Dear Ashley

Hope you are doing well. Your performance and enthusiasm at First Federal for the past 8 years
has been exemplary. You’ve not only donned multiple hats, ranging from mentor to the do-it-all
guy, but have also inspired several new members of your team. I wanted to take this
opportunity on behalf of the whole team to thank you for your tremendous work.

We received your request for the tuition reimbursement for your ongoing college course and
unfortunately, First Federal policies do not allow for reimbursements. While we understand the
tough costs of tuition and the skills it helps you develop for your job here at First Federal, our
budgetary restrictions and lowered profits from the last several quarters have seriously
inhibited our ability to fund additional employee programs.

Upskilling the team is critical to us here and the employee development programs allow for
ample opportunity. In fact, most of the employee promotions are a direct consequence of the
various learning programs that First Federal has a dedicated budget for. With provisions already
in place to help develop our employees through programs and a conducive work environment,
the financial, administrative and policy-based consequences of such a program will be
detrimental to the organization’s goal of being a fiscally responsible company.

That said, our CEO, Richard Houston, has offered to write you a letter of recommendation that
you may use to apply for grants or scholarships to fund your study. He thinks that your attitude
has been monumental for making the department more productive, and while he may not be
able to change the policy, he wholeheartedly endorses your efforts to expand your skill set.

Please feel free to reach out to me in case you have any questions or want to discuss possible
alternatives further.

Nishtha
Director (Human Resources)