[Students] 2011-2012 Financial Aid and Scholarship Update

[Susan Grove]

Dear Lions,

 

At this time of the year, financial aid offices around the nation are
typically busy sending out award notices to their students for the
upcoming academic year.  For the 2011-2012 year, the process of
providing you with accurate information regarding your financial aid is
not typical.  All schools, including Texas A&M University-Commerce, are
in the midst of significant changes affecting financial aid. Federal and
state financial aid programs are in a state of flux as federal and state
legislative bodies respond to calls for significant cuts in programs at
all levels of government.  

 

The effect of the budget cuts will impact several financial aid
programs, most significantly Pell Grants, TEXAS grants, and B-On-Time
loans, among others. Some will experience changes in award amounts or in
the eligibility criteria, while others, such as the ACG, SMART, LEAP,
have been cancelled.  Without decisions about funding for financial aid
programs, financial aid awards at this time can only be estimates.  The
final aid package may be more or less money depending on decisions made
by Congress and the Texas Legislature.  The viability of state financial
aid programs may not be known until July.  Since we do not know what
funding will be available until sometime in the future, we are
significantly challenged in developing a financial aid award that you
can rely on completely.  

 

We understand that you and your family need to know what grant, loan and
scholarship resources will be available to you as you make your plans
for next year. We are working very hard to get resolution about these
important financial aid programs and are monitoring all notices and
events occurring at the federal and state levels. Please know that, even
though we are not yet sending out notices, we are busy reviewing
applications, processing documents and getting applications ready for
when awarding will be possible. As decisions are made, we will provide
you with accurate, up-to-date information as it is available.  We are
committed to your success as a student and will do everything we can to
provide you with enrollment resources.

 

We want to stress the importance of searching for scholarship
opportunities now.  If you have an existing, renewable scholarship, you
will see the award posted to your account within the month of May.  For
those who applied for departmental and general scholarships by the
February 2011 deadline, offer notification emails will begin in May.
All of the notifications will be sent to your myLEO e-mail account, so
we encourage you to check it often.  Also, we want you to know that we
do offer a section on the scholarship website that directs students to 
outside scholarship resources
<http://web.tamu-commerce.edu/admissions/tuitionCosts/financialAidandSch
olarships/scholarships/outsideScholarships.aspx> .  We encourage you to
apply for as many outside scholarship opportunities as you can find!
Please know that we are here to assist you through any and all of these
scholarship processes.

 

We will work diligently to keep our website updated
<http://web.tamu-commerce.edu/admissions/onestopshop/financialAidAndScho
larships/default.aspx>  with changes as we receive them and resources as
we identify them.  If you have questions or concerns, please feel free
to contact your Texas A&M University-Commerce Office of Financial Aid
<mailto:FAO_Web at tamu-commerce.edu>  and Scholarships
<mailto:Scholarships at tamu-commerce.edu> .  

 

Best wishes,

 

Enrollment Management and Retention
<http://web.tamu-commerce.edu/admissions/onestopshop/> 

Division of Student Access and Success
<http://web.tamu-commerce.edu/admissions/onestopshop/> 

 

Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships
<http://web.tamu-commerce.edu/admissions/onestopshop/financialAidAndScho
larships/default.aspx> 

903.886.5096

FAO_Web at tamu-commerce.edu <mailto:FAO_Web at tamu-commerce.edu> 

Scholarships at tamu-commerce.edu <mailto:Scholarships at tamu-commerce.edu> 

 

 

 

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