WITH 100 DAYS UNTIL PRIORITY DEADLINE, LOUISIANA RANKS NO.8 IN NATION FOR FAFSA COMPLETION

Mar 22, 2018
Class of 2018 First to Graduate Under New Financial Planning Requirement

BATON ROUGE, La. -- With 100 days until the July 1 priority deadline, Louisiana ranks No.8 in the nation for the number of students completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), according to a recent report by the National College Access Network (NCAN). Louisiana currently leads the nation for completion growth since last year.

"We are going to put Louisiana at the top of the college and training access leader board," said State Superintendent John White. "More important than that, we are providing a life opportunity to tens of thousands of young people in our state. The last 100 days is a time for leadership, in every community and in every school."

The FAFSA is for all forms of federal financial aid, including Pell grants, work study programs, and federal student loans available to students to aid in the cost of education and technical training beyond high school. It is also required for Louisiana graduates to receive priority consideration for Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS) Opportunity, Performance, Honors and Tech scholarships, which can also be used for college and technical training. Each year, the state recommended deadline for submission is July 1, the federal priority deadline, but the application window remains open until June 30 the following year.

NCAN tracks states' progress on its #FormYourFuture FAFSA Tracker. As of March 9, 2018, Louisiana was moving up in the ranks, with just over 56 percent of the Class of 2018--about 27,500 students--completing the FAFSA. The NCAN data counts applications from both public and private schools that are fully completed and processed. It does not publicly display school system or school-level data.

The Louisiana Department of Education provides school system and school-level data, but it tallies submission rates, not completion rates, for public schools only, per state policy. Through this lens, about 25,500 public school students have submitted the forms, about 22,700 of which have been completed and processed. Sixty-seven percent of public schools statewide have had at least 50 percent of their outgoing seniors submit the FAFSA. That's an increase from this time last year, when just 23 percent of public schools reached that level.

To view the FAFSA submission data for all Louisiana school systems and schools, click here.

The increase in FAFSA submissions can be attributed, in part, to changes to the financial aid process. Starting this year, with the Class of 2018, Louisiana requires financial aid planning as a condition for high school graduation. The requirement, which is unique to Louisiana, is part of the state's Financial Aid Access Policy, approved by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education in 2015. According to the policy, all graduates must now complete a FAFSA, a TOPS scholarship form, or indicate they do not plan to apply for financial aid. If they do not complete one of these steps, they either will require a hardship waiver or will not be considered a graduate.  

To ensure the effective implementation of the policy, the Department in recent years has created a Louisiana Counselor Assistance Center; convened a Financial Aid Working Group; provided data on FAFSA submission rates among all seniors; and assisted school systems in coordinating events to counsel families directly on financial planning for postsecondary education.

The Department has also partnered with higher education entities and advocacy groups, such as the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance (LOSFA), Career Compass, the Louisiana Education Loan Authority, and College Beyond, to expand its reach.

"The FAFSA is one of the most important college access opportunities available to students and families since completion of this one form allows students access to both federal and state aid based upon need as well as merit," said LOSFA Executive Director Dr. Sujuan Boutté. "At LOSFA, we applaud the Louisiana students and parents who have completed the FAFSA, as well as the school counselors and other financial aid and college access professionals and organizations who have made increased completion of the FAFSA in Louisiana a rousing success toward the goal of helping our students maximize gift aid and minimize loan debt."
 
To learn more about financial aid in Louisiana, click here.

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