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A Quick Guide to Financial Aid Award Letters
March 8, 2024
By Ainsley Ash
For all the excitement they bring, financial aid offers have a reputation for being a bit confusing. But with the right information, analyzing and comparing financial aid offers from colleges and universities is a process students and families can feasibly tackle.
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Join the AmeriCorps Week Festivities on Social Media
March 6, 2024
By Jenny McArdle
During AmeriCorps Week, Michigan's AmeriCorps members are invited to share their experiences on social media.
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Ryan Fewins-Bliss Testifies in Support of Senate Bills 350 and 555
February 22, 2024
By Ryan Fewins Bliss
Ryan Fewins-Bliss' testimony in favor of Senate Bills 350 and 555, as delivered to the Michigan House Appropriations Committee on Feb. 21, 2024.
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Rethinking How High Schools Support Postsecondary Pathways
February 8, 2024
By Janice Bloom
As the institutions directly serving the largest population of young people nationwide, public high schools are the most logical location to position the next generation for successful adulthoods. Yet, in important ways, high schools were not designed to prepare young people for the transition to postsecondary education and a successful career.
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Michigan School Counseling Week 2024
February 5, 2024
By Jeneen Hatoum
National School Counseling Week 2024 (#NSCW24) is Feb. 5-9. This event is a way to focus public attention on the unique and vital contribution of school counselors within U.S. school systems. In response, the Michigan School Counselor Association, Michigan College Access Network, and the Michigan Association for College Admission Counseling want to celebrate you!
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MCAN Provides Clarity on FSA’s Changes to FAFSA Free or Reduced-price School Lunch Guidance
January 18, 2024
By Ryan Fewins Bliss
The Office of Federal Student Aid released updated FAFSA guidance on which students should indicate they receive free or reduced-price school lunch. While all Michigan public school students are currently eligible for free lunch through state-level funding, students are now advised to check the box for receiving free or reduced-price school lunch ONLY if their annual household income falls below $60,000 to comply with the U.S. Department of Agriculture income eligibility guidelines.
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2024 is Going to be a Doozy, But We’re All in This Together
January 2, 2024
By Bill DeBaun
At the beginning of this new year, “FAFSA” is the phrase on the tip of everyone’s tongue, and for good reason. We always knew the Better FAFSA, which promises both an expansion of the federal Pell Grant and a more streamlined, quicker process, was coming this year, we just didn’t know about the associated headaches, including a three-month delay and the need for every school counselor, financial aid administrator, and college access professional to be re-trained in a relatively short period of time.
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Enrollment and Retention Declines Explained in Students’ Own Words
December 13, 2023
By Ryan Fewins Bliss
For many students and families, the road to “success” has been described the same way for decades — graduate high school, go to college, and obtain a degree. However, the landscape of higher education is constantly changing.
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Ring in the New Year with the Better FAFSA — Updates and Resources for 2024
December 13, 2023
By Alessandra Cipriani-Detres
We are now less than one month away from the opening of the Better FAFSA! You may have seen Federal Student Aid’s (FSA) announcement that the FAFSA will open by December 31 this year.
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Mississippi has a Statewide College and Career Readiness Course. Should More States Add One?
November 14, 2023
By Bill DeBaun
States try all kinds of approaches to try to ensure their students’ college and career readiness. Mississippi brings us a new approach, which requires a college and career readiness course for high school graduation.
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These Resources Can Help You Kick Off a Successful Year for the Class of 2024
September 18, 2023
By Bill DeBaun
Welcome to the 2023-24 academic year! As school staff and students file into classrooms across the country, it’s a time of promise, potential, and, sometimes, problems that need to get sorted out.
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An Overview of Postsecondary Funding in Gov. Whitmer's Budget Proposal
September 1, 2023
By Katie Wittenauer
On Feb. 8, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer released her fiscal year 2023 budget proposal. This $79 billion plan includes bold investments in higher education, the k-12 system, and early childhood education.