WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is beginning a new effort to help students take the first step toward getting a college education.
During a visit to a Miami high school on Friday, Obama was announcing a new initiative to help students complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, form. The application is required for students to receive federal student aid, like Pell Grants, or federal student loans. States, colleges and universities also award student financial aid based on the form.
Yet more than 1 million high school seniors annually do not file a FAFSA, the Education Department says.
As part of an effort to broaden access to education, Obama was announcing that, starting in the fall, the Education Department will begin working with states to identify students who have not completed the form. States can then use that information to help schools and school districts work with these students on filling out the form.
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Heaven forbid, future college scholars spend a whole hour filling out a form:
Since 2009, the administration has simplified online filing of the FAFSA form by reducing the number of questions, using intuitive software that lets students and parents skip irrelevant questions and allowing them to download financial information straight into the form from the IRS website.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan recently said the changes have cut the filing time to less than 30 minutes, down from more than an hour for the 2009-2010 school year.
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