WA Governor Wants FAFSA Application as HS Grad Requirement

WA Governor Bob Ferguson has announced one of his legislative goals is to pass a requirement that all graduating HS seniors fill out the FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid.  It’s actually a moot point.

    FAFSA is Income-Based

As a parent of several children who have gone to college, the FAFSA is useful, but not some unicorn source of financial aid.  The FAFSA is a free, family income-based application that simply tells a student how much, and what kinds of financial aid they can apply or qualify for and where to apply for it.

According to Ferguson’s Office:

“Washington is among the most generous states in the nation for funding for college and job training. Approximately half of Washington families qualify for free money. Yet, our state has consistently ranked near the bottom for completing the application required to unlock this free money.”

His Office cited statistics from some west-side school districts who saw large jumps in post-secondary education due to increased FAFAS, or WAFSA, the WA state version.

    The Key Phrase is “Approximately Half of Washington Families”

The bulk of the ‘free money’ programs (grants) that are available are for those in lower-income families. Certainly no one begrudges lower-income students from getting assistance. However, making FAFSA a graduation requirement is a stretch, and just another task a HS senior would have to worry about completing.

And his requirement completely ignores the thousands of students who are choosing careers right out of high school, from apprenticeships in electrical, plumbing, construction, or students who attend schools such as Tri-Tech in Kennewick while still in HS.

The vast majority of students who are planning to go to some sort of college, whether it’s private, public or JUCO (junior college) have already started financial planning before their senior year. All the FAFSA really does is expose you to different types of education funding. Whether it’s ‘free’ depends on your family income. There are, in some cases, families who don’t qualify for any kind of aid.

Ferguson’s Office claims last year $80 million in funding went unclaimed, but some families choose to pursue other methods of paying for college.

Ferguson’s attempt to spin this as, again, a unicorn of ‘free money’ for school is simply not accurate. The FAFSA is a useful tool, but doesn’t need to be a graduation requirement.