In accordance of HEA Sec. 479A(a), CCS Financial Aid administrators can make professional judgment decisions for special or unusual family and/or student circumstances on a case-by-case basis. These circumstances must be well documented (preferably by a third party if possible) and may allow CCS Financial Aid administrators to adjust the cost of attendance, or the values of the data items required on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), to calculate the expected student or parent contribution.
A family’s or student’s special circumstances may include, but are not limited to:
- tuition expenses at an elementary or secondary school;
- medical, dental, or nursing home expenses not covered by insurance;
- unusually high child care or dependent care costs;
- recent unemployment of a family member or an independent student;
- a student or family member who is a dislocated worker (as defined in section 101 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998);
- other changes in a family’s income, a family’s assets or a student’s status.
Any adjustments made as it relates to the student/parent special circumstance must be documented and will remain in the student’s financial aid student file.
Students who believe that the annual FAFSA application does not accurately portray their current financial situation are encouraged to contact the CCS Financial Aid Office to discuss finaid@collegeforcreativestudies.edu.
Dependency Override
If a student does not meet the federal guidelines to be considered independent for financial aid purposes, the aid administrator can decide to override the federal regulation and make the student independent for financial aid purposes on a case by case basis. The special circumstance must be documented and must include the reason for the decision, and should in almost all cases originate from a third party with knowledge of the unusual circumstances of the student. Third party individuals and/or entities include, but not limited to, a teacher, counselor, medical authority, member of the clergy, prison administrator, government agency, or court.
Dependency override circumstances may include, but not limited to:
- parent abandonment
- an abusive family environment that threatens the student’s health or safety
- the student being unable to locate his/her parents.
However, none of the conditions listed below, singly or in combination, qualify as unusual circumstances meriting a dependency override:
- Parents refuse to contribute to the student’s education.
- Parents will not provide information for the FAFSA or verification.
- Parents do not claim the student as a dependent for income tax purposes.
- Student demonstrates total self-sufficiency.
Any adjustments made as it relates to the dependency override must be documented and will remain in the student’s financial aid student file.
Students who believe they meet the requirements for a dependency override are encouraged to contact the CCS Financial Aid Office to discuss finaid@collegeforcreativestudies.edu.