Editorial Board
Paying for College Shouldn't Be This Complicated
Simplifying the federal financial aid process would provide a big boost for low-income students.
Let's lighten their load.
Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty ImagesOccasionally the solution to an underachieving government program is refreshingly mundane. So it is that a simpler federal form may be all that separates millions of poor students in the U.S. from a chance to get help paying for college.
In the 2015-2016 school year, roughly 2 million high school seniors -- some 60 percent of the total -- completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or Fafsa. Of those who don't fill out the Fafsa, roughly half would have been eligible for federal Pell grants, which don't have to be repaid. The government awards Pell grants based on family need, up to an annual maximum of $5,920.