Every spring, thousands of Delaware families quietly miss out on free money for college. Last year alone, our state left over $9.2 million in federal Pell Grant funds unclaimed, not because students weren’t eligible, but because they never filled out the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. This isn’t just a Delaware problem; across the country, millions of dollars in grant money expire each year simply because students fail to complete the paperwork. It’s a silent crisis we can fix.
Delaware has been a national leader in FAFSA completion, ranking third nationwide in the 2022–23 school year. That success comes from Stand By Me NexGen, a partnership between United Way of Delaware and the Department of Education’s Higher Education Office. For 12 years, NexGen has placed financial coaches in all 50 public and charter high schools, teaching students how education, careers and financial resources connect and how to access funds that make college affordable.
The impact is clear:
- Since 2013, 88,000 Delaware residents have received financial literacy and support services
- Since 2018, 25,000 students have completed the Envision curriculum
- NexGen’s FAFSA outreach received national recognition for its innovative Summer 2024 campaign.
The NexGen College Funding Project offers hands-on FAFSA support, including in-person workshops at each high school, one-on-one Zoom sessions, and bilingual assistance in both English and Spanish. Students can schedule appointments at uwde.org/fafsa, call Delaware 211 or visit their guidance office. There’s no catch, just expert help to access the aid that already belongs to them.
Completing the FAFSA should be viewed as a civic duty. Every unclaimed dollar is a lost opportunity for a Delaware student to graduate with less debt and more options. Schools, parents and community leaders must prioritize FAFSA completion.
Delaware has shown we can lead the nation. Let’s not slip backward. Complete the FAFSA. Remind your neighbors. Encourage your students. The money is there; let’s bring it home.
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to viewpoints@capegazette.com. All letters are considered at the discretion of the newsroom and published as space allows. Due to the large volume of submissions, we cannot acknowledge receipt of each submission. Letters must include a phone number and address for verification. Keep letters to 400 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content or length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Letters should focus on local issues, not national topics or personalities. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days regarding a particular topic. Authors may submit a second letter within that time period if it pertains to a different issue. Letters may not be critical of personalities or specific businesses. Criticism of public figures is permissible. Endorsement letters for political candidates are no longer accepted. Letters must be the author’s original work, and may not be generated by artificial intelligence tools. Templates, form letters and letters containing language similar to other submissions will not be published.
