She gave her modest savings for Barnard to Mom for rent - now her GoFundMe is skyrocketing

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She got into Barnard with 60K/yr financial aid. Looks as if Barnard expected her to take care of the rest with, I assume, earnings and other scholarships and loans. Mom fell behind on their $800/month rent. How the family wound up evicted during the CDC eviction moratorium, I don’t know. Texas has a pandemic rental assistance fund, too, but they should have been protected by the CDC eviction moratorium. In any event, she had $1800 saved up, and gave it to her mom. She got this publicized, then started a GoFundMe to pay for college. In 5 days, it’s up to 120K. It’s all over the news.

She sounds like a wonderful young woman, highly motivated, who is going to go far. I just hope that she realizes that Barnard will probably greatly reduce her financial aid package for her last 3 yrs of college, accordingly, and that she has now lost eligibility for Medicaid, based upon this sudden influx of cash, and will need to get her own medical insurance to cover herself until late summer, when student health insurance (which she will have to buy) kicks in. But she sounds like a saver - I’m sure she will figure this out!

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Maybe she should have stopped at the $75k goal point. In our state, Medicaid eligibility would be based on current income (spot check for that day) and not assets. Hoping she can get insurance in the ACA marketplace at least.

Barnard absolutely could reduce her aid. I wonder why she didn’t do loans for whatever is left after the $60k grant. And next year her grant would be higher, based on her mom’s unemployment., Her mom should have had sick leave or accommodations the way the middle class white collar workers would.

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Entirely possible that the 60K package already included some loans. Even if it was all grant, she could only get $5500 loan on top of that, leaving her still over 10K short. But she’s up to 135K now, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it goes to 250K, which would more than cover the rest of her time at Barnard.

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Barnard’s total cost for a resident student is $76k, and $60k for a commuter. Barnard does include a “self-help” portion in financial aid, including work-study, summer jobs, and loans. Here is the info on loans:

“A recommended loan amount will be included in the financial aid package based on the student’s year in school. Annual maximums are $3,500 for first-year students, $4,500 for sophomores, $5,500 for juniors, and $5,500 for seniors. More information can be found on our Apply for Loan page.”

So the total loans for 4 years possible would be $19k. The gap between cost of attendance and award is $16k/year, so $64k for 4 years-if she is a resident student.

Barnard uses the CSS Profile and FAFSA. The CSS profile has a section for special circumstances, and applicants can always contact admissions/financial aid office when there is a change in circumstances. The mother losing her job and the daughter giving her mother her savings to pay the rent would probably result in an increase in aid. The student no longer has assets and the mother no longer has employment.

Columbia does not have loans in their aid package, so I assumed Barnard would not either. Columbia has the expectation of summer earnings and term time jobs to meet the $2400 student responsibility. No loans. If a family makes under $60k, Columbia is free. If this young woman were going to Columbia it would be free.

Again, I assumed Barnard’s aid policies would be similar to Columbia’s. Apparently not (and they make a big deal about diversity). Still, with such a dramatic change in circumstances, I would write admissions to request an increase in aid.

I am not clear on what Barnard does for a student with an EFC of zero and family income of 0 as well. I would ask.

Too late for this young woman, who has raised more than enough money, but for others, financial aid offices do listen and make changes if the need is documented.

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Barnard and Columbia are together only in that students at each school can take classes at the other, and social life blends some, too. Barnard refused to join Columbia (back when all the Ivies went co-ed), but stayed independent as a women’s college, so its finances are separate.

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I know all that. I was just surprised that loans are still a part of Barnard’s package, especially when their site has so much about diversity.

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Loans are still a part of many college packages, even when they say they meet full need and claim to support diversity. One of my son’s friends got a diversity likely letter from Cornell but couldn’t attend due to their mediocre financial aid and the required parent and student loans.

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Believe me, I am well aware. I was just surprised about Barnard.