Columbia, SC—The South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE) has been awarded a $50,000 grant that will support efforts to increase Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) completion by rural, low-income, and students of color from the previous and current year’s high school graduating classes. For many sources of federal, state, and institutional aid, FAFSA completion is an eligibility requirement. 

The grant, funded by the Kresge Foundation’s Education Program and administered by the National College Attainment Network (NCAN), comes at a critical time. The disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic have reduced FAFSA completions among South Carolina’s current high school seniors, most severely within the rural and student of color populations. According to NCAN, overall submissions by the state’s class of 2021 decreased 2.3 percent from the previous class, and submissions from high minority and rural high schools decreased 6.5 and 8.9 percent, respectively. 

Dr. Karen Woodfaulk, director of CHE’s Office of Student Affairs, remarked, “FAFSA submission is necessary to many of our students’ postsecondary ambitions. Without it, they leave sizable amounts of money on the table that could be used in service of their educations and career goals.” She added, “Affordability is a significant—if not the most important—factor affecting low-income and under-resourced students’ enrollment in postsecondary education. Any feasible remedy must start with the FAFSA, for the benefit of our students and state community. We’re thankful South Carolina was selected as a recipient for this grant; we’re eager to help our most in-need student populations, who’ve endured the most hardship from this pandemic, complete their FAFSAs and take the first steps toward attaining a postsecondary degree.”

To help the classes of 2020 and 2021 with FAFSA completion, CHE will partner with the South Carolina Department of Education, South Carolina Student Loan Corporation, South Carolina Tuition Grants Commission, SC ETV, South Carolina Technical College System colleges, South Carolina Association for Student Financial Aid Administrators and AME Church of South Carolina.