A bill passed in the state senate would make competition of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA a requirement for a public high school degree. The bill still needs House approval. If passed in its current form, it would take effect in 2025.
The FAFSA is a form that colleges, universities, and scholarship programs use to determine potential financial aid packages. Completing the FAFSA is required to qualify for certain types of aid like school-specific programs, federal Pell Grants and scholarships from the state of Michigan.
The bill was introduced by Democratic state Senator Darrin Camilleri last year. “Last year alone, only about half of graduating seniors completed the FAFSA, leaving nearly $100 million dollars in financial aid on the table,” Camilleri said in a statement.
“By creating a system of universal FAFSA completion with key opt-outs for Michigan students, we can help expand postsecondary options and attainment, and I’m working hard to get this legislation across the finish line to help improve outcomes for all of our kids.”
MorraLee Keller is the Senior Director of Strategic Programming at the National College Attainment Network, a collective of education organizations working to assist low-income students access post-secondary education. She said the policy will open up opportunities.
“I think we discover a lot of high school students, particularly low-income students, who rule out the idea of going to college post-high school because they think college is expensive and there may be no way to afford it,” Keller said. “By completing a FAFSA, the students may realize that they're eligible for federal or state and institutional dollars that would help them cover the cost of a post-secondary education.”
Critics have expressed concerns about the bill. FAFSA completion requires the submission of some tax information. But some students are children of undocumented immigrants, who can’t file taxes. Others have parents who do not wish to disclose their tax information.
To address this, the bill includes a waiver process. This allows students to opt out of filing. The opt-out process was, according to the bill, made with the consultancy of student and immigrant advocacy groups. The process allows students to opt out of filing a FAFSA or, if necessary, the waiver.
The other major concern was that the bill could potentially overwork school counselors who are already stretched thin. Keller said the solution is expanding resources to help counselors and students. She pointed to the Michigan College Access Network as an example of an organization that assists students in the college enrollment process.
“So hopefully, when a state puts it all together, they don't just put together a single policy, they put together the support that will help students and hopefully then take some of the burden off school counselors,” Keller said.
