Red Rocks Community College Financial Aid Office�JeffCo Families Fall 2024

First Step: Apply for Financial Aid

• One application per aid/school year!
• 2025-2026 applications are for Fall 2025, Spring 2026, and Summer 2026
• Two options, both available in English and Spanish:
• FAFSA – Free Application for Federal Student Aid (25-26 open now)
• CASFA – Colorado Application for State Financial Aid (25-26 open 12/15)
• Which application does your student complete?
• Is your student a US citizen or eligible noncitizen (US National, permanent resident, I-94 showing refugee, asylee, etc)? – if yes, FAFSA
• Is your student undocumented/DACA/ASSET? – if yes, CASFA
• Never pay for a FAFSA or CASFA, they’re free!

Other Eligibility Requirements

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• Student needs to have earned a high school diploma or GED
• For CASFA, high school diploma or GED must be from Colorado
• Enroll in an aid eligible certificate or degree program to use aid
• May need to submit additional documentation as required (verification of identity, taxes, household size, etc.)

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Where are the applications?

• Colorado Application for State Financial Aid (CASFA): https://cdhestudentxprod.regenteducation.net/signin ���
• Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA): https://studentaid.gov – also known as the Federal Student Aid (FSA) website, paper also available

When should we fill out an application?

• Each institution will have a “priority date” for accepting FAFSAs and CASFAs (Colorado institutions only)
• Example: Red Rocks Community College’s priority dates are April 15^th for fall, Sept 15^th for spring, and Feb 15^th for summer
• If you miss the priority date, still submit your application as soon as possible!

Who will fill out the application?

• The student
• If student is “independent,” no parent info is required
• If the student is married, spouse info is required in addition to student info
• If student is “dependent,” one or more parent’s info is required in addition to student info
• *Each person/contributor will have their own account. If you input the wrong SSN for FAFSA, it cannot be corrected. If you input the wrong email for CASFA, it cannot be corrected.

Independent or Dependent?

• What makes a dependent student?
• Under 24 (based on birthdate)
• For 2025-2026 aid year, born before 1/1/2002
• Unmarried
• No legal dependents/children
• No active military service
• What makes an independent student? One of the following:
• Over 24 (based on birthdate)
• Married
• Legal dependents
• Active military service
• Legal emancipation (before turning 18)
• Legal guardianship (until the age of 18)
• Orphan, ward of court, foster care (after turning 13)
• Unaccompanied/homeless youth
• Other “Unusual Circumstance” – determined by Financial Aid Office

FAFSA – Parent Information

• Unsure which parent(s) to include? FAFSA has a Parent Wizard! https://studentaid.gov/fafsa-apply/parents
• What parent information is needed for a FAFSA?
• If your parent is a citizen:
• They need to use their SSN to create an FSA account at https://studentaid.gov/
• To invite the parent to contribute to the FAFSA, the student will need the parent’s: Social Security number, date of birth, full name, and email
• If your parent is not a citizen:
• They will make an FSA account without an SSN and go through alternate identity verification at https://studentaid.gov/
• To invite the parent to contribute to the FAFSA, the student will need the parent’s: date of birth, full name, and email

CASFA – Parent Information

• Unsure which parent(s) to include? FAFSA has a Parent Wizard that works for CASFA too!: https://studentaid.gov/fafsa-apply/parents
• What parent information is needed for a CASFA?
• If your parent is a citizen:
• To invite the parent to contribute to the CASFA, the student will need the parent’s: Social Security number, date of birth, full name, and email
• If your parent is not a citizen:
• To invite the parent to contribute to the CASFA, the student will need the parent’s: Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) or DACA number, date of birth, full name, and email

Refusal to Give Parent Information

• FAFSA
• Inability to get parental information: Unusual Circumstance – determined by Financial Aid Office
• Homeless Youth
• Legal Guardianship/Ward/Foster Care
• Refusal – Direct Unsubsidized Loan Only
• CASFA
• Inability to get parental information: Unusual Circumstance – determined by Financial Aid Office
• Homeless Youth
• Legal Guardianship/Ward/Foster Care

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What information is collected?

• Demographic information
• Identity info, college plans, marital status, etc.
• Financial information
• “Prior prior” tax year info – 2025-2026 FAFSA/CASFA will require 2023 tax information**
• Institutions to receive information
• A student can add up to 20 colleges/universities to their application every year
• You can edit this later if you attend a different institution
• **If student’s or parent(s)/spouse’s financial situation has changed since 2023: input 2023 information, then contact your Financial Aid Office for a “Professional Judgement”

How is tax information collected?

• Most students and contributors (parent(s) and spouse) can use Direct Data Exchange (DDX) to transfer federal tax information (FTI) directly to the FAFSA application
• Student and contributors give consent to transfer FTI to the FAFSA.
• Some students or contributors might have to manually enter tax information (example: marital status change between time taxes were filed to now)
• All contributors will have a few financial questions to answer, such as current total of cash/savings/checking accounts

Who is included in Family/Household Size?

Special Circumstances

• If your student’s situation is unique, complete the FAFSA or CASFA the best you can, then talk to the Financial Aid Office!�
• Some special circumstances might be:
• Parent or spouse death
• Additional family members in college
• Unusual uncovered medical/dental expenses

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• Never be afraid to ask your Financial Aid Office about your �circumstances!

Student Aid Index (SAI)

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• The information reported on the FAFSA/CASFA is used to calculate the student’s SAI

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• The SAI is used to help determine the amount, and types, of financial aid that the student may be eligible to receive

Cost of Attendance (COA)

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• Tuition​
• Fees​
• Books and Supplies​
• Room and Board ​
• With parent
• Away from home

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• Transportation
• Personal​
• Health Insurance ​
• Loan fees
• Technology

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COA = how much financial aid a student can receive in award year​

Cannot be exceeded

A Financial Aid Office may be able to increase your COA based on your individual circumstances (ex: childcare costs). This is called Professional Judgement. You can reach out to your FA office for more information.

Financial Need

Cost of attendance (COA)

– Student aid index (SAI)�= Financial need (amount of financial aid)

Types of Financial Aid

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Types of Aid determined by FAFSA

• Federal Aid:
• PELL Grant
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)
• Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant (TEACH)
• Student Loans
• Direct Subsidized Loan
• Direct Unsubsidized Loan
• Parent PLUS Loan
• Work Study
• State Aid:
• Colorado Student Grant (CSG)
• Work Study
• Institutional Aid:
• Depends on institution

Types of Aid determined by CASFA

• State Aid:
• Colorado Student Grant (CSG)
• Work Study
• Institutional Aid:
• Depends on institution

Scholarships

• No matter which application a student completes, they should still apply for scholarships!
• Some scholarships ask for an SAI, but not all! Some are random drawing, merit based, need based, and everything in between!�
• Institutional scholarships
• Usually open in winter before the school year they will be awarded
• Private scholarships
• High school counselors can help students search!
• Use internet safety best practices: don’t give out SSN, bank information, credit card number, driver’s license number, etc.

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Application Troubleshooting

• CASFA
• Reach out to your Financial Office for help with questions in the application
• For technical difficulties, reach out to CASFA@dhe.state.co.us
• FAFSA
• Reach out to your Financial Aid Office for help with questions in the application
• If the website isn’t working, try logging out completely, clearing cache/cookies/history, and try again
• If a parent without an SSN is having issues, try updating the email on the parent’s account, then update the email on the contributor invite section on the student’s side
• If you have login issues or your parent(s) have issues connecting to the student’s FAFSA, call 1-800-433-3243. Call hold times are 30-40 minutes during peak application times
• If you have complaints about the FAFSA, you can (and should) submit them here: https://studentaid.gov/feedback-center/

Need help?

• https://studentaid.gov/apply-for-aid/fafsa/filling-out/request-interpreter
• The FAFSA has guides and interpreters for Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog, Vietnamese, French, Korean, German, Arabic, Russian, and French Creole.
• FAFSA issues and workarounds are frequently updated on this website: https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/topics/fafsa-simplification-information/fafsa-issue-alerts

Need help?

• One on One FAFSA help only:
• The Educational Opportunity Center (EOC) offers in person (multiple locations) and virtual appointments: https://www.ccd.edu/educational-opportunity-center
• Upcoming FAFSA and CASFA help:
• RRCC Rocks The FAFSA and The CASFA events
• December 14^th 9AM-12PM Lakewood campus
• January 11^th 9AM-12PM Lakewood campus
• February 15^th 10AM-2PM Arvada campus
• March 8^th 9AM-12PM Lakewood campus

Need help?

Questions?