Howard University in Washington, D.C., has confirmed that six employees have been fired for "gross misconduct and neglect of duties" after school officials discovered financial aid money had been misappropriated.

News outlets reported Wednesday that an investigation from 2007 to 2016 found that some employees at the historically black university received tuition remission and university grants.

That double dipping exceeded the actual cost of attendance, though university officials didn't immediately reveal how much money was involved in the matter.

The university's president, Wayne A.I. Frederick, says an outside auditor was brought in after learning in 2016 that the university provided financial aid money that might have been misappropriated. Frederick says he received its results in 2017.

The misappropriated grant money wasn't from the federal government, nor was it money donors designated for grants.