Financial Aid Department Launches Operation Red Tape! COVID-19 and CARES Act, Part 2

Date: January 20, 2021

On Friday, March 20, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom ordered 40 million Californians to shelter-in-place—forcing all but “essential workers” or those seeking critical services to stay home.¹ Seven days later, “on March 27, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was passed, allotting $2.2 trillion for fast, direct economic aid to Americans—negatively impacted by COVID-19. Of that, $14 billion was earmarked for the Office of Postsecondary Education as the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund, “half of which was explicitly routed to institutions to provide grants directly to students. Colleges and universities became challenged with deciding how to distribute funds to students with limited direction or guidelines.²

“This was a big planning process, and we spent several 14-hour days implementing this,” said Burke Malin, chief operating officer. “It was quite the effort.” Regardless of the school’s size, 50 percent of the CARES Act funds were earmarked for students, equal to $1.8 million to Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts students. Preference for disbursement was for unanticipated travel, medication replacements, emergency childcare due to extended school closures, additional technology easing the transition from the regular classroom to distant learning, food, housing, course materials, and healthcare.³

But how to appropriate the funds? How to access actual needs? How to obtain proper documentation? Overnight, the entire executive team at Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts formed a task force, stay-at-home orders forcing them to convene by Google Meet. Once the task force determined where to begin, IT started to run “the list” of financially eligible students. Financial-aid personnel from all six campuses went to work to help students certify their eligibility for the funds. Admittedly it was “very tedious,” said the Director of Financial Aid, Kamilia Bell, as she and her team have been going through “the list” one name at a time since last May until now. Accordingly, monies were awarded in three varying stages.

Phase I

“You need to make a subhead for an article regarding this distribution to read, ‘Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts Accounting Cuts First CARES Check: A Herculean Effort!’” said Malin while laughing and speaking of establishing the framework for allocation and its intricate pieces. From May through September, phase one’s primary objective was to certify as many students as possible for immediate relief and ease student adjustments from in-class instruction to distance learning, equitably and efficiently.

Using a financial-aid formula created by Malin, the first phase provided just under a million dollars in $900 increments to more than 1,445 qualified students, many of those who were Federal Pell Grant recipients. Of these, seventy-five percent were not exclusively enrolled in distance-learning courses before Coronavirus, making them a priority of phase one funds.

“Students were just trying to stabilize themselves financially,” said Bell, who provided continual guidance to her teams throughout each phase. Once round one commenced, round two was ushered in.

Phase II

From October through November, phase two’s primary goal was to allocate relief for actual income lost and real and sudden cost increases within student households. Strictly a need’s-based fund as calculated by aid departments, Bell and financial-aid professionals worked tirelessly to deliver resources to their populations’ neediest members. In all, more than 100 students applied for supplemental help based on demonstrated need due to income loss or increases in childcare costs. Awards for this round ranged from $500–$5,000 and were based on documented proof of loss or increased childcare expenses.

Mercedes Hereford, Concord campus financial-aid manager’s primary role in the wake of CARES, reviewed the required documents submitted by students. Working from home, away from critical documents, while releasing funds was no simple task, she says. Yet she felt a great need to help “with finances during a time where a lot of jobs were lost.”

“By May and June, many had come to the end of their resources and greatly appreciated their checks,” echoes Karen Hobson, Fresno campus director. Hobson remembers one day alone, 30 student emails came in an hour, all requesting financial help.

Shealina Biagas, Concord campus financial aid advisor, said she saw the most need in living expenses and echoed Hereford that the most significant obstacle was “trying to collect proper documentation.” Yet, she cites that she saw tangible reminders of gratefulness, as students “were able to pay rent and take care of their children.” She added that “Staying positive was key during the crisis.”

There were some cases where students were eligible for unemployment benefits that were more than their pre-COVID incomes. “Unemployment was rich during this time,” said Malin. “Some people were making $900 prior and $1,800 after COVID. These students did NOT qualify for this round of funding,” assured Malin.

Phase III

The third and final round, finished by the end of November, provided $340 per student. In this phase, financial aid was extended to new students who began courses within the pandemic. “We simply did a final distribution to all students who certified they were impacted by the school’s need to deliver didactic classes in an online environment,” said Malin.

DONE!

“We were kind of glad to close it, finally,” Bell said. Certifications required she and her team personally check every document again and again. “We put ourselves on the backburner to ensure our students were financially able to come to school,” said Bell.

“Students were appreciative of the CARES Act money and how quickly they received the funds,” agreed Joe Kheuasida, Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts Concord campus assistant director of the rollout, which lifted some of the burdens for his campus’s 600-count population.

All in all, Christy Michel, Modesto campus financial aid assistant, said she believed the greatest felt need of students during each phase was “just to be listened to.”

Conclusion

It remains an uncertain time for California’s college system “experiencing a systemwide decline of student enrollment, with some campuses reporting double-digit losses.”⁴ Additionally, national media reports indicate student depression is on the rise. “The COVID-19 pandemic is putting significant stress on college students, many of whom are worried about increasing financial pressures caused by the pandemic,” said Sarah Ketchen Lipson, Boston University School of Public Health assistant professor. According to a survey collaborated by Lipson and the Healthy Minds Network, the rate of depression among college students has increased since the start of the pandemic,⁵ making safety nets such as the CARES Act even more important.

“I believe the government stepped up promptly for the institutions to be able to disperse to students, and we did it as fast as possible,” said Bell. Comparing this to other higher-learning places, she says, “Some schools are still disbursing their funds; our speed speaks volumes regarding our institution’s ability to respond to this government program. We have seen many furloughed at other institutions.” By contrast, “I am very grateful to be part of the Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts family,” said Bell. “They make smart decisions.”

“Many students worried about family, ” said Fred Faridian, San Mateo campus director. “They were very grateful for the money. Quite a few lost jobs and this [CARES money] put their minds at ease to focus on their education. Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts was able to focus on the students’ learning and well-being.”

Echoing these sentiments, Malin concurred, “CARES funds were thoughtfully administered.”

Citations:

1 ^ a, b Emma Whitford. “Colleges Scramble to Administer Emergency Aid,” May 11, 2020. December 21, 2020. Inside HigherEd. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/05/11/limited-funds-colleges-are-rushing-get-emergency-aid-students-hands
2 Hoeven, Emily. 2020. “All Californians Ordered to Shelter in Place.” CalMatters. March 20, 2020. https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2020/03/california-coronavirus-homeless/.
3 Office of Student Affairs, Federal CARES Act FAQs, “What Constitutes Eligible Expenses to Qualify for Emergency Funding? What are Allowable Expenses?” The University of Florida. December 22, 2020. ttps://www.sfa.ufl.edu/cares-act-faqs/
4 “Fewer Students Attending California Community Colleges, Early Fall Numbers Show.” December 2020. EdSource: Highlighting Strategies for Student Success. September 21, 2020. https://edsource.org/2020/fewer-students-attending-california-community-colleges-early-fall-numbers-show/640373.
5 Jahnke, Art. December 29, 2020. “In College Students, COVID-19 Has Increased Depression Rate and Raised New Barriers to Mental Healthcare.” Boston University. July 9, 2020. http://www.bu.edu/articles/2020/college-students-covid-19-increased-depression-rate-and-raised-barriers-to-mental-healthcare/.