In late March, 2020 federal legislation was passed to provide economic relief to individuals and organizations dealing with the ramifications of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This legislation-titled the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (or CARES Act) established a Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) for colleges and universities in the United States. The following information is provided by Normandale Community College in response to the Department of Education's reporting requirements.
1. An acknowledgement that the institution signed and returned to the Department the Certification and Agreement and the assurance that the institution has used, or intends to use, no less than 50 percent of the funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students.
Normandale Community College signed and submitted the Certificate and Agreement for the Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act on April 13, 2020. Normandale Community College has used and plans to use at least 50% of the total allocation for student emergency funds.
2. The total amount of funds that the institution will receive or has received from the Department pursuant to the institution's Certification and Agreement [for] Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.
On April 13, Normandale signed and returned to the Department of Education the Certification and Agreement to receive $2,401,288 in funding that will be used to provide emergency financial aid grants to students for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the coronavirus.
3. The total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act as of the date of submission (i.e., as of the 30-day Report and every 45 days thereafter, changed to quarterly reporting beginning on September 30, 2020).
4. The estimated total number of students at the institution eligible to participate in programs under Section 484 in Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and thus eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
For awarding starting in fall term (2020-21 school year), this is calculated by adding the number of enrolled students for whom the institution has received an Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR) plus the number of students who completed an alternative application form and certified Title IV aid eligibility.
Based on student eligibility as initially defined in item 6, Normandale Community College identified 5,453 students as eligible for funds as part of the original distribution on May 11.
For the academic year 2020-21, using the calculation listed above, Normandale identified 5,284 enrolled students as eligible for funds.
Based on the expanded use of funds authority under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental ACT (CRRSAA), the pool of eligible students expanded to include all enrolled students except DACA/DREAM Act student and International Students with an FYI VISA status in SEVIS. As of the spring 2021 term, Normandale identified 9,058 eligible students.
5. The total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
5,453 students received Emergency Financial Aid Grants as part of the original distribution on May 11.
Additional distributions were made to students for emergency grants through application, and:
6. The method(s) used by the institution to determine which students receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants and how much they would receive under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
The CARES Act directed that 50% of HEERF money must go toward emergency student financial assistance for expenses related to shifting from in-person to remote instruction. Eligibility requirements for this emergency assistance at the time of Normandale's initial distribution included enrollment in courses that were:
To be eligible, students also could not have dropped, withdrawn, or had a Last Day of Attendance before March 6, 2020. Various restrictions on the use of these funds were established in the CARES Act and through regulatory direction from the federal Department of Education. These restrictions mean that several categories of students cannot receive emergency financial assistance, including:
Initial Distribution
Normandale issued emergency student financial assistance payments to eligible students on Monday, May 11, 2020 based on the criteria above. All students meeting the above criteria received a $200 CARES Base Award to help defray the cost of moving to remote instruction (e.g. internet and modem costs). All eligible students who received a Federal Pell Grant received an additional $400 CARES Supplemental Award, for a total of $600* to help defray other food and living expenses created by the disruption of on-campus activities.
*84% of emergency grant application requests were for rent, food and living expense, with an average award of $1093.
Emergency Grants by Application
After the initial disbursement on May 11, 2020 students were encouraged to apply for funds through the existing Normandale Emergency Grant Funds application process. Applications are reviewed for HEERF-allowable expenses, and students are confirmed to be Title-IV eligible.
Additional awards were made through the emergency grant application process.
Initially, student emergency grants of up to $500 were available with the ability to reapply every 30 days for a maximum total of $2,000 per student, as funds were available. This would make grants available to a maximum of 763 students. Students attending more than one Minnesota State college or university could only receive a CARES Base Award from one school.
Starting for the Spring 2021 term, the maximum emergency grant was $1,000 with a total of $4,000 per student, with a maximum of 106 students receiving remaining available funds. Based on the updated criteria, 430 students were able to get emergency grant awards from through the student portion of the funding. Additional students are being funded through the institutional portion which can be found on the institutional funds quarterly report.
If additional financial support is needed, funds are available through the Normandale Cares grant program. For more information, go to normandale.edu/normandalecares.
7. Any instructions, directions, or guidance provided by the institution to students concerning the Emergency Financial Aid Grants.
Differing lists of students who were eligible for the emergency funds listed above, received email communications about the funds on May 6, 8 & 13.
9700 France Avenue South
Bloomington, MN 55431
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