WorWic offering FAFSA enrollment for local students as May 15th deadline approaches

May 6, 2024

Rob Flaks,

SALISBURY, Md- A troubled FAFSA rollout has seen a decline of 30 percent in submissions across the eastern shore of seniors looking to start school this fall.

A new FAFSA form is out this week but that can’t undo the months of delays and implementation issues now Maryland students are less than 10 days away from a crucial deadline, May 15th- but WorWic Community College is stepping up to help students meet it.

“We’re really just trying to make ourselves available for assistance, but then also actively reaching to students to let them know that we can help them complete this process,” said WorWic director of Financial aid Katie Abreu said adding “if they haven’t had a chance to submit the FAFSA to reach out to their school or to Warwick if they’re local, to get assistance with that, we offer assistance to any student that needs help Completing the FAFSA.”

Abreu tells 47ABC that their data statewide confirms that 30 percent drop in enrollment, and says that WorWic students have less of a ticking clock, as their financial aid package deadline is at the mid-point of the fall semester. However, she tells us that she could see a larger increase in enrolled students, who may have missed the May 15th deadline for traditional 4-year schools.

“I do think that we may see an increase in first-time students coming in the fall because they were unable to get their aid packages through their four-year schools and make a decision in time. And so they opt to do a community college instead,” she said.

For Salisbury University, their enrollment with FAFSA is down 16 percent, however, their head of admissions tells WMDT that even with that they are expecting an 8 percent rise in enrolled students compared to last year.

“We are excited to be the first in the University System of Maryland to start sending financial aid offers to our new students a few weeks ago, too. Families are receiving those offers both electronically and in the mail and any questions should be directed to the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships,” said Allen Koehler, SU associate vice president for enrollment management.

Abreu says that parents and students should monitor their FAFSA progress at the school they applied to closely to confirm they received the documents as well as visiting studentaid.gov for more information.