March VSH Newsletter
Empowering Parents Grant
Idaho's Empowering Parents program provides grant funds for use towards eligible education services and devices to help students recover from learning loss. Idaho students ages 5-18 are eligible regardless of school type attended: Public, Charter, Private, or Homeschool.
The 2024-2025 school year application opens on October 21, 2024, and closes on April 7, 2025, or when program funds are exhausted.
Idaho families can use Empowering Parents grant funds for eligible education expenses such as computer hardware, textbooks & software, educational camps, and more!
Awards will be prioritized based on the parent or guardian’s adjusted gross income, starting with eligible families earning less than $60,000 per year.
For detailed information on the program go to https://empoweringparents.idaho.gov/
Melissa Kamhout
Apply Idaho
Apply Idaho is a free, common application platform for up to 10 in-state colleges. Open October through June, this application is ONLY available to current-year Idaho high school seniors.
- Students planning to attend college in Fall 2025 are encouraged to complete the 2025-2026 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) to be considered for Financial Aid. The application can be found at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa!
- If you are planning on completing the FAFSA, do so soon! The sooner you submit the FAFSA, the sooner you will receive your financial aid statement from the college. Make sure to check the college or university financial aid deadlines. Deadlines vary! Check the college website for financial assistance deadline. For example, Boise State University has a financial aid deadline of February 15th.
- Did you know that many Colleges and Universities require students to complete the FAFSA to be considered and eligible to receive internal scholarships awarded by the college? If you want to be considered for “free” money to attend college in fall 2025, get the FAFSA completed as soon as possible!
FAFSA Informational Resources:
FAFSA Information and Follow-up
uAspire is hosting a webinar Series that offers valuable insights into the financial aid landscape. This webinar provides an overview of the main types of federal financial aid and guide participants through the financial aid application process. Presented with a student-centered approach, this webinar equips educators with the knowledge and tools to effectively explain key concepts, guide students and parents through the application process, and help successfully navigate the path to higher education. To register click HERE.
Financial Aid Offer Review
uAspire is hosting a webinar Series that shares best practices for reviewing the FAFSA Submission Summary (previously called the Student Aid Report), navigating special circumstances, and handling the complexity of verification. This webinar will explain the difference between FAFSA Submission and FAFSA completion, it will describe the information that the FAFSA Submission Summary provides and will assist in recognizing the 2025-25 federal verification items. To register click HERE.
Resources
The Department of Education has recently released a suite of resources to assist students and families in completing and submitting the FAFSA form during the 2025–26 cycle.
The Federal Student Aid Information Center (FSAIC) now has FAFSA-only hours on evenings and weekends to provide FAFSA form support to students and families. The expanded hours extend through March 2, 2025. Students and families can reach agents at the FSAIC in English or in Spanish. Information on requesting interpretation services in additional languages can be accessed at StudentAid.gov/interpreter.
FAFSA Wizard. A student may need to ask their parent(s) to provide information on their FAFSA form based on their dependency status. If the student is a dependent, they may need to report their parents’ information. The Who’s My FAFSA Parent? wizard is a tool that simplifies FAFSA form completion by helping families determine which parent(s) should contribute to a student's FAFSA form. This clarity can help families navigate this crucial step with confidence and ensure accurate information is submitted for the student's FAFSA form. Learn more HERE.
