MAGNOLIA, Ark. –The Arkansas Department of Higher Education and the Arkansas Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators will host the Arkansas College Goal Sunday Program from 2-4 p.m. on Sunday, March 2, in the Grand Hall of the Donald W. Reynolds Campus and Community Center on the campus of Southern Arkansas University.
The College Goal Sunday program provides college bound students and families with free assistance in completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the college financial aid application. Financial aid administrators from across Arkansas will be available to offer hands-on assistance in completing the college financial aid application.
Bronwyn Sneed, director of financial aid at SAU, Bronwyn Sneed, said this is the second year for the College Goal Sunday program which is held all over the state. “This is a great opportunity for prospective students to come and have help with financial aid forms,” added Sneed.
College Goal Sunday was originally created by the Indiana Student Financial Aid Association with funding from Lilly Endowment, Inc. and supplemental financial support from the Lumina Foundation for Education. In 2007, the Arkansas Department of Higher Education received approval of a three-year, $150,000 grant from the Lumina Foundation for Education to fund the implementation of the College Goal Sunday program in Arkansas. Currently, 42 states host a College Goal Sunday event and more than 1160 students and families attended College Goal Sunday in 2007. Those families were able to receive personal, hands-on assistance in completing the college financial aid application. More than 650 Arkansans volunteered their time to assist families at College Goal Sunday.
According to statewide coordinator for Arkansas College Goal Sunday, Scott Medlin: “The Arkansas College Goal Sunday program is an effort by hundreds of volunteers from across Arkansas…with the common goal of making sure that the process of applying for financial aid for college does not become an obstacle that would keep any person from pursuing an education beyond high school. By attending a College Goal Sunday event, participants will receive free assistance in completing the FAFSA, and will walk away with a completed financial aid application and the satisfaction of knowing they have tackled on of the biggest steps in getting ready to go to college.”
For more information, contact Medlin at 479-739-8400 or call the Arkansas Department of Higher Education at (800) 54-STUDY. A complete listing of College Goal Sunday locations is available at www.arcollegegoalsunday.org.
