Student Reporting March 31, 2022
In April 2020, the College of the Holy Cross signed and returned to the Department of Education (Department) the Certification and Agreement under Section 18004(a)(1) of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students. Pursuant to this Certification and Agreement, the College acknowledges an additional award of $2,484,002 authorized by the American Rescue Plan (ARP) for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students and provides assurance that the College has used this award to continue to support students who have an exceptional need due to the coronavirus.
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Quarter Ended March 31, 2022 |
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The total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under the ARP program for the quarter |
$405,101 |
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For purposes of this report and as further described below, the College considered those eligible to receive emergency grants under the ARP program to be undergraduate students enrolled in the Fall 2021 term and who demonstrated financial need with preference to students with exceptional financial need as determined by the 2021-2021 FAFSA on file, and others who separately appealed for assistance. |
1,165 |
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The total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to Students under the ARP program for the quarter |
81 |
Federal Emergency Aid Grant Criteria and Eligibility:
The College initially offered a one-time grant of federal HEERF III funds in September 2021 to undergraduate students enrolled in the Fall 2021 term and who demonstrated financial need with preference to students with exceptional financial need as determined by the 2021-2022 FAFSA on file. For enrolled students that had not submitted a FAFSA, or are not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, the College considered appeals for financial aid made using the College's Financial Aid Appeal form or by sending a letter of appeal outlining a student and/or parent’s financial disruption due to COVID-19. The amount of the grant was determined by considering Pell eligibility, federal expected family contribution (EFC) and any appeals for financial aid made for the award year 2022. Students with a Pell award generally received a sum equal to 25% of the 2021-2022 Pell award amount. Students with an EFC of $37,500 or less received a grant between $350 and $500; those with the lowest EFC received the larger grant. Each criteria was applied separately and summed to arrive at the total award for each student.
Subsequent to offering the one-time grant, the College sent an email to enrolled students encouraging the following students to apply for assistance using the College's Financial Aid Appeal form or by sending a letter of appeal outlining a student and/or parent’s financial disruption due to COVID-19:
- Those who experienced exceptional need as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and did not receive a Pell award or have an EFC above $37,500.
- Those who received an emergency grant but have additional exceptional need as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, the Bursar’s Office included in its January and February communications, a notice to students and their families that encouraged them to be in contact with the Office of Financial Aid if they are experiencing financial hardship as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic. These award amounts were based on emergency costs due to the coronavirus and eligible expenses under a student’s cost of attendance, such as food, housing, course materials, technology, and health care. To be considered for funding, a student and/or parent was asked to submit either the College's Financial Aid Appeal form or a letter of appeal outlining a student and/or parent’s financial disruption due to COVID-19. The appeal was then presented before the Financial Aid Appeals Committee to review and render a decision. Students who were notified that their request was approved were provided with the following communication along with a grant award and acceptance form:
Students had the option on the Grant Award and Acceptance Certification to either request funding as a refund made payable directly to the student or to authorize the funding be applied to an outstanding balance with the College.
The College is pleased to offer a grant award to you through the Federal Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III as authorized by the American Rescue Plan (ARP). Funding is available to students who are currently enrolled during the 2021-2022 academic year and who meet the eligibility criteria outlined on the COVID information page under ARP Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund.
The offer you are receiving is a grant; it will not affect your financial aid offer for the 2022-2023 academic year. It is not a loan and does not need to be repaid. The grant, to the best of our knowledge, is not taxable. Please see the attached Grant Award and Acceptance Certification to view the acceptance agreement and the amount of your offer.
We ask that you read the Grant Award and Acceptance Certification to understand the terms of your grant award. After reading the certification, please select one of the options indicated to indicate how you would like the funds to be disbursed. The offer will remain available until xx/xx/xxxx. Awards not accepted by the deadline will be canceled.
By accepting this grant you certify that you (1) are a student meeting the eligibility criteria outlined on the ARP Higher Education Emergency Relief information page; (2) acknowledging that the award will be used for any component of your cost of attendance or for emergency costs that arise due to the coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care including mental health; (3) will use the federal grant for those expenses, and (4) will assist and cooperate with the College with regard to any audit or regulatory review of the federal grant provided to you.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office.
Sincerely,
Office of Financial Aid
Date
Student Name, HCID
Sent via electronic email: xxxxxxxx@g.holycross.edu
Dear Student,
The College is pleased to offer a grant award to you in the amount of $xxxx from the Federal Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III as authorized by the American Rescue Plan (ARP). Funding is available to students who are currently enrolled during the 2021-2022 academic year and who meet the eligibility criteria outlined on the COVID information page under ARP Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. The offer you are receiving is a grant. It will not affect your financial aid offer for the 2022-2023 academic year. It is not a loan and does not need to be repaid. The grant, to the best of our knowledge, is not subject to income tax.
Please select ONLY one of the two options below:
________ I accept the grant award offered to me from the Federal Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III as authorized by the American Rescue Plan. I would like to have these funds disbursed to me directly and will login into STAR and select the TouchNet Billing+Payment link to finalize my acceptance of these funds. I understand that I am still responsible for any outstanding balance that I may have due with the College.
_______ I accept the grant award offered to me from the Federal Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III as authorized by the American Rescue Plan. I am authorizing the College of the Holy Cross to apply the grant award towards my outstanding balance with the College for spring 2022.
Certification: By accepting this grant you certify that you (1) are a student meeting the eligibility criteria outlined on the ARP Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund information page; (2) acknowledging that the award will be used for any component of your cost of attendance or for emergency costs that arise due to the coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care including mental health; (3) will use the federal grant for those expenses, and (4) will assist and cooperate with the College with regard to any audit or regulatory review of the federal grant provided to you.
Student Signature, Date