It’s FAFSA time for EHS seniors

FAFSA

EVANSTON — The time has come to start filling out those FAFSA applications for graduating seniors. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is an online tool that provides institutions with an estimated amount of a family’s financial resources that can be expected to be used toward their college bound student’s tuition costs. It is the first step in the financial aid process. You use it to apply for federal student financial aid such as grants, loans and work-study. In addition, most states and schools use information from the FAFSA to award non-federal aid. To start the FAFSA, visit www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Most universities, colleges, and technical/vocational accept the FAFSA information. Schools have priority deadlines for filing the FAFSA, as well. March 1 is a common priority date for local schools. It does take several days to process the FAFSA information, so waiting until the last minute to file is not a good idea. To find the priority deadline for the FAFSA at the school you are interested, you can visit the college’s financial aid website, or search www.collegeboard.com under deadlines.

Two Financial Aid Frenzy/FAFSA Completion Workshops have been scheduled to help students and parents file the FAFSA with extra support. The first will be Sunday, Feb. 10, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Uinta BOCES Education Center, which will have drawings for scholarships, door prizes and refreshments. If you can’t make it on Sunday, we will have another workshop on Tuesday, Feb. 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Evanston High School, room 110.

Don’t forget to have your driver’s license number, social security number and completed 2012 tax return forms and W-2s. Anyone needing to file the FAFSA is welcome. If you have questions please contact Lauren Johnson, EHS’s college advisor, at (307) 789-0757 or Bonnie Straw, EOC Coordinator, at (307) 789-5742.