Thursday, February 13, 2020

New Report Outlines Framework Recommendations for Creating Student Focused Financial Aid Policies and Procedures on Community College Campuses

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, the Community College League of California released a new report offering California Community Colleges recommendations for reducing institutional and procedural barriers that prevent students from receiving their maximum financial aid, while also improving the disbursement of financial aid awards in a timely manner.

Not only during February, Financial Aid Awareness Month, but all year community college leaders are looking for more ways to address the basic needs crisis facing California students. While California Community Colleges have the largest free tuition program in the country with the lowest student fees, our students live in some of the most expensive markets in the nation and tuition waivers do not cover the full cost of attendance. California community college students struggle to pay for housing, food, transit to and from school, books, and other expenses. In addition, despite two-thirds of all post-secondary undergraduate students in the state attend a California community college, our students receive only six percent of the funding distributed by the Cal Grant system.

“With the increasingly high cost of living and our underfunded system of financial aid, we want to ensure our colleges are addressing the total cost of attendance to help meet students’ basic needs,” said Larry Galizio, President and CEO of the Community College League of California. “One way we do that is to support financial aid offices so they are student-focused and are providing timely financial aid awards.”

As a result, in 2018 a taskforce comprised of California community college trustees, CEOs, and financial aid administrators was formed to examine policies and procedures for maximizing the amount of financial aid students are eligible to receive and protecting a college against fraudulent claims. In the report, Increasing Student Access, Success and Equity: California Community College Student Focused Financial Aid Policies, the taskforce outlines four recommendations for financial aid offices:

  • Annually review financial aid data.
  • Ask questions regarding current financial aid policies or procedures.
  • Set measurable goals for your college and financial aid department.
  • Implement best practices to maximize the amount of resources that go towards their students.

To learn more about this report, join the League for its monthly Government Relations webinar on Tuesday, February 18th at 11:00 a.m. Be sure to register in advance for this meeting. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with information about joining the webinar.

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The Community College League of California is a nonprofit public benefit corporation with a voluntary membership of the 73 local community college districts in California. The League promotes student access and success by strengthening colleges through leadership development, advocacy, policy development, and district services. Visit our website at www.ccleague.org.

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