Office of Financial Aid & Scholarships: CARES Act
BACKGROUND
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) Act was signed into law March 27, 2020.
The Act provides nearly $14 billion in aid to address higher education challenges created by the COVID-19
pandemic. Of this amount, $12.6 billion is allocated directly to colleges and universities. UC Santa Barbara is
eligible for a total allocation of $25,204,196.
Of the amount received by each institution, at least 50 percent must be used “to provide emergency
financial aid grants to students for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to
coronavirus”. UC Santa Barbara has a total allocation of $12,602,098 for this purpose. Institutions shall not
use these funds to reimburse themselves for any costs or expenses, including, but not limited to, any costs
associated with significant changes in the delivery of instruction due to the coronavirus and/or any refunds
or other benefits that the institutions previously issued to students.
A letter from the Secretary of Education, released April 9, 2020 and the associated Funding Certificate and
Agreement make it clear that colleges and universities have broad discretion in awarding these funds. The
Secretary indicates, “…each institution may develop its own system and process for determining how to
allocate these funds, which may include distributing the funds to all students or only to students who
demonstrate significant need… With that said, I would like to encourage the leadership of each institution
to prioritize your students with the greatest need, but at the same time consider establishing a maximum
funding threshold for each student to ensure that these funds are distributed as widely as possible.”
Table 1: Shares of CARES Act Funding, April 9, 2020.
University Allocation Min. Fin Aid
University of California, Berkeley $30,440,627 $15,220,314
University of California, Davis $33,871,763 $16,935,882
University of California, Irvine $36,731,629 $18,365,815
University of California, Los Angeles $35,906,870 $17,953,435
University of California, Merced $13,037,897 $6,518,949
University of California, Riverside $29,734,626 $14,867,313
University of California, San Diego $34,889,769 $17,444,885
University of California, San Francisco $867,955 $433,978
University of California, Santa Barbara
$
25,204,196
$
12,602,098
University of California, Santa Cruz $19,327,201 $9,663,601
TOTAL $260,012,533
$130,006,270
University of California Office of the President Guidance
Ensuring that students can continue to make progress towards graduation despite the financial and
other challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic should be the overarching goal of campuses’
plans.
The funding is authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act. As such, the campus Financial Aid
Office will be in the best position to administer in compliance with existing and forthcoming regulations.
Reporting requirements will be extensive, including student-level reporting 30 days from the initial
awards and every 45 days thereafter.
UC Financial Aid Offices are requested to consult with other key leaders on campus, including the
Graduate Division, Basic Needs Centers and campus Associated Students, as they develop their
process and plans, although not on individual awarding decisions.
Campuses are making myriad decisions about COVID-19 and therefore need flexibility as they develop
their local emergency grant funding to meet the needs of their students. In general, the plans should
reflect the following principles:
o Efficient Delivery: Campuses should prioritize delivery in Spring and, if necessary, Summer 2020.
Feedback from both the department and our understanding of the congressional intent is that
the funds be delivered as quickly as possible.
o Equity: Campuses may provide broad-based support (e.g. a base award to all students), but
are also encouraged to provide additional support to groups that may require additional
assistance (e.g. low income, student parents).
o Direct Emergency Grant Payments: The Department’s guidance is clear that funds should be
delivered directly to students, not to pay for past due bills, to reimburse prior expenditures by
the campus (e.g. to pay back the campus for purchased laptops), or to replace lost wages.
o Beyond the Cost of Attendance: The Department has also made it clear that this funding can
be made available to students without regard to the normal total cost of attendance limits.
Campuses are encouraged to take the following considerations, among others, into account as they
consider how to deploy the federal funds in conjunction with their own institutional financial aid.
o The Department has limited the awards to students eligible for Title IV financial aid
authorized under the Higher Education Act. Undocumented students and international
students are not eligible for support using these federal dollars. Campuses are encouraged
to coordinate the use of these funds with their own institutional aid resources to ensure that
emergency grants are available to all undocumented students in need who are eligible to
receive state support (e.g. AB540 students).
o Students who have not filed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) may be
required to complete a shorter application form with the campus to receive these funds to
confirm their eligibility for Title IV funding.
o Campuses are also encouraged to consider targeting particularly vulnerable populations
for additional support, e.g., student parents, former foster youth, disabled students, and
formerly incarcerated students.
o While the FAFSA is one of the best measures of a student’s financial resources, it is not
necessary to receive emergency support. In addition to information provided on a
student’s FAFSA or DREAM Application, other indicators (e.g. borrowing at the maximum
annual or cumulative allowable level of federal student loans) may help inform the
assessment of whether a student’s financial resources were precarious even before the
onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The UC Office of the President will help coordinate the sharing of information between campuses and
with outside stakeholders. UCOP will not be involved in the allocation of the funding, which will come
from the US Department of Education.
Campuses are encouraged to work with the Office of the President on summarizing their financial aid
plans, as well as on future reporting requirements to ensure systemwide coordination for both state and
federal policymakers, including tracking of appeals.
UC Santa Barbara CARES
Table 1: CARES Emergency Grant Allocation for Title IV eligible students for Spring 2020 by Enrollment Type.
Enrollment Type
Headcount
%
Undergraduate 21,646 88.6% of enrolled students
Graduate 2,786 11.4% of enrolled students
Total 24,432
Ineligible Students 3,178
Estimate of Title IV Eligible Students 21,254
Total Student Award Allocation $12,602,098
Undergraduate $11,165,459 88.6% of student award
allocation
Graduate $1,436,639 11.4% of student award
allocation
Table 2: CARES Act Emergency Grants for Undergraduate Students
FAFSA Filer Type Headcount Amount Funding
Pell Grant Recipients 5,481 $1,100 $6,029,100
Vulnerable Pell Grant Recipients* 195 $1,700 $331,500
Other Grant Recipients 4,760 $875 $4,165,000
Vulnerable Grant Recipients* 21 $1,475 $30,975
Non-Grant Recipients with Financial Need 933 $650 $606,450
Vulnerable Non-Grant Recipients with Financial Need 1 $1250 $1250
Emergency Awards 2 $500, $684 $1184
Total Funding Disbursed
$11,165,459
Remaining Balance
$0
*Vulnerable populations include: student parents, formerly incarcerated students, former foster youth,
unaccompanied homeless youth and students with an approved dependency override appeal.
Table 3: CARES Act Emergency Grants for Graduate Students
Headcount Amount Funding
FAFSA Applicants 1,630 $650 $1,059,500
Approved Appeals 87 Varies $98,250
Supplemental - Based on Pell Grant Lifetime Eligibility Used
532 $525 $278,889
Total Disbursed $1,436,639
Remaining Balance $0
Email Communication:
Undergraduate Students:
Email#1 – April 30, 2020
Subject: UCSB CARES Emergency Grant
Dear Student,
The Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships is happy to inform you that you have been awarded the UCSB
CARES Emergency Grant, which has been made available through the Higher Education Emergency Relief
Fund.
Award amounts are based on 2019-2020 FAFSA information and are intended to help cover educational
expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to COVID-19, such as food, housing, course
materials, technology, healthcare and child-care expenses.
To avoid delays in receiving your funding, we encourage you to sign up for direct deposit. Sign up now to
receive an eRefund by logging in to MyBARC and following the instructions found here. Students signed up
for direct deposit before Wednesday should expect to receive the funds in their bank accounts on Friday.
THIS IS A SYSTEM GENERATED E-MAIL. PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS E-MAIL NOTICE.
If you have questions, please contact us at the address and phone number listed below.
Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships
University of California, Santa Barbara
(805) 893-2432
Email#2 - May 4, 2020
New Awards Providing Financial Relief
Important financial support was provided this week to eligible undergraduates through the Office of
Financial Aid & Scholarships. Made possible by the CARES Act and the Higher Education Emergency Relief
Fund, eligible students received support to help offset expenses related to the campus response to COVID-
19.
Eligibility for funding was based on demonstrated financial need on the 2019-20 FAFSA, so not all students
were able to receive these awards. However, we recognize that ineligible students may also be
experiencing financial strain, so we have established an appeal process. Read more about this funding
and complete the appeal to share your unique circumstances.
Dream Scholars: Financial Aid & Scholarships committed and awarded funding that exactly mirrors the
CARES Act program to eligible California Dream Act applicants that have financial need. If you are a
student that did not receive that funding, then you are also eligible to submit the same appeal.
Read more about these awards on the Financial Aid & Scholarships website. Note that graduate students
with similar eligibility were awarded through the Graduate Division.
Graduate Students:
Email #1 – April 30, 2020
Subject: CARES Act Emergency Relief Grant: Check your account during the week of May 4th
Dear Graduate Student,
This email is to inform you that you will be receiving a $650 Emergency Relief Grant as part of the federal
government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The funding for this program originates with the CARES Act, which was signed into law on March 27th. That
Act authorized the Department of Education to provide funds to colleges and universities, half of which is
to be directly allocated to students “to provide emergency financial aid grants to students for expenses
related to the disruption of campus operations due to coronavirus.” The amount provided to UC Santa
Barbara students was $12.6 million. Of that, 11.4% was allocated to the Graduate Division for distribution to
eligible graduate students, proportional to their percentage in the overall student population.
As this is a federal financial aid program, eligibility is the same as for other Title IV programs and students
must have completed a FAFSA for 2019-20 to qualify. As the campus has your FAFSA on file, these funds are
now being disbursed through the normal campus financial channels and should reach your bank account
during the week of May 4th, provided you have direct deposit configured as your preference with the BARC
office. Instructions on how to set up direct deposit can be found here. If your preferred method of payment
is a physical check, you will be contacted by the BARC office via email to confirm delivery address and/or
options to convert the payment to a direct deposit. If you have not received these funds by May 11th,
contact [email protected].
Because you have a FAFSA on file, you are also eligible to apply for a Supplemental Emergency Relief
Grant. These grants are for students who have expenses related to the coronavirus that have not been
covered by other programs. We know that many graduate students have incurred financial costs due to
the coronavirus, including loss of income, loss of summer support, unexpected housing or childcare costs,
costs related to technology, and unreimbursed travel expenses. Some students have received funds to
address these shortfalls through the GSA COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant or the Financial Crisis Team. In
addition, most students have received the $1200 stimulus checks and some may have received
unemployment. If you have expenses related to the coronavirus that have not yet been covered by other
programs, you are eligible to apply for a Supplemental Emergency Relief Grant. These funds need to be
expended as soon as possible. Distributions will be made until the funds are depleted. If you still have
coronavirus-related expenses, we encourage you to apply soon.
Sincerely,
The Graduate Division Financial Support Unit
Subject: Submit a FAFSA to receive your CARES Act Emergency Relief Grant funding
Dear Graduate Student,
This email is to inform you that you may be eligible to receive a $650 Emergency Relief Grant as part of the
federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Students are eligible if they are U.S. citizens or
permanent residents, meet basic eligibility criteria for Title IV aid, and have filed a Free Application for
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for 2019-20.
The funding for this program originates with the CARES Act, which was signed into law on March 27
th
. That
Act authorized the Department of Education to provide funds to colleges and universities, half of which is
to be directly allocated to students “to provide emergency financial aid grants to students for expenses
related to the disruption of campus operations due to coronavirus.” The amount provided to UC Santa
Barbara students was $12.6 million. Of that, 11.4% was allocated to the Graduate Division for distribution to
eligible graduate students, proportional to their percentage in the overall student population.
UC Santa Barbara does not currently have a FAFSA on file for you, but you can still submit one for this year
(2019-20, not 2020-21). We urge you to do this as soon as possible, but no later than May 22nd. The form
takes about 30 minutes to complete, and is typically received by campus in about a week, after federal
processing. Once the information is returned to campus, the $650 Emergency Relief Grant will
automatically be processed and should appear in your bank account within another week. These funds
must be disbursed expeditiously, so it is important that you complete and submit the FAFSA as soon as
possible. If you have not already done so, you may also want to consider setting up direct deposit through
the BARC office, which will allow you to receive funds more quickly than via a mailed check. Instructions on
how to set up direct deposit can be found here. If you have not received the funds within two to three
weeks following FAFSA submission, you can contact [email protected].
Once you have filed a FAFSA, you will also be eligible to apply for a Supplemental Emergency Relief Grant.
These grants are for students who have expenses related to the coronavirus that have not been covered
by other programs. We know that many graduate students have experienced financial challenges due to
the coronavirus, including loss of income, loss of summer support, unexpected housing or childcare costs,
costs related to technology, and unreimbursed travel expenses. Some students have received funds to
address these shortfalls through the GSA COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant or the Financial Crisis Team. In
addition, most students have received the $1200 stimulus checks and some may have received
unemployment. If you have expenses related to the coronavirus that have not yet been covered by other
programs, you are eligible to apply for a Supplemental Emergency Relief Grant. You will receive this
supplemental grant once your FAFSA is processed and returned to campus, as long as funds remain
available. If you have eligible coronavirus-related expenses, we encourage you to apply.
Sincerely,
The Graduate Division Financial Support Unit
