The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) has helped students pay for their college tuition for decades. But recent executive orders by President Donald Trump have put FAFSA into turmoil. The executive orders put the status of FAFSA and the very existence of the Department of Education into question.
While there are no immediate changes to student financial aid, the Financial Aid office at UW-Whitewater is ready to answer students’ questions regarding federal aid.
Despite rumors and uncertainty about the status of federal aid, the Financial Aid office ensures that students can proceed with normal proceedings, as nothing regarding actual cuts has been confirmed.
“I know people are meeting regularly on a daily basis to kind of stay on top of these things,” Director of Financial Aid William Trippett said.
Trippett encourages students to be concerned about their financial aid and to proceed with their plans as normal, even though there is angst around the situation.
“There’s stuff in the paper and on the news, and it’s easy to become overwhelmed by them,” Trippett said.
Trippett doesn’t believe these changes won’t happen overnight. Instead, he sees it as a drawn-out process that will take time.
“As we do learn more, that information will be shared,” Trippett said. “[Informational] things are coming out on a daily basis. So, it is being monitored. It is being tracked across the system, within the university and elsewhere.”
Federal aid has helped many students pay their college tuition, and many of them are thankful for its presence in college life.
“Honestly, I think college kids already have it rough enough with the prices they have to pay for college,” Senior Seth Lozano said.
Lozano has benefited from federal aid as 50% of his tuition was covered by it. He is worried about the potential changes and feels the stress many other students do.
“I feel like any more hardships, even economically speaking, is not fair towards college kids,” Lozano said. “The economy isn’t great for college kids, [and] everything’s expensive.”
While an executive order alone can’t remove FAFSA or the Department of Education, it does get students and faculty worried about the future of federal aid.
If students have questions about financial aid they are encouraged to contact the Financial Aid Office.
