Sandbox - OFA emergency aid
Emergency financial assistance is any grant or loan aid, whether institutional funds or aid from another non-Title IV source, paid to a student for unexpected expenses associated with one of the allowable Cost of Attendance (COA) components.
Unexpected expenses
Emergency financial assistance that helps a student with unexpected expenses can be excluded from OFA. The Office of Financial Aid has the final authority to determine whether aid is considered emergency financial assistance and whether it should be counted as OFA.
Under the FAFSA Simplification Act, funding properly determined as emergency aid is not considered OFA. This information outlines when funds are considered emergency aid and need not be counted as financial aid toward the student’s COA.
Here are some examples of unexpected expenses:
- Housing due to natural disaster, roommate abandonment or moving expenses due to unsafe or hostile conditions.
- Lost or stolen items, including books, supplies, equipment or course materials
- Travel during a death or family emergency
- Food costs related to electrical outages
Security deposits for housing and any costs not associated with components of the COA, such as legal fees and debts, are generally not considered unexpected expenses.
Who gets emergency aid?
- Emergency aid is based on individual circumstances, not state or federal emergency/disaster declarations.
- The expenses must not already be included in the student’s COA components.
Emergency aid must be documented
The student's file must include the following documentation before emergency aid is provided:
- A description of the unexpected expense that prompted the request
- How the expense is unexpected and considered an emergency
- How the expense is associated with, but not already included in, the COA for the current year or term for which the student is enrolled
- Documentation of the dollar value of the request, such as receipts or repair estimates.