So I currently get the Pell grant for the community college I attend, but it doesn’t cover all of my school expenses, I pay the rest out of pocket ($400 + textbooks). Previously to this year the Pell grant covered all my school expenses. But now my mom is on disability because she just got surgery done on her foot, she’ll be out of work until January. She’s filing to collect welfare/food stamps and whatever else she could get to help pay the bills since disability won’t be enough. I’m talking to my adviser this upcoming Tuesday so she can help me pick out classes, I was going to ask her if my mom’s disability will help with my lack of financial aid right now, next semester, or if it won’t help until next year.
But I’m kinda eager to know so I decided to ask on here first. My final payment for this semester is on November 10th, so I doubt any changes will be made to this semester. But if the Pell grant could fully cover my next semester at least, that would be absolutely perfect. I’ve got two jobs and I’m really struggling to get by. Thanks!
The only thing that could happen is you might get more Pell Grant but that maxes at $5775 for the entire year. Do you already get that much?
I go to a community college, I received the full $5775 up until this year, this year I only received half as much. The $5775 was more than enough to cover my expenses. So yeah I’d be very excited to get the full amount for my next semester
On Monday, go visit the financial aid office and talk with the head of that office about your mom’s situation. You can file “Special Circumstance” paperwork because of the change in your family financial situation.
If you are already receiving the maximum Pell Grant (it looks like you got half of the $5775 annual total this fall semester, and will get the other half for spring semester), there may be some state money, money from the CC itself, work-study money, or student loan money that you will now be eligible for.
You can apply to the FA office for a change in circumstance. It may increase the Pell, they might have SEOG money (unlikely unless some students who were awarded it didn’t attend), work study, or the school or state may have extra money.
If the forms for the appeal aren’t on the website, ask the FA office. If you apply during this semester, they should be able to adjust it immediately.
When I go into the financial aid office will I need to bring paperwork (my mom’s welfare, disability, etc) or can the paperwork wait, my mom didn’t finish filing everything.
If you don’t bring any paperwork, you have no proof. Should anybody who wants more aid be able to walk in to the financial aid office, tell a story, and get free money?
you will need to bring proof. They’re not just going to take your word for it.
Your mom isn’t on social security disability, correct?
She has a full time job, recently had foot surgery, will collect money through her employer’s short-term disability insurance for up to 3 months, and you want more aid for those 3 months?
You say “she’s out of work” but you also say “disability won’t be enough” so she IS still getting regular paychecks, right?
What is the monthly difference between what she normally earns and the disability pay? $200? $500? More?
What is the official Cost of Attendance for your school as compared to the amount of aid you are already receiving?
It is very likely you’ll need to provide her last paycheck and proof of whatever payment she’s getting now (disability, unemployment, SS payment), and a statement of what’s going on. If the forms are on the web, you can fill them out and take/send them in. If you have to pick up the form from the FA, you’ll probably have to go home and gather the things you need and submit them.
She may also have additional medical expenses. Include those.
I should’ve worded the question better, I was wondering if they were going to require the paperwork the moment I talk to them, or if they’d give me forms to go home and fill out, then bring the welfare/disability paperwork in with me when I’m done with the forms they give me. Twoinanddone answered that, thanks.
With the disability she’s receiving she’ll only be making 80% of what her total pay was, and that still wasn’t enough to cover the bills so she had a job under the table, which made ends meet. But she obviously can’t work the second job right now and she can’t collect disability for that. Hence the government assistance.
Oftentimes disability is only a % of normal pay (in this case 80%) because it is not subject to income tax when the premiums were paid with after tax dollars, thus making the person still ‘whole’ in terms of cash flow. In other words, evwn at 80%, your mom may still be bringing home the same net pay from her regular job. If so, don’t count on an increase in financial aid.
You may have a very difficult time proving that your family is receiving less net income per month since, as you say, she had another job under-the-table.
Are you going to bring up the lost wages from the under-the-table job and possibly give evidence that your mom has committed tax fraud and you have committed financial aid fraud? Or on your FAFSA did you include 100% of the under-the-table income as ‘untaxed income’?
Agree with Madison85. The school is going to look at the net disability income your mom is receiving. They have no record of the under the table earnings. And really, you do understand that you are supposed to include those things on your financial aid applications…you are.
So…your mom’s net income will be how much less than before?
You say you received only half of the Pell Grant? Did you receive half for the entire school year this year? Or did you on’y receive half for this term? If you only received half for the full year, your EFC doubled from the previous year from $0 to about $2500 which would indicate an increase in salary for the 2014 year. Did your mom continue to make that increased salary until her injury? That is 3/4 of the year.
Re: asking for more aid. You need to take all,documentation with you. The longer you wait to submit it, the longer you will wait for any decision. Are you saying that your mom hasn’t completed the disability pay paperwork? If this is the case, it most definitely will delay your ability to get a consideration even for aid.
You need a letter from her employer saying she cannot work, you need a letter from her doctor saying the same, and giving the expected date of return to work. You need any documentation for unreimbursd medical expenses…ones covered by insurance don’t matter at all…just unreimbursd ones.
What is your FAFSA EFC?
Did you work full time over the summer? If so, then why didn’t you have the money to pay for books and uncovered tuition?
Does your mom normally give you money for college costs?
You may need to take out a student loan to get you thru.
Okay so I talked to Financial Aid about it, just figured I’d update this if anyone looks at it because they’re in a similar situation. The disability won’t affect this semester (Fall) or next semester (Spring), it MIGHT help me out next year (2016). I’ll find out when I fill out the FASFA for the 2016/17 year.
Did anyone else notice how @CAPS4SAMMEH glossed over the fact that her mom worked under the table? So you commit financial aid fraud and you have the nerve to ask for more?
SMH
“Under the table” implies not reported for tax purposes. She may have reported the income on FAFSA, so technically there might not be financial aid fraud… just tax fraud.
@BelknapPoint Seriously…FAFSA is a fed form. do you think that someone who’s paid under the table is going to put that on a fed form when they don’t pay taxes on it?
lol…if they’re going to do that, why not just call the IRS and rat on themselves.
mom2ck… seriously… yes. kelsmom just made a post today commenting that she has had to address this situation.
This poster planned on doing it too (reporting “on the side” income as untaxed income on FAFSA but not reporting it on the 1040, and, also writing an application essay about the “on the side” income).
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1824564-what-is-untaxed-income-p1.html