Ashford and tax deduction

Hey everyone. Glad to see the forum is still buzzing with life. Haven't been on that much due to the study schedule. Here's the issue...sorry if I wrote it in the wrong topic.

I have a friend that recently completed her taxes. Normally she files her taxes online. This year she chose to have her taxes done on base. She was informed that she would be receiving triple the amount she received last year. The explanation she received was that because her 1098 (not sure if that's the right form) showed that Ashford had billed her for $6,700 dollars and that scholarship/grants/etc covered only $4,500. That put them under the impression that she had paid the remaining balance out of pocket. She has never received a bill from Ashford for any remaining balance. She has never paid any out-of-pocket money to Ashford. Is this normal for any institution? Has anyone else ran into this situation?