A school staff member with Cumberland County Schools told parents on Oct. 12 that changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, and a new local grant will prompt a series of outreach events to help students and families complete applications.

The staff member said the district was awarded $25,000 from the John M. Belk Foundation to support “FAFSA application initiatives,” and that the district plans about five or six FAFSA application nights in partnership with Fayetteville Technical Community College (Fayetteville Tech) and Fayetteville State University. A Fayetteville Tech bus is scheduled to visit high school locations during February to provide on-site assistance, the staff member said. The district also plans raffles of small scholarships, from $250 to $500, and hopes to offer stipends to pay staff who help at the events.

The FAFSA has changed since last year, the staff member said, and the federal system opened earlier than originally planned after beta testing. “This year, they have been doing, they fixed a bunch of stuff,” the staff member said. The presentation walked parents through what the FAFSA covers (grants, scholarships, work-study and loans), how to create an FSA ID, what documents are needed and why dependency status matters for eligibility.

The staff member emphasized practical steps: create an FSA ID for both parent and student, have a Social Security card or green card photo, have 2023 federal tax forms (many applicants can link to IRS data through the FAFSA platform) and provide a personal email address. Account activation can take about one to three days after registration, so families should allow time before deadlines, the staff member said. “Both parent and student need to do that,” they added, referring to FSA ID creation.

The presentation also covered federal programs that FAFSA accesses, including Pell Grants and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, and state programs such as North Carolina’s “Next NC Scholarship” and the state need-based scholarship for private college students. The presenter pointed parents to the College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC) scholarship search and a detailed FAFSA checklist and guide that the district is sharing with counselors and families.

The staff member noted special-population supports are included in the new FAFSA: provisions for students without Social Security cards, homeless students, foster youth and some undocumented students. They also said there remain some technical glitches in the new system and that federal student aid support is available by phone (phone number not specified in the presentation).

District staff said they and Career and College Pathways coordinator Britney Raines applied jointly for the Belk Foundation grant and will finalize event dates soon; the staff member said they planned to coordinate outreach with district leadership so schedule and publicity follow district procedures.

The presentation closed with an appeal to overcome misconceptions about the FAFSA: the staff member said the form helps identify grants and scholarships and that qualifying for Pell Grant funding can make two-year college tuition free for some students. District officials said they will announce final event dates and locations when confirmed.