FAFSA Frenzy Grants
MCAN has been awarded $1 million in funding from ECMC Group, the U.S. Department of Education, and the State of Michigan to support FAFSA completion efforts this summer.
MCAN must quickly and effectively invest this funding in summer FAFSA completion efforts across the state. We need your help! The MCAN staff hosted a brief webinar that provided an overview of the funding process. A recording of the webinar is available here.
Funding will be dispatched quickly, and it can only be used for summer FAFSA programming. Due to the urgency around this effort, the application will be simple and quick to complete. We're excited to hear your ideas!
Apply for the FAFSA Frenzy Grant →
IMPORTANT DATES
Application Release: Funding opportunity made available on June 27, 2024, at 3 p.m.
Deadline: Applications are due by July 21, 2024, at 11:59 p.m.
Application Notification: MCAN is committed to expediting the grant review process and providing a response to applicants as quickly as possible. We anticipate responding within two weeks of submission.
ELIGIBILITY
Michigan high schools, community-based nonprofit organizations, and higher education institutions with direct connections to students currently enrolled in college or from the class of 2024 who have not yet completed their FAFSA are eligible to apply.
APPLICATION ASSISTANCE
You are encouraged to contact MCAN to inquire about eligibility and to request technical assistance. Please contact Jeneen Hatoum, Director of High School Innovation, 517-316-1713, for assistance.
PROPOSAL SUBMISSION
Proposals are only accepted using Michigan College Access Network’s online grants system at mcan.smapply.org.
GRANT AWARD
Grants from $2,500 to $20,000 will be awarded to organizations across the state in four pathways.
Pathway 1 — $2,500: Organization agrees to share student name and contact directory information (email/phone) for students from the class of 2024 for the purposes of college recruitment, outreach, and support. This information will be shared with an MCAN-supported FAFSA specialist to provide outreach and FAFSA support (high schools only)
Pathway 2 — $5,000: Organization compensates an individual to do outreach to students who have not yet completed their FAFSA and refers students who need FAFSA completion support to an MCAN supported FAFSA specialist.
Pathway 3 — $10,000: Organization compensates an individual who supports outreach and FAFSA completion efforts to students who have not yet completed their FAFSA.
Pathway 4 — up to $20,000: Pitch us your big idea! This strategy should be focused on FAFSA completion support, not FAFSA completion incentives.
These grants are not intended to be a renewable or long-term funding source. Each grant will be awarded for a duration of two months. Grants are intended to support work to be completed by August 31, 2024.