UNH Upward Bound Parent/Guardian Newsletter

College Bound

The UNH Upward Bound Parent/Guardian Newsletter

December, 2002
Volume 4, Issue 1

We're Here for Our Parents/Guardians

Welcome to UNH Upward Bound's newsletter for the parents/guardians (P/G's) of our students. As most of you know, Upward Bound is here all year long to support your students' college goals. We have Academic Enrichment Centers open one night each week in Manchester, Gorham and Durham; UB advisors travel to students' schools to meeting with them twice each month; we have college trips, reunions and other activities that keep students involved as well. But we're also here to answer your questions or concerns. We can be reached during business hours at 800-270-3848 or by e-mail Ð just go to our web site www.upwardbound.unh.edu for links to e-mail addresses. Arrangements to talk at other times can be made upon request.

Some reasons why you might want to contact us:

Your student is doing poorly in a subject, or in several subjects and you'd like to see how UB might be able to help
You'd like to meet with a UB staff member to help you complete financial aid forms
You have questions about how the college application process works
You're wondering which courses your student should choose for the upcoming year
You'd like information about Upward Bound events and opportunities
There's something going on in your student's life that's affecting his or her academic performance Ð illness, death in the family, divorce, etc. Ð and you'd like UB to be aware of this
You have questions about majors and the offerings of different colleges
You're wondering if your student is applying to the right colleges

Whatever your question, concern or suggestion, we look forward to hearing from you!

UB Financial Aid Assistance For Parents/Guardians

For those P/Gs who need help with their student's financial aid paperwork, UB advisors will be available in January to meet individually with P/Gs. These forms can be confusing, so please don't hesitate to ask questions or give us a call.

Please call the UB office at 862-1563 or 800/270-3848 (if out of calling area) to schedule an appointment with your student's advisor.

UB Summer 2003 Dates: June 22 - August 2, 2003

Steps for Financial Aid:

1. Complete the Admissions Application for each school. Financial Aid offices won't process your Aid application until your student has been accepted but you should apply for aid before he/she is accepted.

2. Complete an Institutional (college-based) Financial Aid form, if required, and send to the college.

3. ItÕs a good idea for every senior and one of his/her parents to apply for a FAFSA PIN number. You need the PIN numbers if you complete the FAFSA online (which UB recommends) or if you ever need to make changes or print out copies of a FAFSA completed on paper. This is a huge time savings. We highly recommend that all students and parents get a PIN. Protect this number and keep it handy. Apply for a PIN at www.pin.ed.gov.

4. Complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) as soon after January 1 as possible. For faster processing, consider completing the FAFSA on-line. This year, fill out the yellow sections with student's information and the purple sections with parent's information. It is acceptable to estimate your income to meet the deadline. These are available now in school guidance offices or on-line at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

5. Register for the CSS Profile (if required). UB provides fee waivers for Profile registration and reporting for up to 2 schools. Complete the customized Profile form that is sent to you by the earliest deadline. These are available now in school guidance offices or on-line at www.collegeboard.com.

6. If you applied online, an estimated Student Aid Report (SAR) is available immediately. The final SAR will be mailed or e-mailed in about 1 week. If you mailed a paper FAFSA, watch your mail. The U.S. Dept. of Education will send your student the SAR in about 3 weeks. The SAR shows your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC is used to determine your student's eligibility for all federal student aid programs. UB can help you find the EFC on your Student Aid Report and explain its significance in the financial aid process. Review the SAR to be sure the information on it is correct. If so, do nothing. If not, make changes and send to address instructed as soon as possible.

7. Finally, the school's Financial Aid office will send an award letter outlining your student's aid package, usually a mix of grant, loan, and work-study offerings. This comes after your student's acceptance to a school.

8. Respond to the financial aid award letter of the school your student plans to attend by the May 1 deadline.

Types of Financial Aid

Federal sources provide grants, loans, and work-study, based on financial need.
Colleges offer institutional aid in the form of academic and athletic scholarships.
Community, business, & civic group scholarships are available.
The state of NH awards grants to students based on need.

Use the Internet to connect to the UB web site at www.upwardbound.unh.edu/ubresources.html where you can access financial aid resources such as Embark.com and Fastweb.com.

What You Should Be Doing Now

Collect the following information and documents now in preparation for completing the FAFSA at the beginning of January:

Student's driver's license and social security card
Student's income tax returns, W-2 forms, and 1099 forms for previous year
Parents' income tax returns, W-2 forms, and 1099 forms for previous year
Current bank statements and mortgage information
Records relating to stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other investments
Documentation of non-taxable income, such as Social Security income, AFDC, and Veterans Benefits
Business and farm records
Records relating to any unusual family financial circumstances, such as medical and dental expenses not covered by health insurance, tuition expenses at elementary or secondary schools, unusually high child care costs, death, divorce, and loss of employment.
Student's immigration and naturalization papers, if applicable.

Scholarships

For free information on financial aid, contact: NH Higher Education Resource Center P.O. Box 877 Concord, NH 03302-0877 (603)225-6612 or 1-800-525-2577, x143, or check them out on-line at www.nhheaf.org.

Private Aid

Investigate possible sources of aid, including churches, business groups, & civic organizations for scholarship opportunities. Any grants received can't be used to reduce your family contribution, yet many schools will reduce the amount of loan or work-study in your student's financial aid award. Information will be available in your local schools, so contact your student's school guidance office for postings and lists.

About the SATs

UB seniors should have taken the SAT in October, November, or December. Be looking for those scores. Verify that official scores were sent to each of your student's schools. UB juniors should have just taken the PSAT, and should be preparing to take the SAT in the spring. P/Gs of juniors, you should look for those scores. Juniors will be attending a mandatory UB Junior Workshop in the spring to help them prepare for the SAT and introduce them to the college application process.

The Bridge Program

Eight seniors completed the UB summer Bridge program here at UNH, where they got a jump start for college by:

Taking a freshman English class taught by a UNH professor. This was paid in full by UB, and the seniors earned 4 college credits for the course.
Working part-time in a campus department to earn money for college.
Their fundraising activities netted $150 each to use for school.
Leading community meetings, attending workshops, and traveling together on a four day Discovery trip to Acadia National Park.

UB seniors need to apply to be part of the summer Bridge program, and because of space limitations, not all seniors who apply will necessarily be accepted. More information will be offered this spring.

What's on the UB Web site for Parent/Guardians

Calendar of Events : Where you can find out about academic year events including college visits and fairs, AEC activities and special events that your student can attend.

Family Support: Where you can find out what you can do to support your student's college goals and where to look for help.

UB Graduates: Read about where Upward Bound students went to college and what they're studying.

P/G Newsletter: Read UB's p/g newsletter online!

P/G Resources: Link to web sites to research careers, colleges or scholarships, and get help with SAT preparation.

Summer Program: Where you can find out about P/G workshops, Special Topics, Family Picnic, Discoveries, and Weekend Wilderness Trips.

The ECOS Web Site

UNH Upward Bound has access to an amazing resource on the Web called ECOS (formerly Embark.com) While using this web site, you can find out which careers and colleges suit your student's interests, needs and abilities. Your student can learn about hundreds of careers, majors and colleges. ECOS is also a good place to search for scholarships and to learn about financial aid. This program will compare their grades, coursework and SAT scores with colleges' admissions criteria so that they see whether their college choices are reasonable for them. With a simple click of the mouse, they can access college web sites and e-mail colleges for information and applications.

Your student already has their own personal "locker" where they can save any information that they want. P/Gs, you can help your student by encouraging them to utilize this program, on their own or at their UB Academic Enrichment Center.

ECOS can be reached as a link from the parent/guardian or student page on UB's web site (just click on name). P/Gs, you will need your student's password to access their "locker," which contains their information.

Don't miss out on this amazing resource for your college-bound student!

Does your student have the "right stuff" for college?

Nowadays colleges are looking for more than good grades. College bound high school students should also participate in extra curricular activities such as:

School:

student council, yearbook staff, school newspaper, sports activities, National Honor Society, or various clubs such as drama, art, french or spanish.

Community:

volunteer work in their local community such as soup kitchens or hospitals. Often students can connect with community service projects through school.

Activities in and outside of school benefit the student and can give them the extra edge with college admissions offices as well as organizations offering scholarships to college.

Buyer Beware: Free Money For College Isn't So Free After All
By: Frank Burtnett, Ed.D. Education Now

Kimberly gets an unsolicited scholarship application in the mail indicating that she may be eligible to win up to $5,000 per year for four years. All she needs to do is complete the scholarship application and send along a modest processing fee to the scholarship provider.

Jamal gets a mailing on official looking stationery marked "American Federation of College Financial Assistance" bearing a bold headline: "Billions of dollars of financial aid goes unclaimed each year." For $34.95, the AFCFA will provide Jamal with a guide containing a comprehensive listing of all unclaimed aid sources.

Antonio sees a small ad in the community newspaper about an "incredible" service that will match college-bound students with "guaranteed" sources of financial aid. If Antonio files a short questionnaire and sends along his $20 processing fee, the scholarship search findings will be "rushed" to him immediately.

Sara and her parents receive an announcement of a fantastic, no-cost seminar designed to answer all their questions about paying for college. What's wrong with this picture? Well, the students are real. They are high school juniors and seniors taking a hard look at their college options and looking for realistic ways to pay for the major expense that lies ahead for them and their families.

The services and products are bogus--each a part of a growing list of scams and hoaxes that has been foisted upon an anxious public concerned with rising college costs and dwindling student aid. Kimberly's registration fee is going into the pockets of someone who isn't even providing a scholarship. Jamal's guide to "unclaimed" financial aid is most likely inferior to a list that is available in his school counseling office or library. Antonio will soon learn that there are no "guarantees" in the scholarship and financial aid world. And finally, Sara and her parents attend the seminar where they get little information and are subjected to a sales pitch for student aid application completion services. These cases represent what has become a growing problem across the United States. The victims--unsuspecting college-bound students and their families. The perpetrators, unscrupulous companies and individuals attempting to capitalize financially on these families' anxiety.

The problem has grown so large that Better Business Bureaus (BBBs) around the country have issued scholarship scam advisories telling targeted students to watch for these unscrupulous vendors. Even the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has had to intercede to shut down some of these companies who solicit customers fraudulently via the phone, Internet and direct mail.

The anatomy of a scholarship
Scams come in different forms and from a variety of directions. Newspaper ads, radio messages, direct mail and now electronic mail have all been used to promote services designed supposedly to help college-bound students and their families. There are two basic principles that one can apply when considering whether a practice is legitimate or a sham:

If the scholarship or scholarship service sounds "too good to be true," it probably is.
Never pay for anything until you are certain it can not be found elsewhere for free.

Regardless of what you may hear, most aid does get used each year and anyone who says it doesn't is "twisting the numbers." In addition, the great majority of financial aid is awarded on the basis of either need or merit. It is not dispensed like your state LOTTO jackpot.

Students must also recognize that a typical student aid package consists of a variety of components, including grants, scholarships, loans and possibly a work-study situation. The student's goal should be to create a mix of these components to help them afford the college of their choice.

To escape becoming a victim, a student should avoid the following:

Services that charge a fee to conduct a scholarship search
Scholarships that charge an application or registration fee
Guides or services that promise or guarantee dollar results
Services that charge you to complete financial aid application forms
Any organization that requires a finders fee for a student loan
Services that request credit card or bank account numbers

A reservoir of financial aid exists for students
Students exploring college opportunities will discover that a substantial amount of private, public and institutional aid exists to help alleviate their personal financial aid burden. Learning about and applying to these aid sources will take energy and time, but the eventual gain may far outweigh the pain.

If you are going to be successful in making college more affordable, you will need to:

Learn as much as you can about financial aid.
Student assistance comes in many forms--grants, scholarships, work-study, and loans. It is provided by a variety of sources--government, foundations, corporations and the colleges themselves. You need to become as knowledgeable as you can about sources, eligibility requirements and timetables. Utilize all the resources--human, print, Internet-- you can identify. Begin with your school counselor and the admissions and financial aid officers at the colleges you are interested in attending. Participate in information sessions offered by your school and at your local colleges. Use the guides and directories which can be found in your school career & college resource center or library. Search the Internet and use the wealth of free information that is available in cyberspace. A number of web sites have been created to provide you with good information. These include: www.studentloanfunding.com, www.finaid.org., www.collegeispossible.org and www.ed.gov.
Narrow your financial aid prospects to a realistic and manageable number.
You could spend your entire junior year looking for assistance and senior year applying for it. Get real! Searching for financial aid isn't the only thing in your life and you need to focus the majority of your energy and attention on your studies. Your search for assistance will be for naught is you do not succeed in getting into the college that is best suited for you. A focused search of available aid sources will allow you to target those scholarships and grants that afford you the best chances of success. A $500 scholarship from the local Rotary Club may be infinitely more attainable than a $5,000 award from a national soft drink manufacturer. Choose carefully where you want to direct your energies.
Make certain you understand and can meet the eligibility requirements.
Applying for a scholarship means you must minimally complete an application or registration form. Often there are other requirements--like writing an essay or engaging in an academic project or collecting the recommendations from teachers. Make certain you understand the eligibility requirements and what will be expected of you before you wade too far into the scholarship waters.
Develop a timetable for applying for financial aid.
Scholarship applications, just like admission applications, have their deadline dates, and they are not necessarily uniform. Organizations that are offering financial aid do it according to their schedules--not yours. There will also be instances like federal and state grant programs that are predicated on the filing of the Free Application for Federal Student Assistance (FAFSA), a form that will require your parentsÕ involvement. The FAFSA determines your eligibility for federal assistance, but the information it generates is also used by many aid providers. Once you determine the scholarship sources you wish to pursue, construct a timetable that will allow you to complete all the tasks required. Bottom line, a variety of aid is available to help students with their college expenses. The key is not to be intimidated by the process or distracted by the "scams" and deception that abounds.

The Ask-A-Counselor service of Student Loan Funding is a great place for students and parents to pose specific questions and get accurate and timely information. The service is free and can be accessed toll-free at (877)677-7536.

About the author: Dr. Frank Burtnett is President of Education Now, an educational research, training and consulting firm in Springfield, Virginia. A lifelong educator and counselor, he is the former executive director of the National Association for College Admission Counseling and deputy executive director of the American Counseling Association. Dr. Burtnett is the author of the College Planning Profile and Destination:College, two widely used student guidance publications. He has conducted numerous national studies and written extensively on college admission and financial aid issues. Comments or questions about this article can be directed to Dr. Burtnett at the address below: Education Now 6604 Grey Fox Drive Springfield, VA 22152-2608 E-mail: ednow@aol.com Web site: www.ednow.org

From TRIO listserv 5/24/02

2002-2003 UB Advisors

Dan Gordon: Dover, Portsmouth & Somersworth

June Hampe: Raymond & West

Mary Jo Madden: Central & Memorial

Louise Morneau: Berlin, Gorham & Kennett

Diane Proulx: Farmington, Nute & Spaulding

Don't have the Internet at home? Don't worry!

Your local library should have computers with access to the Internet, and most even offer free classes on surfing the web.

Your student's school may have computers available at certain times; call the school office for information.

At the Durham & Gorham Academic Enrichment Centers, your student can show you the results of all their hard work on ECOS. The UB staff will be available also to show you what the AECs have to offer to parent/guardians.

Upcoming UB Events

January 11: Winter Reunion for UB students at Durham Community Church. Students must provide their own transportation.

February 13: NH Leadership Day in Concord. Interested students should let us know by January 3.

February 21 -22: National TRIO Day at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland, ME. More information was sent to students in the December Pipeline. Interested students should let us know by January 10.

Our 2002 Graduates Are Attending:

Tiffany Bourgoine: Queens University (NC)
Nicole Cote: Newberry College
Saira Hamid: Mount Holyoke College
Josh Jamriska: Rivier College
Harold LaValley: New Hampshire Tech College
Jessica Lavoie: Mass. College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
Eric MacLean: University of Vermont
Colleen McCabe: NH Technical Institute
Kera Penney: U. Maine at Farmington
Usman Sajid: St. Petersburg College
Josh Stewart: University of Southern Maine
Phu Truong: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Meagan Wilkins: Emmanuel College
Joe Yahnian: Holy Cross College (Indiana)
Josh Chisholm: Keene State College
Heidi Eichler: KSC
Mike Letendre: KSC
Anna Aloko: Simmons College
Bach-Mai Le: Simmons College
Jenna Mellen: Simmons College
Jiyeon Kim: UNH Manchester
Julianne Morin: UNH Manchester
Amaynda Caron: UNH
Jose Cuevas II: UNH
Virginia deFreitas-Battersby: UNH
Scott Dupee: UNH
Tim Granfield: UNH
Ashley McClory: UNH
Yen Nguyen: UNH
Rodderick Rodriguez: UNH
Caitlyn Tuley: UNH
Emina Zlotrg: UNH

Do you know of a student who may be a good candidate for UB?

Let your student's advisor know or refer their P/G to our office at 862-1563 or 1-800/270-3848 (if out of calling area). We will begin our recruitment process in the late winter.

Upward Bound is College Bound.