The purpose of this Diversity Toolkit is to assist financial aid associations in their diversity efforts and initiatives - whatever the specific goals may be for your membership base. A diverse association, with a diverse leadership, means that ultimately we have a professional which is prepared to deal with an increasingly diverse student population.
Financial aid administrators know that when it comes to dealing with students, diversity takes many forms - and that a growing number of college students face unique circumstances and backgrounds that can pose challenges when applying for financial aid.
With these concerns in mind, NASFAA publishes a series of tip sheets designed to help unique student populations overcome these challenges. They are also valuable resources for higher education advocates that support these students, including FAAs, high school guidance counselors, college admissions staff, community organizations, and more. Tip sheets offered include:
Students such as those listed above all face significant and impactful challenges in navigating the financial aid process. For different reasons, they are more likely to get hung up on certain questions that traditional students would breeze past - such as questions about the number of people residing in the household or parental information - and give up on filing the FAFSA altogether. Undocumented students, while not eligible for federal student aid, often don't realize there are other forms of financial help they can use to help pay for their higher education.
Please keep these resources in mind as you hold diversity events in your states or regions. They are available for download and sharing by all NASFAA members.