Cal Grants OverviewHigh School Counselors’ Workshop 2012-2013 Year

Presented by the California Student Aid Commission

Agenda

• FAFSA Bridge• Basic Cal Grant Eligibility - Cal Grants A, B and C• High School Entitlement Awards• Cal Grant Renewal Eligibility• AB 131 Dream Act• Student Notifications• WebGrants• GPA Calculation and Best Practices (File Early)• Non-SSN GPA Upload• WebGrants for Students• Cash For College Program

FAFSA Bridge

Linking federal & state financial assistance

•Selecting the optional feature after submitting the FAFSA

•Provide additional information that can affect state assistance delivery includingoReleasing Cal Grant GPA (participating high

schools); applying for Chafee Grant, oReceiving program information—APLE,

National Guard

Allows students to transfer information from the FAFSA to a state applicationNote: Option is only offered on the confirmation page

4

FAFSA Bridge

FAFSA Bridge Questions

• Which college will you most likely attend in Fall 2012?

Cal Grant

• Are you, or were you, in a foster care placement, under court dependency/wardship at any time, between the ages of 16-18? Chafee Grant

• Do you have or plan to obtain a K-12 teaching credential? APLE

• Do you intend to teach or to supervise in a licensed children’s center? Child Development

• Are you an active member of the California National Guard? National Guard Educational Assistance Program

FAFSA Bridge- GPA Release

Do you authorize your school to release your high school GPA?

•Student consents to GPA release

•CSAC collects a GPA release for participating high schools; sends list of students to each school

•School downloads list and uploads GPA to WebGrants

Phase II

Basic Cal Grant EligibilityFederal Requirements Additional Cal Grant

Requirements

U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen

California Resident

Meet Selective Service requirements

Attend an eligible California school at least half-time

Have a Social Security number

Be enrolled at least half-time

Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress

High School GPA required (Entitlement)

Not owe a grant repayment or be in default on a student loan

Not be incarceratedDependent students whose parents are in registered domestic partnerships

should go to

http://www.csac.ca.gov/pubs/forms/grnt_frm/G-37.pdf

Not have earned a BA/BS degree

WWW.CSAC.CA.GOV

Cal Grant A

Additional Eligibility Criteria:• Meet income & asset ceiling (demonstrate

financial need)•3.00 minimum high school GPA•Pursuing AA and BA programs only

Annual award amounts may be:• Used for tuition and/or fees only• Held in reserve while attending community

college CSU UC Private

$ 5,472/yr $ 12,192/yr $ 9,708/yr

Cal Grant B

•Very low income students who:• Meet the income and asset ceilings

•2.00 GPA minimum

•AA, BA/BS and Certificate programs

•Annual Awards• $1551 stipend first year

• Fees/Tuition plus $1551

• Available as Entitlement & Competitive Awards

Cal Grant Income and Asset CeilingsFor New Applicants – For Renewal Ceilings go to: http://www.csac.ca.gov/doc.asp?id=1122

Cal Grant C

Low and Middle income students who:

•Enroll in vocational courses of study

•AA and Certificate programs only

•Can be used for any school expenses including tuition and fees

•Eligibility determined only after application is given Cal Grant A and B consideration

High School Entitlement Awards

•Recent high school graduates or equivalent (GED, CHSPE)• 2012/13 AY: graduated on or after July 1, 2010

•High school GPA required

•Meet minimum GPA and eligibility requirements

•Potentially unlimited number of awards

Make sure graduating seniors include their high school on the FAFSA

•CSAC can then match between GPA and FAFSA information

•CSAC will be able to report to schools on missing GPAs and missing FAFSAs

High School Entitlement Awards

Cal Grant High School Entitlement

Requires High School Graduation •Students can confirm on-line using WebGrants

for Students

•Schools can assist to provide post-graduation confirmation of HS graduation

•Students needing to mail use the High School Graduation Confirmation form, HS transcripts or other authoritative documents

Cal Grant Renewal Eligibility

SB 70 – Renewal eligibility changes•Previously, to renew a Cal Grant, students had to only show financial need

•Now, students need to demonstrate the same financial need as new participants and meet income and asset ceilings.

Resulted in 14,000 fewer renewals

AB 131 Dream Act

Allows students who meet AB 540 criteria to receive Cal Grants

•Signed into law in October, 2011

•Cal Grants for the 2013-2014 school year

•For entitlement candidates only

•Must meet all other Cal Grant requirements

•On-line application will be opened January 2013 to gather FAFSA like information

Student NotificationAwardees who submit a FAFSA & GPA will receive

a California Aid Report (CAR) via email•E-CAR Indicates Cal Grant eligibility

• Sent as early as January• Letter sent if no e-mail address is available

• Applicants should access WebGrants for Students• www.webgrants4students.org

Counselor Tip:

Download “School of Origin” report for a list of awarded students from your school

E-mail to students from CSAC will come from these addresses: calgrantoffice@csac.ca.gov studentsupport@csac.ca.gov

Mark these addresses as Safe

Student NotificationsE-mail delivery:

• Provides grant type and estimated amount for up to 3 CA schools listed on the FAFSA

•Communication with CSAC is emphasized

WebGrants for Schools

•Contact: • CSAC Technology Help Desk

(888) 294-0148 or csachelpdesk@csac.ca.gov• Download WebGrants access request forms at

• www.csac.ca.gov Look for “High Schools” on the “Schools” tab

• WebGrants Home Page https://webgrants.csac.ca.gov

• WebGrants for Students www.webgrants4students.org

WebGrants for Schools

•Upload GPA by batch or individual recordsMore secure than US Mail – Results shown in real time

•Built-in edits to catch errors (e.g. SSN typos)

•Confirmation of receipt of records

•Report Access: • GPA Summary Report

• School of Origin Report

• HS Graduation Confirmation Report

• FAFSA, No GPA Report

https://webgrants.csac.ca.gov

Cal Grant GPA Calculation

•High School GPA calculation is the same as prior years – sophomore and junior grades only for seniors. Remember to exclude P.E and R.O.T.C

•To calculate a GPA, go to “Schools” tab, “High School” or http://www.csac.ca.gov/doc.asp?id=1032 and look for “Cal Grant GPA Calculation Information”

•Call School Support Line (888) 294-0153

•Look for webinars in Nov., Dec., Jan. and Feb.

•Webinar link is on the “Schools” tab, “High School” or

•http://www.csac.ca.gov/doc.asp?id=988

Academic Qualifiers & Submissions

Academic Qualifier Types:•High school GPA•Test ScoresoSAT Reasoning Test, ACT or GED*

*Test score can be used if the student does not have a GPA, has coursework that cannot be converted to a 4.00 GPA, or attended a non-accredited high school

Submitting GPAs

•Schools:• Use WebGrants• Upload by batch file (.txt) • Submit one-by-one (Add GPAs screen)

•Student Initiated GPA Submission:• On-line GPA Release with FAFSA Bridge• Use GPA Verification form

• Download, complete demographic information, print.

• Give to high school

•Questions?• Electronic GPA Upload Questions?

• Tabitha Frost (916) 464-2113• School Support Branch (888) 294 -0153• schoolsupport@csac.ca.gov

Academic Qualifiers & Submissions

GPA-Best Practices

Establish a school WebGrants account.

•Read the WebGrants User Guides on the Help Screen

•Add GPAs individually (by student) or by batch using a GPA data file in .txt format

•Use WebGrants reports to see the status of your submitted GPA records

Don’t Wait!

Upload GPAs now!

Non-SSN GPA File Upload

•Successful Pilot with LA Unified

•Districts and schools may use this method

•Allows upload of GPA data without the student’s SSN.

•GPA matched to FAFSA using other data

•Must be submitted by batch process only

• Contact School Support Branch for file layout• Adrian Felix (916) 464-3464 or,

• (888) 294 -0153 schoolsupport@csac.ca.gov

WebGrants for Students (WGS)

Provides students online access to California assistance and more—• Secure, 24/7, student-friendly access to

their Cal Grant and Chafee Grant award status;

• Links to other related financial aid sites.

www.webgrants4students.org

WebGrants for Students (WGS)

• Access available after the FAFSA is filed• Check application and award status • Verify and update e-mail and mailing address• View payment history• Simulate Cal Grant status at eligible California

schools• Request a leave of absence• Self-certify high school graduation• Select links to other financial aid information sites

www.webgrants4students.org

Cash for College

Cash for College Workshop Network

• FAFSA Completion Workshops

• Held January through March 2

• Program partners: CSAC, high schools, campuses, college access and community groups

• Offered in 51 counties

• 600 workshops were held in 2011

• More than 30,000 students

• 500 $1,000 incentive scholarships for high school seniors

Cash for College Workshops• Held January through the March 2nd Cal Grant deadline

• Open to all students: focus on low-income and first-generation seniors

• Involve parents/guardians through individual assistance

• Provide line-by-line help on the FAFSA, learn about Cal Grants, AB 540, AB 130 and other sources of financial aid

• Offer multi-lingual materials

• Assistance & training offered to use computer-based tools like the new FAFSA bridge

• Site support funds offered to help offset costs of workshop

Cash for College

• $1,000 private incentive scholarships will be provided at qualifying workshops for a seventh year.

• For the second year, funding will be provided through CSAC’s partnership with ECMC.

• Organizers help notify scholarship recipients in late May and early June

• For more information and to register workshops, visit: www.californiacashforcollege.org

2011 Cash for College Results • 9 out of 10 students attending a CFC workshop

submitted a FAFSA by March 2nd

• 8 out of 10 applied for a Cal Grant by March 2nd

• More than 30,000 students qualified for $137 million in Cal Grants and Pell Grants

• Students at a computer-based workshop were more likely to complete the FAFSA by March 2nd

FAFSA Completion Rates

Non Computer-based

Computer-based

34%

64%

29%

21%

37%

15%

Yes Some, not all No

Workshops that were::

Cash for College Online Wrapper

Sites are strongly encouraged to offer workshops in computer labs

• Guides students to theFAFSA, Chafee, or AB 540 depending on student needs

• Exit Survey is online.

• Easy access for viewing submitted surveys at workshops

Cash for College

•To register and order materials for your workshop, visit the Cash for College pages at www.calgrants.org

•Statewide Cash for College office e-mail is:

cashforcollege@csac.ca.gov

•Find your regional Cash for College coordinating organization under the Cash for College “Contact Us” page at: www.calgrants.org

Questions?

School Support (888) 294-0153