After weeks of waiting, some Nebraska college students who need help paying rent or covering other expenses during the coronavirus pandemic can begin applying for the nearly $6 billion in relief included in the $2 trillion stimulus package.
The Education Department last week issued guidance stating students who submitted a Free Application for Financial Student Aid, or FAFSA, and were offered financial aid were eligible to receive money to cover the cost of food, housing, course materials, child care and health care.
But just what chunk of the $33.6 million in direct assistance Nebraska students are eligible to receive depends on where they attend, as well as whether or not they qualify.
At the University of Nebraska, for example, campuses were given flexibility on how to best use the funds within the parameters set by the Education Department, according to an email from Chris Kabourek, vice president for business and finance, to campus budget officers.
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The federal guidelines mean only about 5,200 of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's more than 25,000 students will be eligible to receive a $1,200 grant to cover the costs of food, housing, course materials, child care and health care, said Justin Chase Brown, director of UNL's Office of Scholarship and Financial Aid.
"Those students were prioritized based on their socioeconomic circumstances, which aligns with what the Education Department suggested," Brown said.
The direct payment grants are expected to use roughly three-fourths of the $7.6 million available to students, Brown said, leaving the remaining funds available for all students who apply for emergency grants.
Those who experienced financial hardship but do not qualify for federal CARES Act funds can apply for other resources made available, he added.
"Our mission is to get students the finances they need to be able to afford college," Brown said.
Students who qualify for the program at the University of Nebraska at Kearney — there are nearly 2,900 who meet eligibility guidelines — will receive direct grants of $2,000. UNK is making $1.9 million available to its students.
"We looked at it through the UNK lens of what's best for our students and what's going to be more impactful for them," spokesman Todd Gottula said.Â
Cost of living for college students is typically higher in Kearney than in Lincoln or Omaha, Gottula said, and those students who left campus and returned home may have incurred extra cost to continue their education this year.
Meanwhile, the University of Nebraska at Omaha, which has $4.8 million available to students enrolled in federal aid programs, with individual grants up to $1,200, as well as $500,000 for those with "extreme financial emergencies."
The 5,000 or so UNO students who are eligible to receive money will be contacted by the Office of Financial Support and Scholarships and asked to complete an application. Aid will be distributed to students based on their financial need.
The Nebraska State College System has also left the decisions of how to connect students in Peru, Chadron and Wayne with $2.2 million in relief aid to campus leaders.
System Chancellor Paul Turman told the Board of Trustees last week the system had prepared surveys for its students asking them to detail the ways they had been financially affected by COVID-19.
In one such survey, prepared by Chadron State College, students are asked what kinds of costs they incurred in making the jump from on-campus to remote education, as well as their food and housing expenses from March 16 to May 8.
"We feel confident we'll have a very firm grasp about how we should best distribute those funds this spring and into the future in the ways in which our students are responding to that survey," Turman said.
Southeast Community College, which enrolls thousands of traditional and non-traditional students, also is hoping to survey the needs of the more than 4,500 students it believes are eligible to receive funds.
SCC, which has several campuses in Lincoln, as well as residential campuses in Beatrice and Milford, can distribute $2.1 million to students in the first round of stimulus, said Mike Pegram, dean of student enrollment. In all, Nebraska's six community colleges were allocated $7.6 million.
Pegram said SCC was still finalizing the details of how students can access those grants and what amount they can receive, and it planned to have students fill out an application through a website.
"There are limits to the funds, so we're digging in a little bit to see how much of our population is eligible," Pegram said. "Once that amount is set, we believe the funds will be given out on a first-come, first-serve basis."
Nebraska's private colleges and universities, which in total were appropriated $7.9 million for student grants, are also planning how to distribute CARES Act funds to students.
In an update posted to Nebraska Wesleyan University's website last week, President Darrin Good said in addition to providing direct grants, the school would also use part of the federal money to reimburse students who left campus before March 29.
Nebraska Wesleyan students are also eligible to apply for emergency grants before May 11.