Emergency Financial Aid Grant distribution criteria and methodology - CRRSAA
Methodist Theological School in Ohio (MTSO) is the recipient of funds resulting from a provision in the federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) The purpose of a portion of the funding is provide emergency financial aid grants to eligible students. This report provides details of MTSO’s process on the allocation and disbursement of the funds received under funding opportunity number ED-GRANTS-041020-0003 and MTSO’s application number P425E203935-20A.
Certification
MTSO received $50,007 under section 314(a)(1) and will provide at least the same amount in financial aid grants to students from the CRRSAA funds that it was required or which it would have been required to provide under its original CARES Act Student Aid Portion award (section 18004(a)(1)), or a minimum of $18,768, will be distributed to eligible students.
Student eligibility
MTSO has 58 students who are eligible to receive emergency financial aid grants. Eligibility was determined with Federal Title IV Funding Guidelines and verified by:
A. Student completion of FAFSA and eligibility to receive federal funds on determination date of awards February 25, 2021.
B. Full or part time student as of February 25, 2021.
Distribution method
MTSO prioritized students with exceptional need when determining the award amount per student. That means the amount of emergency financial aid grants will not be the same for each student or the same as other colleges.
MTSO used the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) amount to determine exceptional need. Students with an EFC of $0 received $700 and students with an EFC of $1 to $10,000 received $350.
Group 1: 23 eligible students with an EFC of $0 received $700.
Group 2: 17 eligible students with an EFC of $1 to $10,000 received $350.
Group 3: 18 eligible student with an EFC >$10,001 did not receive funding.
Instructions to eligible students
MTSO sent an email to all eligible students’ school email address and mailed a letter to eligible students’ on-file home address on February 26, 2021. Each communication informed the student of eligibility for the emergency financial aid grant and the dollar amount of the award, and requested the student to update their mailing address, if needed, in the student information system by March 10, 2021.
This letter was sent via email and U.S. Mail to eligible students:
Dear [Student Name],
MTSO is the recipient of funds resulting from a provision in the federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA), the purpose of which is to provide financial aid grants to eligible students. It has been determined you are eligible to receive a portion of these funds. Please note that eligibility criteria for this grant are different from criteria used in awarding previous federal coronavirus-related grants, and not every student will receive the same amount from CRRSAA.
As an eligible MTSO student, you will receive a check for [insert $350 or $700] by the end of March. The funds will be sent to your home address on file in Populi. In order to ensure that we send your check to the correct address, please log into your Populi account. Using the info tab, confirm the address listed is your current mailing address. Please make changes as necessary by March 10, 2021.
The CRRSAA funds are intended to help you with expenses related to the disruption of campus operation due to coronavirus. These expenses can include tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health care) or child care.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you,
Sarah Mouch
Controller
Check distribution to eligible students
MTSO sent checks to all eligible students on March 18, 2021, accompanied by an explanatory letter. This is the letter that accompanied each check:
Dear [Student Name],
Enclosed is financial aid grant check. These funds are from a grant MTSO received from a provision in the federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA), the purpose of which is to provide financial aid grants to eligible students.
The CRRSAA funds are intended to help you with expenses related to the disruption of campus operation due to coronavirus. These expenses can include tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health care) or child care.
If you have any questions, please contact me at smouch@mtso.edu.
Thank you,
Sarah Mouch
Controller