- On June 10, 2020, Gettysburg College returned a signed the Certification and Agreement to the U.S. Department of Education assuring that no less than 50 percent of funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act would be distributed to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to eligible Gettysburg students. A new certification was not required to be submitted under the CRRSAA and Gettysburg College acknowledges it has used the applicable amount of funds designated under the CRRSAA to provide emergency federal aid grants to students.
- In accordance with the College’s Certification and Agreement, Gettysburg College received $828,017 from the U.S. Department of Education to distribute as Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students. The funds were drawn down on April 19, 2021.
- Gettysburg College estimates that 2,870 Gettysburg students were eligible based on the guidance available from the Department of Education as of the draw down date to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to student under Section 314(a)(1) of the CRRSAA.
- On April 28, 2021, Gettysburg College distributed a total of $828,017 in Emergency Financial Aid Grants to 646 students under Section 314(a)(1) of the CRRSAA.
- Following guidance from the U.S. Department of Education, Gettysburg College established three operational principles to determine the methodology to be used for the distribution the student emergency financial aid grants:
- Student success and support. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic continues to impact our students and their families. The change to off-campus, on-line learning due to COVID-19 in the spring of 2020 along with the de-densification of campus in the current academic year has caused additional financial hardships for our students.
- Impact and equity. All students have experienced some type of additional costs due to COVID-19 with varied negative impacts on students depending on their socioeconomic background. Students should receive different levels of grant aid depending on their level of need with students with exceptional need prioritized first.
- Timeliness and administrative efficiency. Ensure access for any student experiencing a loss to receive emergency grants with minimal administrative process.
- Based on the three operational principles described above, the following method was used to determine recipients and funding levels:
- On April 14, 2021 all currently enrolled eligible students were sent an email to their official gettysburg.edu address from the Student Accounts office. Eligible students who had been enrolled as of March 13, 2020 and since graduated were sent an email to their address on file. Eligible students received one of two versions of this email, based on whether they were currently enrolled with the College, or had graduated. Both versions of the email included the following information:
- Notice that Gettysburg College was awarded federal funds through the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA).
- Notice that the funds could be used for any component of the student’s cost of attendance or for emergency costs that arose due to coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health care) or child care.
- How to request funds through the survey application link included in the email and the deadline for requesting funds of midnight on Sunday, April 25.
- How funds would be distributed
- On Tuesday, April 20, 2021 the email was sent again to all students who had not yet opened the original email.
- Students requesting funding were assigned a level based on their expected family contribution (EFC) on file with the Financial Aid office. The following levels were used:
- EFC of $5,711 or less
- EFC between $5,712 to $10,000
- EFC between $10,001 to $15,000
- EFC between $15,001 and $20,000
- EFC greater than $20,000
- The grant amounts were calculated by determining a base amount for students with an EFC between $10,001 and $15,000 ($1,273.87) and then increasing the funding amount 25% for students with an EFC between $5,712 and $10,000 ($1,592.34) and 50% for students with an EFC of $5,711 or less ($1,910.81). The base amount was decreased by 25% for students with an EFC between $15,001 and $20,000 ($955.40) and 50% for students with an EFC greater than $20,000 ($636.94).
- On April 14, 2021 all currently enrolled eligible students were sent an email to their official gettysburg.edu address from the Student Accounts office. Eligible students who had been enrolled as of March 13, 2020 and since graduated were sent an email to their address on file. Eligible students received one of two versions of this email, based on whether they were currently enrolled with the College, or had graduated. Both versions of the email included the following information:
- On Tuesday, April 27, all CRRSAA student emergency grants were posted to students accounts to be automatically disbursed on Wednesday, April 28 either by direct deposit or check (under the same process used for student refunds).
- The Student Accounts office sent out an email to all students receiving funds on Wednesday, April 28 notifying them of the amount of their grant and that the funds would be disbursed later that day.
- CRRSAA Institutional Portion Required Response: Section 314(a)(1) Institutional Portion Final Quarterly Report.
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