МОЛОДЕЖНЫЙ ЦЕНТР ЗАЩИТЫ
Senate Bill 5164
This bill is about helping students access financial aid resources for college.
This bill is progressing.
BACKGROUND:
Financial Aid Forms
There are two forms that students can fill out in order to see if they are eligible for financial aid to help cover the costs of attending postsecondary institutions.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the federal form that current and prospective students fill out to determine their eligibility for federal and state financial aid for attending postsecondary education institutions.
The Washington Application for State Financial Aid (WASFA) is an alternative form for students who cannot file a FAFSA, but may still be eligible for state financial aid. This includes students who are undocumented or do not qualify because of immigration status among others.
Despite completion of these forms being required to access federal financial aid less than 50% of Washington’s high school seniors from the class of 2024 completed the FAFSA. In recent years the state of Washington has taken steps to increase postsecondary enrollment and completion and a key step in that goal is to increase FAFSA completion to better help students account for the cost of attending higher education by being able to access federal and state financial aid opportunities
Educational Service Districts (ESDs) were established at the state level as a vehicle to link local public schools with state and national educational resources. There are nine ESDs across Washington state.
SUMMARY:
This bill would establish a program to support financial aid completion and postsecondary enrollment for high school seniors by providing outreach and enrollment specialists to each ESD.
Funding would be provided to enable one outreach and enrollment specialist for every 600 high school seniors in an ESD.
The outreach and enrollment specialists would provide support students in navigating applying for financial aid, applying for scholarships, supping in applying to postsecondary opportunities, and connect students with appropriate staff at higher education institutions.
Outreach and enrollment specialists would work directly with the high schools in the corresponding ESD.
The outreach and enrollment specialists must coordinate with high school counseling programs and other school district staff to make contact with high school students and their families.
The outreach must have a focus on secondary schools with a higher percentage of students who are eligible for Free and Reduced Price Lunch compared to other schools in the same ESD.
The bill also creates a financial aid training program for high school teachers and counselors, staff at the institutions of higher education, and community partners.
POINTS TO CONSIDER ABOUT THIS BILL:
The Pell grant is the federal need-based financial aid program. The average Pell Grant award is $4,572 per-student in Washington according to the National College Attainment Network.
Increased FAFSA completion can help access thousands of dollars of additional financial aid per-student to help address barriers to college completion.
Ways to Get Involved
Steps to Get Started
Learn where the bill is in the legislative process.
If there is an upcoming hearing, decide how you would like to get your voice heard and take action.
If there is not an upcoming hearing, or if you want to supplement your advocacy, call or write your legislators.
Spread the word and get other people on board.
Participating in a Hearing
Sign in Pro, Con, or Other
This is when individuals, advocates, and organizations make their position on a particular bill known for the record. This is particularly powerful in large numbers. Many organizations will send out Action Alerts asking people to sign in Pro or Con on a bill.
Submit Written Testimony
Submitting written testimony is a great way not only to make your position known, to legislators but also to explain why in more detail. This is a good option if you don't want to speak in front of others. People also like to offer more nuance to their position by writing.
Testify Virtually
Since COVID, many legislators are allowing remote/virtual testimony for bill hearings, as it greatly expands access to the legislative process across the state. For this, individuals usually have between 1-2 minutes to state their opinion on a bill in front of the legislative committee on Zoom.
Testify In Person
To testify on a bill in person, you must travel to Olympia and join the real-time committee hearing on the Capitol campus. You will also get between 1-2 minutes to state your opinion. This is often a powerful way to make an impression on legislators in the room.