CRRSAA ACT EMERGENCY FINANCIAL AID FUNDING

 

CRRSAA Act Reporting


  1. An acknowledgment that the institution signed and returned to the Department the Certification and Agreement and the assurance that the institution has used, or intends to use, no less than 50 percent of the funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students.
  2. The total amount of funds that the institution will receive or has received from the Department pursuant to the institution's Certification and Agreement [for] Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.
  3. The total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act as of the date of submission (i.e., as of the 30-day Report and every 45 days thereafter).
  4. The estimated total number of students at the institution eligible to participate in programs under Section 484 of Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and thus eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
  5. The total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
  6. The method(s) used by the institution to determine which students receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants and how much they would receive under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
  7. Any instructions, directions, or guidance provided by the institution to students concerning the Emergency Financial Aid Grants.

CRRSAA Act: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Reporting

  1. The University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) has signed and returned the Department of Education’s Certification and Agreement, and intends to use the entirety of the student portion under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CRRSAA Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students.
  2. The total amount of funds that UAM has received from the Department pursuant to the institution's Certification and Agreement [for] Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students is $1,611,657.
  3. As of March 15, 2021, the total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CRRSAA Act as of the date of submission (i.e., as of the 30-day Report and every 45 days thereafter) is $1,633,150 ($1,611,657 + an additional $21,493 from the CRRSAA Institutional portion).
  4. As of March 15, the estimated total number of UAM students eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CRRSAA Act is 1,849.
  5. The total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CRRSAA Act is 1,849.
  6. The method(s) used by UAM to determine which students receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants and how much they would receive under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CRRSAA Act is as follows: The University of Arkansas at Monticello has decided to heavily rely on data from the 2020-2021 FAFSA to distribute the first round of emergency aid to students. Although the FAFSA may not be indicative of a student’s current financial situation, the depth of information included on the application provides the most accurate reflection of UAM’s neediest populations. Following the Secretary’s encouragement, we have decided to use the Federal Pell Grant as justification towards our approach for a number of reasons:

    A. Undergraduate students only are eligible to receive the Federal Pell Grant. Graduate Students are eligible for a much higher amount in Federal financial aid, thus we have chosen to exclude this population in CRRSAA awarding.

    B. UAM’s CRRSAA allocation is based on enrollment data from IPEDS for the Fall 2018 semester (National Center for Education Statistics, 2020). Since Pell funds are available to undergraduate students only, Pell data on IPEDS is based solely on undergraduate students.

    C. The Pell Grant is administered in tiers based on EFC and enrollment level. Mirroring this in CRRSAA awarding ensures consistency and fairness to our neediest students.

    To accommodate for UAM’s recognition that FAFSA data may not be exactly indicative of a student’s current financial situation, we have decided to add a tier on to our CRRSAA award schedule for undergraduate students that have an EFC too high to receive Pell funds, as well as undergraduate students that have not completed a FAFSA. Adding this tier will allow us to distribute funds to all of the students that have been affected, without requiring an application that would delay the distribution of funds, since our goal is to help as many affected students as soon as possible.

  7. Instructions, directions, or guidance provided by UAM to students concerning the Emergency Financial Aid Grants include the following:

3/12/21: The Financial Aid Office distributed the following communication to all UAM students:

What is the CRRSAA Act? 

The Federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act was implemented to assist students in covering expenses related to a student’s cost of attendance. The University of Arkansas at Monticello’s request to receive aid has been granted, and we will begin distributing these funds to our students in the form of a financial aid CRRSAA Grant through WeevilNet.  

Who is eligible for a financial aid CRRSAA Grant? 

All Undergraduate UAM students that were enrolled in Spring 2021 courses after the census date will be eligible for some type of aid.  

Graduate students will not receive CRRSAA Grants. 

Grants are not available to undocumented, DACA, or international students. 

How much will eligible students receive? 

UAM prioritized students using a combination of information from FAFSA and the number of credits that students were enrolled in as of the census date in Spring 2021.  

How will funds be distributed to students? 

The financial aid CRRSAA Grants will be distributed by the Financial Aid Office and posted to students’ accounts through WeevilNet. Funds will be processed directly to students, regardless of any balance owed to the University. We strongly urge students to enroll in direct deposit to receive funds as quickly as possible. For information setting up direct deposit, please review instructions. You may also contact the UAM Cashier’s Office at cashier@uamont.edu, or by phone at 870.460.1043  

 

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