Officials at Johnson C. Smith University are launching a campaign Monday to raise money for 300 students who need tuition assistance for the fall semester.
JCSU officials say they need to raise at least $250,000 so the students can be cleared for enrollment this fall. They say the students’ financial need stems mainly from delays in the processing of their federal student aid applications (FAFSA), which are used to determine eligibility.
A new FAFSA form was rolled out in December, but in addition to the forms being available two months later than usual, numerous technical glitches caused major delays in the forms being processed. This resulted in student financial aid awards being held up across the country.
Angela White, JCSU’s dean of University College and Student Success, says the FAFSA problems continue, especially when changes on a student’s form are needed before aid can be approved.
“A more manual process had to be employed in order to make sure corrections were made to a student’s FAFSA application,” White said. “They do still persist and not just here at Johnson C. Smith, but across the entire nation.”
White says donations to the campaign will go to JCSU’s General Scholarship Fund to close the gap in the aid that the students need for tuition, housing, books and other expenses.
“We want them here at the university, and we do not want to turn them away. For some, they would not have another opportunity for higher education and so we are doing everything possible to make sure that we can provide them access to the education that they deserve,” White said.
In addition to taking online donations, JCSU officials will hold a Zoom meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 26, to solicit contributions. The deadline for the students to be cleared financially is Friday at 5 p.m.
The fund drive Zoom link is: https://zoom.us/j/93912308719?pwd=iQRbG70YP6ITNH1mAcvCwzajbHpAYQ.1. (Meeting ID: 939 1230 8719,
Passcode: 181295).
