Students are not able to apply for federal financial aid for a number of reasons. It may be due to timing in regard to the FAFSA deadlines, immigration status, or other impacts on their lives. Providing this additional funding option for students will allow students to continue their education without interruption. This translates to improved retention and completion rates, because it gives students the opportunity to complete their general education requirements in their first year.
SPSCC students who meet all of the following criteria are eligible to participate in the Tuition Exemption:
- must qualify for federally supported levels of basic skills education (score below 256 on the CASAS or equivalent score on an NRS approved assessment); and
- are a current or prior BEdA student (within 1 quarter); and
- must select a program and have an approved education plan; and
- are enrolled in an approved SPSCC I-BEST program or a course sequence that includes English, math, and/or CCS; and
- will apply for federal and state financial aid when they are qualified to do so.
DEFINITIONS:
- BEdA – Basic Education for Adults
- CASAS - Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System; test used to place BEdA students in Transition Studies courses.
- I-BEST – Integrated basic education skills training
POLICY:
The SPSCC Tuition Exemption program enables students who are Basic Education for Adults (BEdA) students (enrolled in BEdA courses the quarter prior to enrolling in pre-college or college-level courses at SPSCC) to have tuition waived for up to the first fifteen credits of courses if other forms of financial assistance, such as federal and state financial aid or workforce funding, are unavailable.