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Special Circumstances & Financial Aid

Special Circumstances & Financial Aid. Katie Briscoe-Baum Director of Financial Aid Mary Dernbach Counselor Suffolk County Community College – Ammerman Campus. Categories. Undocumented students Homeless students Youth in care Same-sex parents. Undocumented Students.

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Special Circumstances & Financial Aid

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  1. Special Circumstances & Financial Aid Katie Briscoe-Baum Director of Financial Aid Mary Dernbach Counselor Suffolk County Community College – Ammerman Campus

  2. Categories Undocumented students Homeless students Youth in care Same-sex parents

  3. Undocumented Students Students living in the U.S. without legal permission (aka “illegal aliens”) The American Association of State Colleges and Universities reports that approximately 65,000 students without residency status graduate from U.S. high schools annually 5 – 10% of undocumented high school graduates are estimated to go to college

  4. Undocumented Students Do not qualify for federal and state financial aid programs which require recipients to be U.S. citizens, permanent residents (green card holders) or eligible non-citizens Federal law enacted in 1996 prohibits undocumented students from receiving in-state tuition rates at public institutions of higher education.

  5. Undocumented Students Twelve states, including New York, have passed laws providing in-state tuition to undocumented students who have attended high school in the state for at least three years. Similar legislation pending in a dozen other states. Some states (e.g. South Carolina, Georgia) ban students without legal residency from some or all public institutions or admit only if no other qualified applicants were denied admission.

  6. Undocumented Students Pending legislation: DREAM Act of 2007 – Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors would: repeal federal restriction and make college more affordable for illegal aliens who came to U.S. under the age of 16 and have continuously resided in the U.S. for at least five years permit states to determine residency for higher education purposes provide a mechanism for undocumented students of good moral character to become legal permanent residents and qualify for federal state aid

  7. Undocumented Students Scholarship Sources: www.Fastweb.com Mexican & American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) Salvadoran American Leadership and Educational Fund Other community organizations

  8. Homeless Students FAFSA Questions 55 - 57 Student instructed to answer “yes” if at any time on or after July 1, 2011, he/she received a determination* of being an unaccompanied youth who was homeless? * from high school, school district liaison office, director of an emergency shelter or transitional housing program funded by the U.S. Dept. of HUD, or director of a runaway or homeless youth basic center/transitional living program Student would be considered “independent”

  9. Homeless Students FAFSA definition of “homeless” lacking fixed, regular and adequate housing, e.g. living in shelters, parks, motels, cars, etc. temporarily living with other people fleeing an abusive parent, even if parent would provide support and a place to live

  10. Homeless Students FAFSA definition of “unaccompanied:” Not living in the physical custody of parent or guardian FAFSA definition of “youth:” 21 years of age or younger or still enrolled in high school as of date FAFSA signed

  11. Homeless Students FAFSA instructs student to answer “no” to question 55 if he/she does not have a determination (from high school or school district homeless liaison) However, if student believes he/she is an unaccompanied youth who is homeless (or at risk of becoming homeless), he/she should contact the Financial Aid Office

  12. Homeless Students New York State Grants Homeless student under age 22 may be considered independent if he/she meets the following basic criteria: did not reside with parents for more than six weeks in 2010/2011/2012 was not claimed on parents’ NYS tax returns in 2011/2012 did not receive greater than $750 worth of financial support from parents AND

  13. Youth in Care FAFSA Question 52: At any time since you turned age 13, were both your parents deceased, were you in foster care or were you a dependent or ward of the court? Answer “yes” if: You had no living parent (biological/adoptive), even if now adopted You were in foster care, even if no longer in foster care You were a dependent/ward of court, even if no longer a dependent/ward of court

  14. Youth in Care Students who meet aforementioned criteria who were subsequently adopted or placed into the care of a legal guardian are still considered “independent” for purposes of completing the FAFSA

  15. Same-Sex Parents Since 1996, the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) has defined marriage as a legal union between a man and a woman The child (student) of a same-sex couple is considered to have only one parent for federal student aid purposes, regardless of whether they are married under state law

  16. Same-Sex Parents If the student lives with two legal same-sex parents (one biological and one adoptive or both adoptive), the FAFSA is completed as if the parents are divorced The parent who provides the most support (generally the parent with the higher income) is responsible for completing the FAFSA If student has only one legal parent (of same-sex union), that parent is responsible for completing the FAFSA

  17. Same-Sex Parents The non-legal parent cannot be included in household size on FAFSA unless that parent is receiving greater than one-half his/her support from student’s legal parent The non-legal parent’s income and assets are not included on the FAFSA. However, any support paid to the student from that parent is reported as student’s “untaxed income” Only siblings who are the biological or adopted children of the student’s legal parent may be included in household size, unless the student’s legal parent provides greater than one-half of their total support

  18. LGBT Students If LGBT student has estranged relationship with parents (due to hostile home environment relating to his/her status ) and parents refuse to provide their information to complete the FAFSA, some financial aid administrators may approve a dependency override LGBT estranged from parents student may meet criteria of “unaccompanied youth who is homeless”

  19. NYS Aid Programs for Special Circumstances Both parents deceasedMay qualify for In foster care independence for Dependent/ward of court NYS aid programs

  20. Independence Status for NYS Aid Programs Homeless and estranged students who do not also fit into other aforementioned categories may qualify for independence on the basis of “involuntary dissolution of the family” Must also meet basic independence criteria: not resided with parents or received financial support from parents exceeding $750 in 2010/2011/2012, not claimed by parents in 2011/2012

  21. Contact info:Katie Briscoe-Baum 451-4469 briscok@sunysuffolk.eduMary Dernbach 451-4028 dernbam@sunysuffolk.edu

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