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Enrollment at almost all of Colorado’s four-year universities is up, regardless of delays and glitches this yr that made it more durable for college students to fill out the Free Utility for Federal Scholar Support.
It’s an final result that defies the widespread worry that the FAFSA snafus would result in decrease school enrollment, particularly amongst college students from low-income households.
As a substitute, the all-hands-on-deck response that many excessive colleges and universities took to serving to college students fill out the FAFSA on this troubled yr appears to have paid off.
“We weren’t going to only depart our college students hanging,” mentioned Federico Rangel, who works at Denver’s West Excessive Faculty as a Denver Scholarship Basis adviser. “We had been going to do what we would have liked to do to verify college students might entry their objectives and their potential.”
Solely about 42% of highschool seniors statewide accomplished the FAFSA this yr, which is about 3,000 fewer college students than final yr. However most of Colorado’s 13 public universities, together with the College of Colorado Boulder, Colorado State College System’s three colleges, Metropolitan State College of Denver, and Colorado Mesa College, enrolled extra college students than final yr.
Enrollment can be up amongst college students eligible for federal Pell grants, which give free cash for school for college students from low-income households. Federal modifications raised the Pell grant earnings limits which allowed extra college students to qualify.
The federal authorities revamped the FAFSA kind final yr, which is now referred to as the Higher FAFSA.
The shape, usually launched in October, was launched months late on Dec. 31, shortening the completion window for college students and households. Then, whereas the Higher FAFSA proved to be shorter and simpler, technical glitches marred the method.
Points have lingered, and some first-year college students are nonetheless making an attempt to complete the FAFSA even now that they’re enrolled in school, mentioned Natasha Garfield, Denver Scholarship Basis scholarships and monetary help director.
Regardless of issues, colleges posted sturdy enrollment numbers over final yr.
The Colorado Faculty of Mines elevated enrollment by 6% in addition to boosted enrollment of Pell Grant college students over final yr by 23% — from 859 college students to 1,059. Each Colorado Faculty of Mines and the College of Colorado Boulder have traditionally enrolled a decrease share of scholars from lower-income backgrounds.
CU Boulder elevated undergraduate enrollment by 3.4% this yr, in addition to the variety of Pell Grant recipients — to five,307 college students, up from 4,846, a 9.5% improve.
Enrollment and the scholar make-up at smaller regional colleges assorted. However most recorded will increase.
Western Colorado College was one of many few with declines. It enrolled about 30 fewer Pell eligible college students, or a 6.5% lower. Enrollment additionally dropped from 3,761 to three,453 college students.
In the meantime, Metropolitan State College of Denver elevated enrollment by 2%, in addition to elevated Pell enrollment. Kerline Eglaus, govt director of economic help and scholarships, mentioned the variety of college students eligible for a grant elevated by 989 college students, to 38.5% of all college students. That’s an 18.5% improve over final yr, she mentioned.
MSU Denver and each college throughout the state put extra assets into serving to college students get to school as they struggled to fill out the FAFSA, she mentioned. The college additionally helped college students who had been already enrolled fill out the brand new FAFSA.
All year long, colleges labored collectively in order many college students as potential had the assets they wanted to determine the Higher FAFSA, she mentioned. She mentioned it’s honest to say that help from colleges and advisors helped incoming and present college students navigate a troublesome yr.
Faculties will proceed these classes to assist much more college students sooner or later.
“One of many issues that we discovered was simply actually making an attempt to create a greater scholar expertise by elevated outreach and communication,” she mentioned.
Angie Paccione, Colorado Division of Larger Schooling govt director, mentioned in some methods the enrollment will increase defy rationalization, particularly after the FAFSA issues. Colorado isn’t alone, and, nationwide, some states equivalent to Texas and North Carolina have touted elevated enrollment
Nevertheless, Paccione mentioned Colorado faculties and universities have stepped up and made college students really feel extra welcome — immediately and not directly.
Colorado Mesa College, as an example, issued monetary help packages with out FAFSA info to college students, serving to households make choices early. That led to the college’s largest ever freshman class. The “Prime Impact,” or the appointment of Deion Sanders as head coach of the College of Colorado Boulder’s soccer group, has translated to a 50% improve in Black scholar purposes, Paccione mentioned.
It’s the scholars who didn’t make it to school or determined to not go that Paccione worries about. Statewide, FAFSA completion, which is an indicator of whether or not college students will go to school, should improve, she mentioned. Colorado ranks close to the underside in FAFSA completion and solely about half of all Colorado highschool college students find yourself on a university campus.
The state’s highest paying jobs require a university training, whether or not a certificates, two-year, or four-year diploma.
“How will we get the opposite half to appreciate that school is inexpensive and is inside attain and price it?” she mentioned. “We’ve got to assist them see that the roles which might be accessible for simply the highschool diploma actually don’t evaluate to jobs with even an associates or a bachelor’s.”
The difficulties college students confronted within the spring aren’t anticipated to linger into the following FAFSA cycle, though it’s once more slated to open late on or earlier than Dec. 1.
The U.S. Division of Schooling has been engaged on fixes, and advisers that help college students are hopeful of a greater expertise.
A later-than-expected FAFSA launch nonetheless worries some. Rangel mentioned he’s involved that Colorado as soon as once more gained’t have the ability to get college students filling out the FAFSA till a pair months later than ordinary. He feels that after the problems he and others have discovered loads about maintain college students on monitor — and the resilience of scholars.
“We’re clearly going to stay hopeful,” he mentioned. “I can’t say sufficient how unbelievable the scholars that I work with are in simply persevering by points.”
Jason Gonzales is a reporter protecting greater training and the Colorado legislature. Chalkbeat Colorado companions with Open Campus on greater training protection. Contact Jason at jgonzales@chalkbeat.org.
