National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA)’s Post

#NACAC observation #3: When something has an unfavorable impact on students, you should be expect NACAC members to get angry. And, the #FAFSAFiasco lit a fuse. If there was a single subject that people were speaking about in the hallways, I was the FAFSA debacle and its impact of students, especially traditionally excluded populations. People are mad and their tolerance is at a minimum. They are mad because this mess hurt students we cooperatively seek to serve and everything about last year disproportionately impacted those who could least afford it. It’s also noteworthy that people’s anger about the situation only intensified when the ED Department invited execs from the College Board into the mix to fix the mess. There’s a clear sense that partnering with the College Board was probably the worst possible move to build trust with NACAC members. While we all wish the Syndicate (ED Department + College Board officials) well because their success will be good for students, trust is at an all-time low and the Syndicate’s mess was the talk of the conference.

According to National College Attainment Network (NCAN), 2024-25 FAFSA completion rates for HS seniors are down 40% compared to this time last year in 2023. The U.S. Dept. of Education, Federal Student Aid an Office of the U.S. Department of Education, Congress and The White House need to take a more aggressive action to address this FAFSA completion crisis, which will have knock-on effects on postsecondary enrollment, retention, and higher ed institution revenues. Since the 2020 pandemic and our economic recession, millions of students have decided to forgo higher education or were forced to stop-out due to financial concerns. This enrollment crisis impacts all Americans as we are losing a generation of brilliant minds who could have become our next doctors, engineers, nurses, teachers, accountants, pilots, civic leaders, lawyers, entrepreneurs, tech innovation leaders and much more. Equitable access to higher education should never be a partisan issue. A nation that does not prioritize the education of its citizens is morally bankrupt. Every legislator and government official bears responsibility for failing the American people, especially our youth and young adults, in accessing critical funding for the pursuit of higher education. May I propose a better solution to increase FAFSA submission rates? Publicly apologize to the American people on national TV and gift $5k to every student who enrolls/matriculates for Fall 2024. Disburse the funds as direct payments to students like HEERF was administered, after each college's add/drop deadline. Watch the FAFSA completion rates jump up drastically when you pair an apology with financial restitution. How about an even more audacious proposal? Take the steps named above AND replace all Federal Direct Loans (except Parent PLUS) for 2024-25 with a one-time grant of the same value for every student. It's unconscionable to have students take loans this year when our government failed to do its job. #FAFSA #FAFSAFastBreak #CollegeAdmissions #FinancialAid #HigherEducation

What a great benefit! Check out my presentation on managing stress.

States with FAFSA completion or universal FAFSA policies saw smaller drops in FAFSA completion with this year's tumultuous rollout and ongoing delays. In fact, the support for such policies may have increased. #GreatCollegeAdvice #FAFSACompletion #HighSchool

Wrap up the year attending the 27th Maryland Association for Behavior Analysis Annual Conference! Whether you’re looking to earn CEUs, find new tools, or network with other ABA professionals, this conference has it all! #ABA #CEUs #ABAconference #BCBA #RBT

Looking forward to this informative session tomorrow about the Inflation Reduction Act!

Have low-income and first-generation students been disproportionately impacted by the new FAFSA submission process? 🔍🔍🔍 It’s no secret that the new FAFSA process has been a mess. With completions down 40% over the last year, there’s a lot of questions surrounding access, equity, and what it all means for the future of college enrollment. This article takes a deeper dive into the data we know so far and attempts to address those questions. https://lnkd.in/eysjQx6j #FAFSA #mycollegecorner

This LAist article discusses the recent challenges and drop in FAFSA completion rates.

Facilitating FGD is always crucial.

Are you coming to #NJACAC24? If so, consider joining me, Tim Gallen, and Heather McGhee as we look at the role of NACAC's AP Committee and review some of the ethical dilemmas encountered by NACAC members. We hope this will be a lively interactive session aimed to increase the understanding of the use of the Guide to Ethical Practice in College Admission as a tool!