College Goal Sunday

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 24, 2007
Kathy Feith
(417) 659-5422

 

JOPLIN, MO (SNS) -- College Goal Sunday, a program designed to assist college-bound high schools students in the completion and filing of important student financial aid documents, will return for a fourth year to the Show-Me State.

 

The program will take place in workshop format from 2 to 4 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 11 at Cornell Auditorium in Plaster Hall at Missouri Southern State University.

 

The workshops also will be held primarily on college campuses located throughout the state and will be staffed by financial aid experts from a variety of institutions. There is no charge to participate.

 

Michael Smith of the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Mindy Beckley-Hager of Student Capital Corporation will co-chair this year’s program in Missouri.

 

“One of the biggest roadblocks students encounter when exploring their eligibility for financial aid is the financial aid form itself,” explains Smith. “Our program invites students as a group to spend a little time on one afternoon, and we walk them through the application process step-by-step.”

 

The form is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA. It is required by most educational institutions to determine eligibility for a wide range of grants, loans and scholarships. Students of all socioeconomic backgrounds are encouraged to complete the form, even if family income seems too high to qualify for federal assistance. Because this is a federal form, students and their families are encouraged to attend one the sites nearest to their residence to complete this form even if it is not the school campus they plan to attend.

 

The website, located at www.collegegoalmissouri.com contains basic information about college financial aid and provides information regarding specific program locations, a list of items needed for the event and driving directions.

 

The event is sponsored nationally by the Lumina Foundation, and is co-sponsored in Missouri by the Missouri Association of Student Financial Aid Personnel, the Missouri Department of Higher Education, the Missouri Higher Education Lending Authority, Mapping Your Future and individual media outlets throughout the state.

 

“We are sponsoring over 28 College Goal Sunday sessions in St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, Joplin and in other state areas,” states Smith, “but students from any high school in any part of the state are eligible to participate at no cost. They should go to our website to get specific information on the site closest to them.”

 

“There is money out there,” says Beckley-Hager, “but you’ll never find it if you don’t ask. And you probably won’t get it if you don’t fill out the forms.”

 

Smith encourages those college bound students in the foster care system to complete the FAFSA form. Those with questions should e-mail mtsmith@umsl.edu or mbeckley@studentcapital.net or telephone (314) 516-5527 or (816) 361-8282.

 

 

 

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