As colleges across the nation settle into a new normal, the federal government has provided funding for students who have experienced setbacks due to the sudden and drastic shift in higher education. Students once living on campus might no longer have access to certain amenities, such as WiFi, technology, healthcare, and food. The CARES Act aims to bridge that gap with $7 billion in federal funding directed at students and provides colleges with flexibility over how to disperse these funds. Although this flexibility allows colleges to meet the needs of their unique community, it has also caused some confusion. Higher education professionals are seeking clarification over the legal parameters of the aid, such as will recipients owe taxes on the funding they receive.
With a lack of guidance, colleges are still in the early stages of figuring out the best way to distribute and document funding. Documentation is necessary for colleges to help justify funds to the federal government. There could be an application process put in place to ensure students who need financial aid are rightly accommodated. For example, if you are a student whose parents lost their jobs, you could provide a letter from their employers, documenting this hardship.
The U.S. Department of Education is expected to release more information about the parameters of this bill soon, helping to move this process along. The Financial Aid King will update this post with the latest news whenever that happens.
