FAFSA Updates Jeopardize Federal College Aid for Students from Mixed-Status Families, EdLoC Urges Department of Education to Continue Working Swiftly to Solve the Issue

For students of mixed-status families, recent changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) have created barriers that jeopardize their opportunities to receive essential aid. Mixed-status families may include students who are legal permanent residents or U.S. citizens, and therefore eligible for federal financial aid, but whose parents are undocumented. 

The Department of Education’s (ED) newly launched FAFSA requires a parent to create an FSA ID using their Social Security Number. As a result, undocumented parents without Social Security Numbers are unable to complete the application regardless of the student’s own legal residency. This means students of mixed-status families cannot file despite their eligibility, putting college out of reach for most.

Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC), a membership network comprising leaders of color across education and beyond, is leading the call for the Biden administration to continue working expediently to resolve this challenge. 

“What this situation says to me is that our system of education has more work to do to address the intersecting challenges students face,” said Sharhonda Bossier, EdLoC’s CEO. “Education access is not a silo. It is impacted by immigration status, by housing insecurity, by so many factors. Our leaders must always take these overlapping inequities into account in their policymaking to ensure we’re supporting students more holistically,” continued Bossier.

Earlier this month, EdLoC submitted a comment urging ED to work urgently to resolve the issue for mixed-status families and other implementation issues. 

“With postsecondary institutions waiting for FAFSA information to make decisions about the financial aid they will offer to students, this must be resolved as soon as possible,” implored Angelica Solis-Montero, EdLoC’s Chief Policy Officer. “Students who rely on financial aid deserve to know what resources are available to them to make informed decisions about their futures,” continued Solis-Montero. 

As the administration works to address the challenge, EdLoC urges postsecondary institutions to do all they can to stay in communication with students and their families. There is also an opportunity for those schools, particularly Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), to move enrollment deadlines as they did during the pandemic, to ensure that students have the information regarding their available aid when they are deciding.

“With the traditional May 1 enrollment deadline fast approaching, students and their families are feeling the pressure,” said EdLoC member Reyna Montoya, Founder and CEO of Aliento. “These are low-income students, first-generation students, whose dreams of contributing to the workforce and their communities depend on this aid and who expect the federal government to be able to deliver,” continued Montoya. 

EdLoC looks forward to working cooperatively with the Biden Administration to ensure all eligible students have access to federal financial aid, regardless of family status.