NSCC offers free financial aid forum

LYNN – Parents struggling over how to pay for their children’s college education can get help at North Shore Community College where a free financial aid forum will be held Sunday, Jan. 31 on the Lynn campus.College-bound students and their parents must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) if they want to receive financial assistance from state, federal and private sources. The FAFSA deadline at some institutions is as early as Feb. 1.The financial seminar in Lynn begins at 2 p.m. Parking is available on campus. The seminar is part of the sixth annual Massachusetts College Goal Sunday and will provide information on college financial aid and free on-site help to complete the FAFSA at 26 locations statewide.College Goal Sunday’s team of volunteer financial aid and higher education experts will offer information on the many viable post-high school options. Locations are listed at www.MassCollegeGoalSunday.org.Services are free and available to anyone entering college in 2010 and low-income, first-generation students are especially encouraged to attend. Assistance is also available for adult students preparing to enroll in college in 2010.”The goal in College Goal Sunday is to increase the amount of financial aid provided to Massachusetts students and we can do that by helping them to successfully complete the financial aid application,” said Susan Sullivan, Lynn College Goal Sunday site coordinator. “I encourage every family to file the FAFSA or they will never know how much financial aid they might have received. The cost of college and the complexity of the form may intimidate some people and that’s why we are here to help parents fill it out correctly and prevent unnecessary delays in receiving financial aid offers.”The FAFSA is required to be eligible for federal student aid programs, such as Pell grants, Stafford and Perkins loan, and federal work-study programs. Also, most states and colleges use FAFSA information to award financial aid packages.Parents planning to attend are encouraged to bring as much of the following information as possible in order to complete the FAFSA: a FAFSA personal identification number, available at www.pin.ed.gov, to be used to electronically file the form; their most recent tax returns; Social Security numbers; driver’s license; 2009 W-2 forms; 2009 untaxed income records; 2009 bank statements; 2009 business and investment records; and alien registration card for non-U.S. Citizens.Applying for financial aid may intimidate some college-bound students, particularly those who are first-generation and adults. In other cases, completing the FAFSA is complicated for filers who are non-English speakers. College Goal Sunday offers trained volunteers and translators to assist.Students and families who are unable to attend College Goal Sunday at North Shore Community College should visit www.MassCollegeGoalSunday.org to find other locations. Unless otherwise noted, College Goal Sunday is held on Sunday, Jan, 31 at 2 p.m. at the following locations:- Amherst: Amherst-Pelham Regional High School (January 28, 7 p.m.)- Boston: Boston Public Library- Brockton: Brockton High School- Charlestown: Bunker Hill Community College- Cambridge: Cambridge Rindge and Latin School- Chestnut Hill: Pine Manor College- Fall River: Bristol Community College- Fitchburg: Fitchburg State College- Framingham: Framingham High School- Franklin: Dean College- Lawrence: Northern Essex Community College- Lowell: Middlesex Community College- Lynn: North Shore Community College- Malden: Malden High School- Marlborough: Marlborough High School- Orange: Mahar Regional High School- Pittsfield: Intermodal Education Center (January 31, 12 p.m.)- Revere: Office of Student Financial Assistance- Somerville: Somerville High School- Springfield: American International College- Upton: Blackstone Valley Vocational RSD- Wakefield: Northeast Metro Tech High School (February 3, 6 p.m.)- Waltham: Waltham High School- West Bar