Inland Empire Region
FAFSA/CADAA Completion
Inland Empire regional leaders and practitioners urge Inland Empire high schools to reach 90%
FAFSA/CADAA completion by 2026.
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and the California Dream Act Application (CADAA) completion are one of the strongest predictors of postsecondary enrollment, which is key to boosting the Inland Empire’s educational and economic mobility. Every year, many eligible students miss out on free money for college. Filling out the FAFSA/CADAA is the key to unlocking financial aid (such as Pell Grants) from federal, state, and institutional sources, much of which does not need to be paid back. Without intervention, declining FAFSA/CADAA completion rates could indicate that last year’s alarming postsecondary enrollment declines will persist or even worsen. It’s critical now more than ever that we ensure that our students are able to pursue their college dreams.
Determined to make change for our students, GIA’s Financial Aid Action Network Team (ANT) proposed an ambitious achievement goal for the region – 90% FAFSA/CADAA completion by all high school seniors by 2026. This means we need to reach a minimum of 5,000 additional students every year! GIA’s Board of Directors including both Riverside County and San Bernardino County Superintendents endorsed this bold objective in a Regional Call to Action as seen below.
regional call to action
GIA’s Board of Directors affirms goal to reach 90% FAFSA/CADAA completion by 2026.
View a Downloadable PDF File of the Call to Action
San Bernardino and Riverside County Schools
All seniors at K-12 schools in the 56 districts spanning San Bernardino and Riverside Counties.
Emphasis on Black, Latinx, Indegenous, and historically underserved student groups.
- Increase Educational Attainment, with specific emphasis on accelerating success for historically marginalized students
- Education Leaders
- K-12 Schools
- Regional & State Nonprofit Organizations
- Philanthropic Organizations
Ida Hermosillo, Director of Network Engagement
resources for action
Take a look at the resources below to help support regional achievement of the 90% goal
We have a page dedicated to Financial Aid on the IEStudents.org website.
Visit: https://iestudents.org/financial-support-for-college/
A helpful financial aid checklist for high school Juniors and Seniors provided by the California Student Aid Commission.
Visit: https://www.csac.ca.gov/pod/financial-aid-checklist
A full-suite of resources related to FAFSA completion provided by the National College Attainment Network (NCAN).
Visit: https://www.ncan.org/page/FAFSA_Resource_Library
Review data for FAFSA completion data across the state of California including an easy search tool for specific districts and school sites.
Visit: https://webutil.csac.ca.gov/dashboard/
Net price calculators for California Colleges provided by the California Student Aid Commission.
Visit: https://www.csac.ca.gov/post/calculators-0
Dates and deadlines updates from the California Student Aid Commission.
Visit: https://www.csac.ca.gov/post/important-dates-and-deadlines
Students and families can attend FREE Cash for College workshops across California for help completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or California Dream Act (CADAA) and Chafee Grant for Foster Youth applications. If you are interested in attending, hosting, or promoting a Cash-4-College event, visit: https://www.cash4college.csac.ca.gov.
Here you can search for workshops by location, zip code, school name and county.
A downloadable, easy-to-follow guide from Form Your Future that clearly explains the FAFSA process and answers the most common questions asked by students and parents from lower-income backgrounds.
Visit: https://formyourfuture.org/the-guide/
The Financial Aid Toolkit from the U.S. Department of Education provides federal student aid information and outreach tools for counselors, college access professionals, nonprofit members, and other advisors.
Visit: https://financialaidtoolkit.ed.gov/tk/?_ga=2.84453337.1563174876.1592139205-849197708.1591899721