In 2020, Congress passed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Simplification Act to streamline the application process for college students seeking federal aid for college tuition. The updated process launched in late December 2023. All current and prospective college students should complete the FAFSA to determine eligibility for federal aid and, at many colleges, including JCCC, to determine eligibility for other forms of aid like scholarships and institutional grants. The updated process also expands access to Pell Grants to include students who may not have been eligible previously.
From noon to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 31, JCCC will host a free, online lunch-and-learn webinar to help area students and their families navigate the FAFSA to gain a full understanding of the grants, scholarships and financial assistance they may qualify for. Students who don’t complete the FAFSA — or who don’t submit a complete application — won’t be able to receive federal financial aid, and they may be ineligible for other types of scholarships and state aid.
Every student should complete the FAFSA
“Completing the FAFSA is an important step in the college application process,” said Ashley Jost, Supervisor, Financial Aid Scholarship Communication & Outreach. “Even if you think you won’t need or use federal aid, completing FAFSA doesn’t obligate a student to take out loans or accept other forms of aid, but provides a broad understanding of what aid is available. It also helps identify sources of financial support that the student may not be aware they qualified for.”
The 2024 FAFSA process has changed
“If a student has completed the FAFSA in the past — they should complete it every year — they’ll find the process has changed a lot. And if a student hasn’t completed it before, the webinar will help them understand what information they’ll need,” said Jost.
“The new FAFSA asks fewer questions and connects the application to the IRS Direct Data Exchange to help determine income,” she continued. “It also introduces or redefines key concepts that drive the determination of aid eligibility. For example, the student will be assigned a Student Aid Index (SAI) instead of an Expected Family Contribution (EFC). And students will be asked to identify contributors as part of their application. Each contributor will get an email instructing them to provide information to the student’s FAFSA. The contributor is not obligated to provide tuition dollars, but their information will contribute to the aid calculation. For most dependent students, a contributor is a parent or step-parent — and there may be more than one contributor listed on the application. If a listed contributor doesn’t respond to the email and provide the requested information, the application is incomplete, which will slow the calculation of available aid. Understanding this is vital to ensure there are no delays in the aid process.”
The late release of the updated process — in the past, the FAFSA was available in October — means timelines for completing the FAFSA are tight. Students should understand the deadlines used by their target schools. At JCCC, the priority deadline for completing the FAFSA is March 15; the priority deadline for the JCCC Scholarship Application is April 1.
JCCC offers many ways to get help with the FAFSA
The JCCC webinar is available to anyone interested in learning more about the FAFSA, and supplements two in-person FAFSA completion events scheduled at JCCC in February. “We welcome anyone interested in learning more about the FAFSA, or who needs help completing it, to attend our events, even if they’re not including JCCC in their college consideration set,” said Jost. “We want to help anyone in our community navigate this process because it’s key to making higher education more accessible to more people. It’s a way we support JCCC’s mission of inspiring learning to transform lives and strengthen communities.”
The webinar will acquaint participants with the updated process, identify what information is required to complete the forms, and include time for attendees to ask questions. Students and families interested in attending the free webinar can RSVP through a link at jccc.edu/FAFSA to save their spot.
The in-person free FAFSA completion events are scheduled for 6-8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15, and Wednesday, Feb. 21, on the JCCC main campus. RSVP through a link on the JCCC website to attend.
