The 2011 - 2013 General Catalog - East Los Angeles College

Student Information
Student
Information
OTHER FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID
BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS GRANT (BIA)
The Secretary of the Interior established the Bureau of Indian Education
(BIE) as its own Bureau operating parallel with the Bureau of
Indian Affairs. The BIE, formerly known as the office of Indian Education
Program (OIEP), is a service organization devoted to providing
quality education opportunities for American Indian people.
Students may apply if they:
• Are a member of, or at least one-quarter degree Indian blood
descendant of a member of an American Indian tribe who is eligible
for special programs and services provided by the United States
through the Bureau of Indians Affairs to Indians because of their
status.
• Are accepted for admission to a nationally accredited institution of
higer education that provides a course of study conferring the Associate
in Arts or Bachelor’s degree.
• Demonstrate financial need as determined by the financial officer of
the postsecondary institution.
The grant application is available from the education office of the
Tribe in which you are affiliated or possess membership. As the federally
recognized tribes are administering the grant program for their
tribe’s tribal members, call your tribe first. If your tribe is not administering
the grant program, they can direct you to the nearest Bureau
of Indian Education Line Officer for the application with instructions
for completing and returning the application.
For additional information, please contact:
Bureau Of Indian Education
Central Office - West
1011 Indian School Road, NW (Suite 332)
P.O. Box 829
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87103
(505) 563-5529
(505) 563-5321 (fax)
Visit their website at www.diep.bia.edu.
Summer Financial Aid
Students must submit their 2010-2011 Free Application for Federal
Student Aid (FAFSA) to receive Pell Grant including the Fee Waiver
during Summer 2011. Contact the Financial Aid and Scholarship
Office for more information.
COST OF ATTENDANCE
In order to treat all students equally, standardized budgets (Cost of
Attendance) are established and applied to all applicants. This means
all students with similar circumstances will receive the same allowance
for tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board, personal
expenses, and transportation.
Other expenses may include, but are not limited to, dependent care,
vocational/technical, and disability-related expenses. Exceptions may be
made to the budget in cases where need can be shown and documented.
Most financial aid awards are based on demonstrated financial need,
which is the difference between the Cost of Attendance (COA) and
the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). EFC is the amount that the
government believes you and your family can be reasonably expected
to contribute toward your college costs this year.
COST OF ATTENDANCE MINUS EXPECTED FAMILY CON-
TRIBUTION = FINANCIAL NEED.
HOW FINANCIAL AID IS PACKAGED
Once the student’s financial aid eligibility is established, a “package”
of aid is provided which may be a combination of grants, work-study,
and loan funds.
Grant checks are based on the number of units a student is enrolled
in at the time of disbursement. Full-time is considered 12 or more
units per semester; three-quarter time is considered 9-11 1⁄2 units per
semester; half-time is considered 6-8 1⁄2 units per semester; less than
half-time is 1⁄2 - 5 1⁄2 units per semester.
Pell Grants are scheduled for payments twice a semester. ACG,
FSEOG and Cal Grants are scheduled for payment once per semester
for students enrolled in six (6) or more units. Federal Work-Study is
paid twice a month. Loans are disbursed once per semester.
THE FINANCIAL AID AWARD
The campus processing the student’s aid produces and delivers an
Award Letter and Award Guide to the student. The award letter
lists the Cost of Attendance, the EFC, Total Awards, Resources, and
Unmet Need amounts applicable to the academic year. Students may
receive revised versions of the original award letter throughout the
academic year. The revisions may reflect additional fees or allowances
added to the cost of attendance, educational resources which must be
accounted for, semesters of enrollment (partial year vs. full year and
vice versa) changes, and addition or deletion of specific awards.
The award letter confirms completion of the file review process and
usually moves the award to disbursement set up of financial aid funds.
Some students may need to resolve internal holds before awards can be
disbursed. Students must contact the Financial Aid Office if disbursements
do not arrive within three weeks of receipt of an award letter.
SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES
In certain cases, a family’s financial situation can change because of:
• Death in the family
• Separation or divorce
• Loss of employment
• Loss of non-taxable income or benefits
In such cases, the student should contact the Financial Aid and Scholarship
Office.
FINANCIAL AID DISBURSEMENT
Disbursement dates and deadlines are mandated by the Federal, State,
District and/or Institutional regulations and policies, and must be
met or applications cannot be accepted or processed.
Effective Fall 2010, all financial aid students will be issued a debit
card called MyLACCD card. Financial aid funds will be disbursed
to financial aid students through their debit card from Higher One.
The MyLACCD card will be mailed out to all financial aid applicants;
therefore it is critical that students update their address with
the Admissions Office or Financial Aid and Scholarship Office to
ensure receipt of their debit card from Higher One. Students can go
to www.myLACCDcard.com to activate their card and select their
disbursement preference. Students have two options to select from
Easy Refund, or Direct Deposit to an account of their choice/ACH.
Easy Refund allows students to access their financial aid money as it
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