Congresswoman Matsui Announces Free FASFA Workshop Tonight at Hiram Johnson High School
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
CONTACT: JONELLE TRIMMER
(202) 225-7163
Congresswoman Matsui Announces Free FASFA Workshop Tonight at Hiram Johnson High School
Get assistance filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FASFA); More Workshops to be held in January-February
Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-06) today highlighted a series of financial aid workshops that are being hosted by the Sacramento Cash for College Coalition. These workshops are designed to assist students as they navigate the federal student aid process for the 2013-2014 school year.
As a mother and a grandmother, I know all too well the high cost of paying for college, but cost should not deter us from motivating our children to attend the best schools possible, said Congresswoman Matsui. The FAFSA is an opportunity for many families to receive the financial support needed to send their child to college. Thanks to the work of FAFSA volunteers, these workshops provide parents and students an invaluable opportunity to receive assistance navigating the financial aid maze, and completing financial aid applications. This is truly an opportunity college-bound students and their parents cannot afford to miss.
First time students planning on attending an institution of higher education and students returning for another year at school are eligible to apply for aid and are encouraged to attend one of the workshops. In order to receive federal student aid, including Cal Grants, an individual must fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) which can be found at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. To assist families with the sometimes confusing task of filling out the FASFA, the Sacramento Cash for College Coalition hosts a number of FASFA workshops at local high schools.
This evening marks the second FASFA workshop of the season and will take place at Hiram Johnson High School from 6:00-8:00PM. Present at the event will be volunteers, identifiable by their volunteer t-shirts, who speak many different languages, including Spanish, Hmong, Russian and Portuguese. Tonight's workshop is one of 19 Sacramento area workshops being hosted over the next two months. A full list of workshops and additional information can be found here.
A college education is the gateway to opportunity and success, said Congresswoman Matsui. With the cost of attending college on the rise, these grant dollars can make the difference in deciding a student's future.
The Sacramento Cash for College Coalition is a collaboration of concentrated financial aid efforts. Those affiliated with the coalition include Congresswoman Doris Matsui, Assembly Members Roger Dickinson and Mariko Yamada, Senator Darrell Steinberg, the Sacramento Cal-SOAP (Student Opportunity Access Program) Consortium, the Sacramento County Office of Education and the Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance.
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