Grants are available on a first-come, first-serve basis to eligible students who have been impacted by the pandemic. Block grants will automatically be dispersed to students who have been enrolled in at least one credit over the summer semester, have filled out a 2020-2021 FAFSA with FAU’s school code, and based on the FAFSA are expected to be in financial need. 

Students who did not automatically qualify for the block grants can still apply here for aid. To be eligible, students must have been enrolled in at least one credit during the summer semester. The student or their family must have faced significant unexpected expenses such as loss of employment, reduced income, or food or housing insecurity. 

Grants will be dispersed directly to students and students will be notified through their FAU emails. Applications are expected to be reviewed during the week of Aug. 9. 

The grants are available thanks to the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 that Congress passed in March. Through ARPA, the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III (HEERF III) $39.6 billion was provided to institutions of higher education throughout the country to help universities and students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Institutions are required to spend a portion of the money they received from the government on student grants. FAU reported that it received $35,212,944 in funding from HEERF III to grant to students.

Gillian Manning is the Editor-in-Chief for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, tweet her @gillianmanning_ or email [email protected].