Financial Aid applications changing soon

LYNN-While many Lynn community organizations institute new programs to help high school students apply to college, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings has announced a new plan that would make federal financial aid forms easier to fill out and understand.Spellings, Boston Superintendent of Schools Carol Johnson and Education Commissioner Mitchell Chester were in Charlestown this week to tour the urban school district that, like Lynn, has a large low-income and minority population with aspirations to continue learning after high school.The new plan would reduce the number of questions on the Federal Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) application from 100 to 26, and students would be able to learn how much aid they qualify for before their senior year of high school.Along with the application changes comes the debut of a new Web site for high school seniors – www.college.gov – that aims to motivate students to attend college with inspirational stories and information about planning, preparing and paying for college.The announcement comes in the midst of a tumultuous three months that has seen the failing economy wreak havoc on lenders nationwide, including those offering student loans.In July, the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority (MEFA) announced that it would suspend all new student loans due to a lack of available funds. MEFA eventually began offering loans again in September, but the announcement forced many local families to rely more heavily than ever on FAFSA loans to send their children to college.The new national online program is in addition to several of Lynn’s college preparation and planning programs offered at various non-profit organizations.Girls Incorporated offers yearly college planning and mentoring courses for members, covering everything from filling out applications to job interviews. The Boys and Girls Club began offering a similar program this fall to its members also, while the College Application Education Project is back for another year offering after school help with applying to college, homework and MCAS tutoring.Spellings did not say when the FAFSA application transformation would happen, but www.college.gov is up and running this month.