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Date: February 11, 2007
Time: 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm |
Each year, parents and students across the nation struggle to understand the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), which is exactly why College Goal Sunday was created in 1989. The College Goal SundaySM program was created by the Indiana State Financial Aid Association with funding from Lilly Endowment, Inc. and with supplemental support from the Lumina Foundation for Education to attempt to discover why low income, first generation of college, and racial/ethnic minority students and families were failing to apply for financial aid.
It was soon discovered that this audience was not applying for aid due to the lengthy and confusing paperwork, coupled with an inability to access information about the financial aid process. From that point forward, College Goal Sunday began its quest to educate students and parents to help make filling out the FASFA an easier, less confusing process, while providing participants an environment where help is easily accessible.
The program soon spread outside of Indiana and has since reached a national level through sponsorship from NASFAA (National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators). In 2007, colleges in 28 states will dedicate time and resources to help families find the money for college through this increasingly-popular initiative.
College Goal Sunday has two main objectives. The first is to get financial aid information into the hands of the people who need it most. The second goal is to help these same people fill out the FAFSA and answer questions about applying for aid.
The program tries to achieve these goals using several different methods. Volunteers at the national and state level strive to get information about the event to local media outlets, high schools and targeted communities. They advertise the event and encourage participants to bring the forms they need to have when applying for financial aid. Many sites also try to meet the challenge of low income areas with poor access to computers and the Internet by providing computer labs where people can fill out the FASFA form online. This offers a more efficient turnaround and decreases errors. Participation is encouraged through onsite prize giveaways and opportunities for scholarships at the events.
Each year, more states are taking part in the College Goal Sunday experience, with many continuing to expand the program to more areas.
For its part, Nelnet associates in College Goal Sunday states are excited to be actively involved through state associations and are looking forward to this year's event, and the positive affects that College Goal Sunday continues to have on communities and schools.
For more information about College Goal Sunday, including a full list of site locations by state, please visit www.collegegoalsundayusa.org.
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