Grants and other Scholarships

Grants

Federal Pell Grant:

Students apply for a Federal Pell Grant by filing a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or a Renewal Application. Eligibility for a Federal Pell Grant is determined by a need analysis formula prescribed by Congress. Application of the formula to family income and asset data produces an expected family contribution (EFC). For the 2010-2011 academic year you are eligible for a Federal Pell Grant if you: are an undergraduate, have not received a baccalaureate degree, have an EFC of $5,273 or less and meet the general eligibility criteria. Federal Pell Grants for full-time attendance range from $555 to $5550 per academic year, contingent upon congressional appropriation.  Your enrollment status is determined as of the 9th day of classes each semester. The data from your Renewal Application or FAFSA must show that you are eligible to receive a Pell Grant and must be received by the OSFA prior to the last day of enrollment for each semester or within 60 days after the end of the semester if you were selected for verification. Pell Grants paid after the semester is over will be based on number of hours completed.

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG):

Undergraduate students who apply for financial aid will be considered for a SEOG if they qualify on a need basis, are enrolled at least half-time, are eligible for a Federal Pell Grant and have applied for financial aid by CMU’s priority deadline date. Students are eligible for campus-based grants (including the SEOG) for a maximum of eight semesters at CMU.

CMU Grant:

Available to undergraduate students who are enrolled at least half-time on a need basis, as determined by CMU. Students are eligible for campus-based grants (including the CMU grant) for a maximum of eight semesters.

Bureau of Indian Affairs Grant:

Grants are available from certain tribes to assist students with their educational expenses at postsecondary institutions. Grants are need-based, and the tribe determines award amounts. Students must complete a FAFSA and a tribal application.

Teach Grant:

Through the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, Congress created the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH).  Follow this link for more information.

Scholarships

Michigan Competitive Scholarship:

Currently under review by the Michigan Office of Scholarships and Grants.

Indian Tuition Waiver:

A state resident who is an enrolled member of a U.S. Federally recognized tribe and is enrolled in a degree-granting program is eligible for free tuition at CMU. Applications are available from the Michigan Department of Civil Rights at the following web address:

http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdcr/MITWAPPLICATION-CR-602-revised_7-14-10_328137_7.pdf

Native American Scholarship Searches

The following sites have Native American Scholarship programs available to students. Please refer to the websites below for additional information.

Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship

Benefit Honors Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry

WASHINGTON -- The children of military personnel who died in the line of duty since Sept. 11, 2001 can apply for an educational scholarship similar to the new Post-9/11 GI Bill. Benefits are retroactive to Aug. 1, 2009.

The scholarship, which is administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, are named after Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry, 28, a Texas native who died in Iraq in 2006 while disarming an explosive. He was survived by three young children.

"The Fry scholarship represents this nation's solemn commitment to care for children whose mothers and fathers paid the ultimate price for our country," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki.

VA begins accepting applications for the Fry scholarship on May 1, 2010. For more information or assistance applying, call toll-free 1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551), or visit the VA GI Bill Website at www.gibill.va.gov.

VA estimates nearly 1,500 children will receive benefits under the Fry scholarship program in 2010. Recipients generally have 15 years to use their benefits, beginning on their 18th birthdays.

Eligible children attending institutions of higher learning may receive payments to cover their tuition and fees up to the highest amounts charged to public, in-state students at undergraduate institutions in each state. A monthly housing allowance and stipend for books and supplies are also paid under this program.

VA will begin paying benefits under the Fry scholarships on Aug. 1, 2010. Eligible participants may receive benefits retroactively to August 1, 2009, the same day the Post-9/11 GI Bill took effect.

Eligible children may be married. Recipients are entitled to 36 months of benefits at the 100 percent level.

When dependents also serve in the military, the reserves or are Veterans in their own right, eligible for education benefits under the Montgomery GI Bill for Active Duty, the Montgomery GI Bill for Selected Reserves or the Reserve Educational Assistance Program (REAP), then they would relinquish their eligibility under those programs to receive benefits under a Fry scholarship.