Announcing the ‘Financial Aid for All’ Website to Improve Awareness, Application Completion

SACRAMENTO, CA – The California College Guidance Initiative (CCGI) is pleased to announce a new website aimed at providing California school districts with resources to improve financial aid awareness and application completion.

In anticipation of Assembly Bill (AB) 469, which requires that local education agencies ensure all 12th grade students complete a financial aid application, CCGI partnered with WestEd, uAspire, California Student Aid Commission, The Education Trust-West, and NextGen Policy to learn from administrators and educators about the challenges of achieving 100 percent financial aid completion, and the best practices and promising practices that can be shared.

Four of CCGI’s partner districts participated in a pilot program, where they received implementation support from CCGI to use financial aid reports to track Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and California Dream Act Application (CADAA) completion, and used financial aid lessons to understand the steps needed to complete the financial aid application process.

Observations and information collected from the partnership shaped FA4ALLCA.org, which curates resources like toolkits and action plans for administrators, educators, and practitioners depending on a district’s or Local Education Agency’s (LEA) current practices. In order to access the curated resources, users will need to complete The Inventory, a quick self assessment designed to help educators decide where to strengthen their FAFSA/CADAA efforts and provide tools they can use immediately. Resources can also be accessed directly from The Library. The Financial Aid lessons available on CaliforniaColleges.edu are among the recommended resources. 

The Financial Aid for All website is made possible by funding from College Futures Foundation. Learn more by visiting FA4ALLCA.org. Read the complete Press Release here. 

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CaliforniaColleges.edu is the State of California’s official college and career planning platform managed by the nonprofit California College Guidance Initiative (CCGI). CCGI partners with school districts to smooth student paths to college and career and is funded in part by the State of California as part of the Cradle-to-Career System.