Customer Accounts
• View Payment Line Details in the View Customer Accounts page
• Review Additional Details in the View Customer Accounts page
• Extrapolate charge details in Item Summaries from the View Customer Accounts page
• View Anticipated Aid in the View Customer Accounts page

Related QRG: View Customer Accounts

Prerequisite Course(s): FA103 Authorizing and Disbursing Financial Aid, SF100 Tuition Calculation, SF101 Cashiering

Fin Aid Training: Pell Reconciliation Refresher

Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025, 9-10:30 a.m., Learn more and join the session

Audience: New FA staff and staff needing a refresher on reconciling Pell in ctcLink

This session will cover the steps to:

• Run the Pell Reconciliation report
• Process the Pell Statement of Accounts File (PGAS)
• Process the Pell School Account Statement (SAS) Files (PGSM)

Prerequisite Canvas Course: FA104 Processing Pell Payments and Direct Loans

Fin Aid Training: Loan Reconciliation Refresher

Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025 , 9-10:30 a.m., Learn more and join the session

Primary Audience: New FA Staff and staff needing a refresher on reconciling loans in ctcLink

This session will cover:

• Understand the steps to produce the Direct Loan Reconciliation report in ctcLink
• Upload/Download File Process
• Import Federal Data Files
• Running SBCTC DL Recon Reports
• Understand how to view and work the DL Recon reports

Prerequisite Canvas Course: FA104 Processing Pell Payments and Direct Loans

HCM Support Updates

HCM Users Group Fall 2025 Quarter Meeting

Hosted by the Seattle Colleges Oct. 9-10, 2025, South Seattle College - Georgetown Campus with in-person and virtual option.

Visit the HCM Users Group web page for registration and lodging details.

Questions? Contact Annie Butler, HCM Users Group Chair.

HCM Monthly Newsletter

Subscribe to the ctcLinkSME-HCM list to receive the latest edition of the HCM Monthly Roundup, featuring HCM hot topics, training, and how-to tips.

To subscribe

• Visit ctcLinkSME-HCM – Human Capital Management (HCM) and follow the screen prompts.
• Contact: HCM Customer Support

Human Capital Management (HCM) Pillar Support Web Page

Visit the Human Capital Management (HCM) pillar support web page at ctcLink Support for all things HCM-related:

• ctcLink Reference Center Quick Links
• ctcLink Onboarding Training Manual
• Learning Opportunities & Training
• Lists and groups
• Pillar newsletter
• Oracle and PeopleSoft resources

SF Updates

SF Training & Work Sessions Survey: Coming Soon

Your voice matters!  Share your insights to help shape the future of SF Trainings and Work Sessions in our upcoming survey. Whether you're passionate about improving processes, enhancing collaboration, or just want to be heard—this is your chance to make a difference.

Watch the SF list ctcLinkSME_StuFin for details.

General SF Updates

1098-T

• This 1098-T season has several impactful changes to processing, and we thank you for your attention to the upcoming training.
• Currently, the SF Team is working on the Prior Year Process, please see the 1098-T Business Process Guide 2025 (page 32) for more information.

Tribal Elder Waiver

Please submit a ticket to the SF Team if you will be using this new optional waiver, more information can be found on the Tuition Waivers & Residency Classifications page (under Optional Waivers).

Student test accounts in production 

Do you use student test EMPLIDs in the PRD environment?  If so, please keep in mind that clearing any student account balances on a regular basis is an appropriate practice and must be done prior to Fiscal Year End.

CtcLink mobile platform (HCX) & delivered payment plans:

• We’ve identified an issue where students are enrolled in a Delivered PeopleSoft Payment Plan multiple times if they select the Enroll button more than once in HCX.  A ticket has been submitted to HCX for solution/fix.
• Please ensure your students are aware they should only press the Enroll button only once during the process while we work towards a solution.

Student Institution Set reminder

• Please do not direct first time students to activate their ctcLink login through the HCX mobile app. Although most new users no longer come from Legacy, it is still important for first time students to activate their ctcLink account from the web browser (laptop or phone) so that their account is properly assigned a Student Institution Set.  
• Please find Bellevue College’s instructions here.

Student Financials Enhancement Requests

ER266 – Student Financial Responsibility Agreement (SFRA)

• Winter term (Cohort 2) testing is now available in the PCD environment
• Please update your ticket with any questions/concerns.
• Find updated resources via the SFRA QRG/Resources link

ER274 – Cashier Receipts renovation work

• The student cashier receipt has been updated and is available for use in PRD.
• The corporate cashier receipt is being tested now, and we will notify upon its move to production.

ER323 – Running Start 9-10 Rule Recission

Solution is in testing now and will be in production for fall term.

SF Resource Updates

Canvas

The Pillar Work Session Info is now ctcLink Learning Opportunities Information. We have made some helpful updates and you will now find all training and work sessions listed in one area (they are also still listed in respective courses). If you do not have access to this useful resource you can register on the ctcLink Training & Learning Opportunities page.

QRG Updates

• SFRA Translated: now available on the Student Financial Responsibility Agreement QRG. Translated to Arabic, Dari, French, Korean, Russian, Spanish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, and Chinese. Available under Resources > Communication Templates & Agreement Verbiage. If you have any questions or need further assistance with these documents, reach out to Brandon Reed, Associate Dir. Campus Solutions - Student Financials
• Create or Copy Payment Plan: Information regarding setting up the SF Institution Set was updated; colleges will need to submit a ticket to SF support for any changes.
• Tuition Calculation After Enrollment Cancellation: Updated information regarding using the correct Run Control ID.
• Post and Review Student Payment: Updated images and video to reflect ER274 receipt updates.
• SFRA Updated 3C Engine steps to include information for both SFRA Letters, added "Signed SFRA Communication” example wording, added BEdA process example.

Student Financials (SF) Pillar Support Web Page

Visit the Student Financials (SF) pillar support web page at ctcLink Support for all things SF-related:

• ctcLink Reference Center Quick Links
• ctcLink Onboarding Training Manual
• Learning Opportunities & Training
• Lists and groups
• SF DL Blast Pillar newsletter
• Oracle and PeopleSoft resources
• Student Financials (SF) Resources QRGincluding:
  • Resources that fall outside of other SF QRG main categories
  • ctcLink Training Recordings Archives

SF DL Blast Newsletter

See previous editions of the Student Financials Distribution List Blast: SF DL Blasts.

Subscribe to the ctcLinkSME_StuFin list to receive the latest editions of the SF DL (Student Financials Distribution List) Blast featuring SF hot topics, training tips, and tricks.

SF Learning Opportunities

Please feel free to reach out to SFSupport@sbctc.edu if you have any questions or need further clarification.

• The Student Financials Learning Opportunities Recordings QRG is a comprehensive list of all previous SF-related recordings.
• Previous SF DL Blasts can be found within Student Financials Resources.

1098-T Prior Year Process Production Status Update

SBCTC environment activities for prior year 1098-T records began Sept. 5, 2025, with a college processing freeze on 1098-T statements and modifications. Processing is expected to be completed by Sept. 26, 2025, at which point college access to 1098-T processing will be restored.

This process was reviewed and discussed in depth at the 1098-T prior year processing Work Session, 1098T 2025 Hot Topics 2. if you did not get a chance to attend the main session, please be sure to review.

Additionally, see the 1098-T Prior Year Processing QRG with a detailed explanation and timeline around these shared annual maintenance activities.

Important dates

See the 1098-T Processing Upcoming Important Dates QRG for more information.

NEW! SF Training: Get to know your SF Team and Q&A

Monday, Oct. 13, 2025, 1-2 p.m., Learn more and join the session

Join us for an informative session spotlighting SBCTC's Student Financials Support and Training Team. We will also dedicate time for any questions you may have after the Sept. 8 Welcome Back to Basics, Cashiering, Refunds and Payment Plan.

Primary Audience: Student Financials Staff

Presenter/Facilitator: Pauline Smith, SBCTC Student Financials Functional Trainer; SF Support Team

Questions? Contact Pauline Smith.

Cross-Pillar FA-SF Training: Customer Account Review Basics

Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, 1hc-2 p.m., Learn more and join the session

This Cross-Pillar Training Session is a back-to-basics review on the Customer Accounts page and its features in ctcLink for newer FA Staff and SF Staff responsible for reviewing and adjusting Customer Accounts

Understand how to

• Review the Account Summary in Student Center
• Review the View Customer Accounts page
• Define Debits and Credits in View Customer Accounts
• Define Charges and Payments in View Customer Accounts
• Review Account Details in the View Customer Accounts page
• View FA Refund Adjustments in View Customer Accounts
• View Payment Line Details in the View Customer Accounts page
• Review Additional Details in the View Customer Accounts page
• Extrapolate charge details in Item Summaries from the View Customer Accounts page
• View Anticipated Aid in the View Customer Accounts page

Related QRG: View Customer Accounts

Prerequisite Course(s): FA103 Authorizing and Disbursing Financial Aid, SF100 Tuition Calculation, SF101 Cashiering

Monthly Student Finance/General Ledger SF/GL Open Forum

Every second Wednesday, 2 to 3 p.m., the SBCTC Business Operations Accounting team invites you to bring your questions (and solutions) to share during this open forum meeting space for all things Student Financials/General Ledger (SF/GL) related.

There is no formal agenda as we welcome all questions about everything from item types and second journal sets to waivers, queries, or internal cash reconciliation.

See the SBCTC meetings and events calendar and look for ctcLink Accounting Team: SF/GL Open Forum Meeting.

PCD Refresh and Your Queries: Get Ready!

The PCD (Production College Development) environment will be refreshed from PRD on Monday, Oct. 6, 2025.

Beginning Friday, Oct. 3, at noon, PCD will not be available for query development until after the PCD is refreshed.

What you need to do

Make sure any PCD queries you want to keep begin with the prefix DEV_ unless you have submitted a ticket requesting backup of queries that will be used for BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, or nVision reports.

Standard Queries

Any queries in PCD that do not begin with DEV_ will be deleted.

• This applies to all standard Public and Private queries. SBCTC will perform a query backup for in-progress queries (private and public) that meet the DEV_ naming convention.
• This backup will NOT be done by folder. This means if a query is in the DEVELOPMENT folder but doesn’t begin with DEV_ it will be overwritten and lost.

BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, and nVision Queries

Any query used in a BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, or nVision report DOES NOT have to follow the DEV_ protocol as it is very time-consuming to change them back when they are ready to migrate.

Instead, please submit a Service Desk ticket under Data Services – Reporting – Other with the title “PCD Refresh Backup Request.”  Provide the name of the query being developed for use in one of the advanced reporting tools in the request.  These queries will be individually backed up on an as-needed basis.

What to expect

• The queries in the backup will be imported back to PCD after the refresh is complete and a notice is received from Application Services.
• Data Services will send a message to you once our work is complete.
• Please do not log back into PCD after Friday, Oct. 3, at noon but wait until you receive a notification from Data Services.
• Queries that do not follow these naming conventions will be lost

Remember! Naming convention for queries

• Being developed in PCD: MUST begin with the prefix DEV_
• Used for training in PCD: MUST begin with QXX_TRAIN
• Being developed for use in BI Publisher, Pivot Grid, or nVision reports in PCD: MUST begin with the appropriate convention based on the reporting tool being used. Do not follow the DEV_ convention. Request must be sent to Data Services via Service Desk ticket.

Why you need to do it

Queries that do not follow this convention will not be backed up and will be lost.

Contact Emily Mullins, Reporting and BI Solutions Analyst for ctcLink, if you have any questions.

Query Developer Learning Opportunities

ctcLink PeopleSoft Query 302 Migrations Course

The PeopleSoft Query 302 Migrations course is now available for on-demand training through Canvas.

This course provides query developers with the comprehensive knowledge and practical skills needed to successfully migrate queries in the ctcLink PeopleSoft environment. Participants will learn the standards, conventions, and best practices required for query development and migration from Production College Development (PCD) to Production (PRD).

How to register

• Visit the ctcLink Training Registration Pageand click on the hyperlink for the ctcLink Training Registration Form.
• Enter your college and email address and click “Verify My Account”
• Scroll to the section “Designated Query Developer Training” and select the box(es) next to the class(es) for which you would like to register.
• Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the “Sign me up” button.

If you have any questions, reach out to Paula McDaniel, SBCTC Data Analytics Learning and Education Instructor.

How to Enroll in Self-Paced Query Developer Courses

It’s easy to enroll in Query Developer Courses.

• Visit the ctcLink Training Registrationpage,
• Select the class(es) from the Designated Query Developer Training section,
• Follow the sign-up process.

More for PeopleSoft Query Developers

Find more ctcLink PeopleSoft Query Development resources including forms, documentation, and tools at the ctcLink PeopleSoft Reporting web page.

ctcLink Accessibility Monthly Open Forum

The ctcLink Accessibility monthly forums engage Washington's community and technical college system in discussions around ctcLink accessibility and technology. We aim to improve communication and transparency while providing space for productive and solution-focused dialog. Our main objective is to deliver accessible technology for all our students, staff, and the larger community.

Join us! Meetings are held on the second Tuesday of each month, 11 a.m. to noon.

Please join us for the next ctcLink Accessibility Open Forum on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, at 11 a.m.  All are welcome to attend via Zoom.

Zoom meeting link: ctcLink Accessibility Open Forum 2025 and beyond

In case you missed a meeting, please see materials from past Open Forums.

Keeping the Lights On

In a ctcLink world populated with acronyms and mysterious jargon, the Application Services teams are the “pillar behind the pillars” for Washington’s community and technical colleges 24/7 by supporting ctcLink pillars, systemwide IT applications, environments, accessibility improvements, testing, and managing the network data load behind-the-scenes.

While you may never meet them directly or understand what they do, they support you every single day.