ACCESS College Foundation News & Updates
Check back frequently to see all of the things happening at ACCESS!
What's New
ACCESS on WTKR's Coast Live!
College is expensive but that should not stop you from applying!
Our President and CEO, Bonnie Sutton, and College Success Advisor, Tabatha Hargrove, appeared on WTKR's Coast Live to provide tips on how to afford college.
Check out the clip here: http://wtkr.com/…/…/finding-money-for-college-on-coast-live/
ACCESS 2016 Annual Luncheon
Thank you to all who attended our 2016 Annual Luncheon on Tuesday, October 18th! We want to extend a special thank you to our speakers, Christelle Hollomon, an ACCESS Scholar, and Kimberly Adams, mother of ACCESS Scholar Israel Guerrera.
We are so proud of what we've been able to accomplish in the past year. Please take a look at some of the year's highlights in our 2016 Annual Report (available here).
Here's to another great year dedicated to fulfilling the ACCESS Promise: To be a guiding light, encouraging and supporting students through college completion and beyond.
Are You Aware of the Changes to the FAFSA?
October 1st marked the beginning of the new filing period for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The filing period previously began on January 1st; however this will be a permanent change, enabling students to submit a FAFSA as early as October 1st every year.
The change creates a better alignment between the financial aid and the college application processes, to provide more certainty for students. It means they will not have to estimate income information, and it allows more time for students and parents to explore and understand financial aid options before state and school deadlines.
Additionally, beginning this year, students are required to report income and tax information from an earlier tax year. For example, on the 2017–18 FAFSA, students will report their 2015 income information, rather than their 2016 information. Since 2015 taxes are already completed, students and parents won’t need to estimate tax information and then go back into the FAFSA later to update it.
Check out our President and CEO, Bonnie Sutton, on Channel 13 (WVEC) discussing the changes! http://www.13newsnow.com/news/education/navigating-changes-to-the-fafsa/328853705
Bonnie and our Program Director, Cheryl Jones, also appeared on HearSay with Cathy Lewis to discuss the changes. The full episode is available here: http://www.hearsay.org/post/Future-of-FAFSA.aspx.
Our First Chesapeake Bay Wine Classic Foundation Scholar!
In honor of the 25th anniversary of the Chesapeake Bay Wine Classic Foundation and their unwavering support, ACCESS established a $25,000 scholarship to be awarded to one Scholar each year.
We awarded the scholarship for the first time at this year’s Scholarship Awards Luncheon to Israel Guerrero, a Churchland High School graduate. He will receive $6,250 annually for four years, for a total scholarship amount of $25,000. Israel will attend Virginia Commonwealth University in the fall.
Congratulations, Israel and thank you again to the Chesapeake Bay Wine Classic Foundation for your continued support! Learn more about our partnership with CBWCF here.
