In a time where money is tight and educational budgets are getting smaller, students have to learn every way possible to get as much money as they can for school. Firelands campus is doing its part to help these students who are in a tight crunch for money.
On Sunday at 2 p.m., Firelands campus will be one of 40 sites across Ohio to host the sixth annual financial aid event “College Goal Sunday.”
The free seminar will help familiarize students and family members about the process of requesting money for school and fill out the proper forms including the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
“The whole purpose of the program is to provide access to higher education through financial aid,” Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at Firelands Debralee Divers said. “Aid is becoming more difficult to find as budgets get cut [and students should] get those forms in so schools can provide them with as much aid as they can.”
Divers will be one of 550 volunteers statewide educating Ohio residents on the benefits and formalities regarding financial aid. While walk-ins are welcomed, Divers recommends students register online at www.ohiocollegegoalsunday.org for the staff to determine the number of people attending the event.
With over 300 people estimated to attend the event at Firelands, Co-Chair for CGS MorraLee Holzapfel expects 2,000 people to attend throughout Ohio, an increase of 200 from 2008. Holzapfel said the seminars have evolved from lectures in a room to hands-on experience while completing the FAFSA forms in computer labs with the help from financial aid advisors.
“We get better and better every year on how to target our promotional materials to students,” Holzapfel said about the constant improvement of CGS. “This is probably the best resource that is out there and is just absolutely the critical component of moving parents and students through the financial aid process.”
After completing the form on Sunday, they will be submitted electronically through a central processor and will get notice of if and how much the students will receive in financial aid.
Gaining an understanding of not only the FAFSA forms, but how financial aid works as a whole is important for students and families to know Associate Director in the Office of Student Financial Aid Eric Bucks said.
“The people want to know they are on the right track and doing it correctly,” Bucks said about completing the FAFSA through the right procedures.
Even completing these forms annually, Bucks said other than a person who works directly with financial aid affairs, a person will not remember every little detail about the FAFSA. Bucks makes the comparison of the FAFSA forms to taxes: every year they have to be done, and still many people take their information to experts to look it over, just like what hundreds of students will do with their financial aid forms.
Just by gaining a sense of familiarity of financial aid by attending CGS, Divers feel students and families can get a lot of answers through a valuable learning experience.
“The end result of coming to this program is they can listen to a presentation of financial aid, can get answers to difficult questions or situations to their financial circumstances and know there is help in the room so they can get their FAFSA submitted that day,” Divers said.
The CGS program is also not limited to just students attending Firelands in the fall, the FAFSA and financial aid process is nationally known and accepted by most institutions.
This event is happening at a time when Firelands campus broke its enrollment record with 2,405 students attending the school, surpassing the previous record set in fall 2008 by 51 students.
Students with questions regarding anything financially aid related should visit the Financial Aid Offices located on the second floor of the Administration Building on the University’s main campus. Students can either schedule an appointment with the office by calling 372-2651.
