January 28, 2022 marked my one year anniversary of paying off my student loans . Reflecting back on choosing to pay off my student loans leaves me with several take a ways that I want to share with you! In September 2020 I decided to become debt free by utilizing the debt snowball method to pay off all my debt. Before this I had struggled to save and really understand basic financial principles. As a first-generation college student, I received a scholarship to attend undergrad for free, but the scholarship did not cover summers. During the summers I took out student loans to cover costs without paying interest rates or how much I was taking out. By the end of undergrad I had amassed a little under $17K. Fast forward to graduate school I received another scholarship that covered my education. At the time I was a teacher in a new very expensive city and I had missed the cutoff to have my paycheck last me throughout the summer. So, I decided to take out a loan for two summers to keep
A few days ago, I was surfing on my universities
homepage and I noticed that there was a message at the top regarding summer II
HEERF and CARES Act funding. Since I was enrolled in both summer semesters, I
decided to send an email to the person listed as the contact to ask if I could
receive more CARES Act funding for the fall semester. Since I had been enrolled
in the first part of the summer and had already received funding I was not
eligible but I was told that another round of CARES Act funding would be given
in the fall! In case you did not know HEERF funding is the Higher Education
Emergency Relief Act that was enacted for college students due to the pandemic.
HEERF provides billions of support in education through CARES Act funding for
enrolled students.
Figure
1: This is a thumbnail of my YouTube video on “Fall 2021 HEERF & CARES Act
Funding is Here” where I am wearing a black shirt with a surprised look on my
face.
Now while I am not sure on how much you will receive this
time around I do know that you have to apply for funds and the earlier you
apply the better! I believe the requirements to receive funding will be the
same as the other rounds of the CARES Act. For example, you need to be an
enrolled student who is taking courses, have a need related to COVID, and apply
for the funding. Also, I do not believe you receive the money right away as
when I received the CARES Act summer funding it came a few weeks after classes
started. You will receive the money however you typically receive your refund,
which is most likely direct deposit so make sure this is updated with the correct
bank account information.
Figure
2: This is a photo of the capitol next to wording that reads “Information for
Students about the CARES Act and the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund
(HEERF).
This money will not go to any past balance that you
owe to your university however, if you have a past balance contact your financial aid department
and ask if there is any HEERF funding that can be used to take care of your
current past due balance. Of course, I will update you as more information
becomes available but be sure to reach out to your financial aid department
directly on when you can apply for this funding and who qualifies. Will you be applying?
Has your school released any information about HEERF funding? If so, drop down
in the comments and let me know! Be sure to check out my latest video on the
subject below!
8/20/2021 UPDATE:
Hey guys here’s a quick update. I went back to my university’s homepage where the CARES Act funding message is posted to see if I could apply for fall funding. It turns out that the money will be applied automatically and I don’t have to complete an application like before. Be sure to reach out to your own university to see if the money will be applied automatically or if you don’t need to do anything!
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2021 HEERF & CARES Act Funding is Here!! (FREE Money for College Students!!
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