The Fast Pass Out of FAFSA The requirement, pressures, and the opt-out form

By Makani Reith-Fifita

An issue that many face with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is having the ability to ask parents and or guardians for private information. Cecelia Adams, who runs the College and Career center, helps those students who file for FAFSA and get stuck in between the process of the application.

“Some folks are opting out of [FAFSA] because there are a couple of things that are a challenge with [FAFSA]. One is deciding not to go to college, some are going to the military, and the other one is due to parental fear. Since completing the FAFSA would require [students] to put their tax income information, some people are afraid that the IRS is going to come after them. It doesn’t, it’s taking the information from the IRS and giving it to the Department of Education.” said Adams.

FAFSA, otherwise known as Free Application for Federal Student Aid, is a way for students to earn financial aid for colleges, whether that be in a community, out-of-state, or in the state. FAFSA allows students to pay off student loans without being in tremendous amounts of debt by the time they graduate from college. As of late June 2021, FAFSA was announced as a state requirement for the 2022 to 2023 academic year. But with the requirement comes a contrast of a form for those who decide not to apply. Instead, they must sign a waiver to opt out of filing for FAFSA. This opt-out form is a simple signature you can acquire from your counselor, and if you are over 18 you can sign off by yourself.

The FAFSA application is due for seniors on March 1st of this year. But by June 2021, FAFSA has become a requirement, and this will include other states as well near California. And so the introduction of the requirement is for a program known as The California Promise.

“It’s a program that is designed to allow students to have free tuition in the community college realm. It doesn’t matter whether you would qualify or not in terms of receiving the money, as long as you do [the FAFSA application] you’d still automatically qualify for the promise. And that the ‘California Promise’ allows you to waive those fees for those two years.” Adams said.

Senior Peter Vu has been waiting for the optout form for FAFSA since around November, and recently signed the form to opt out of FAFSA. Now that the forms have been released and handed out to the seniors, the original thought process behind FAFSA has been a strain on those who didn’t apply yet.

“FAFSA in general becomes a big stress on your life because of how you are always going to do the FAFSA, and with all these forms and tax returns and proof of how much you make, and it’s stressful on the students because you ask for this private information and it does become a big ordeal on you and the family itself,” Vu said.

Since the opt-out form has recently been released, it is now able to give the students who want to opt out too. Alexis Horn, the senior counselor, has been helping students with FAFSA with Adams. And so she shares some of the hardest points in the FAFSA process.

“ The hardest thing when it comes to FAFSA is that you need your parents’ cooperation, and so getting to work with your parents on FAFSA with everyone’s busy schedule, while we [Adams and the counselors] can help you at school as well. Another thing that is hard is figuring out the tax information.” Horn said.

Even if opting out of FAFSA was the plan, it’s important to know that if you do apply for FAFSA, it can come with some benefits as a result. There are several grants that students can apply for just to use for college, and by the time of graduation, they don’t have to pay back the grants as they are for their use.

“So if your income is less than $100,000 and you have a family of four, you can get the Pell Grant, which is what FAFSA offers from the Department of Education but also a Cal Grant. So it makes two grants for college that you don’t have to pay back for, which is very helpful for it to happen.” Adams said.

Applying to FAFSA now as an option which is a miracle for those who don’t want to file for it, that being current seniors and future seniors as well. But either way, when it comes to your career plans for FAFSA, this opt-out form can help those who are still deciding on plans and or those who are deciding on colleges and careers, as FAFSA can be a great way to have opportunities.

“I feel like it’s important to do the FAFSA because a lot of people are depending on scholarships to help them through college. But scholarships are just a very minute portion of what you would receive versus what FAFSA would offer.” Adams said

1. Taught at AHS for 1.5 years

2. Can speak Spanish and Portuguese, and lived abroad

3. Traveling Journalist

1. This year will mark their 21st year teaching

2. Was featured on a news channel once

We asked six teachers the same four questions:

1. How long have you taught at AHS?

2. Give us a “wild card” fact!

3. What would you be if you weren’t a teacher?

4.Where did you attend college? Here are their responses. Try your best to guess which teacher is which based off their answers!

1. This is his 21st year

2. Did a ouijia baord and is allegedly going to die on October 29th, but doesn’t know the year

3. Would be a judge or a lawyer

4. UC San Diego

1. Has taught for 22 years

2. Whenever they cook they never give it a taste test, but it always comes out right

3. Would be a flight attendant

4. UC Riverside

1. Since 1995 (28 years)

1. Since 1996 (27 years)

2. Is able to headbang

3. Would be a probation officer

4. SFSU and Chabot