@ClassicRockerDad <<< This makes no sense. Another kid in college IS a drastic change in the circumstances with the family. <<<
You may be used to dealing with top schools that meet need, or your EFC was too high even with 2 in college. Didn’t one of your kids attend an OOS public (like Wisconsin)? If your family income was low enough that the Wisconsin DD would have had her EFC drop to $15k per year for her sophomore year because younger sibling was going to be an incoming frosh, I doubt that UWisc would have then handed out grants for the DD’s returning year.