ASHFORD, Ala. — A change is coming to Alabama education as the board voted 6-3 to require graduating seniors to fill out a FAFSA application in order to graduate.
“Next year’s seniors, graduating seniors, part of their graduating requirement is that they compete their FAFSA application,” Ashford High School Guidance Counselor Heather Turvin said. “Which is where they can get federal money for college. It can be to a university, a four-year university or a junior college.”
Turvin said this will be for people trying to qualify for a Pell grant to go to college. She believes the new requirement will help a lot of students.
“I do think it’s a good thing because there’s so much money out there that’s available that students don’t realize that they could go to school if I do receive this funding and they don’t realize that they even qualify for this funding,” Turvin said.
FAFSA can be filled out for both Pell grants and student loans, but if you don’t qualify for a Pell grant and don’t want a loan, then you don’t have to take one out.
A student may also not have to fill one out at all
“I do believe Dr. Mackey said that the state was going to offer an opt-out waiver,” Turvin said. “If some parents are not comfortable releasing that information or feel like it’s a breach of their privacy or something along those lines and they just don’t want to fill out the FAFSA there is an opt-out form that they can fill out.”
