‘Crisis of Credibility’: FAFSA Rollout Panned During Congressional Hearing
"House lawmakers and student financial aid experts widely panned the U.S. Department of Education’s bumpy rollout of the revamped Free Application for Federal Student Aid during a congressional hearing Wednesday," Higher Ed Dive reports.
..."The delayed release of the form hasn’t been the only issue with the rollout. On Jan. 30, the Education Department announced that it wouldn’t transmit FAFSA applicant data to colleges until March.
'That day will live in the collective trauma of most financial aid offices across the country,' said Justin Draeger, president and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.
That’s because colleges were expecting to receive FAFSA applicant data that day for roughly 3 million students, he said.
Institutions rely on this information to create their financial aid offers ahead of the traditional student commitment deadline of May 1. Because of the delay, however, many colleges have pushed back their commitment deadlines and other key dates.
Throughout this financial aid cycle, Draeger said, announcements from the Education Department have slipped into a pattern.
'What’s that pattern? Well, it’s a last-minute communication from the Department of Education, throwing schools and students and families into chaos,' Draeger said. 'And it’s bad news buried in celebratory publicity.'"
NASFAA's "Notable Headlines" section highlights media coverage of financial aid to help members stay up to date with the latest news. Articles included under the notable headlines section are not written by NASFAA, but rather by external sources. Inclusion in Today's News does not imply endorsement of the material or guarantee the accuracy of information presented.
Publication Date: 4/10/2024
