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Welcome to the Office of Financial Aid!

Okii' Welcome!
Blackfeet Community College offers an affordable, first-rate education. The Office of Student Financial Aid, fin_aid@bfcc.edu, is here to assist you with the costs of your educational investment. We are committed to providing information on available financial aid options and assisting you with the process. 
 
Gaylene DuCharme, Financial Aid Director
Phone: 406-338-5421, ext. 2245               Fax: 406-338-3776
Office Hours M-F: 8:00 am to 4:00 pm
CLOSED on Fridays from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm
(At Lunch, 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm) 
 
Don't hesitate to get in touch with me for general questions about your default status, PELL Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU), your academic status, detailed information regarding your FAFSA errors and/or corrections, or required student paperwork, missing signatures, Financial Aid Needs Analysis, Award Letters, Scholarship Posting, your SAP (Satisfactory Academic Progress), Financial Aid appeals, professional judgments and your pace of progression. If you have questions, stop by, email, or call. 
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Desiree Brown-Lopez, Financial Aid Specialist
Phone: 406-338-5421, Ext 2246
Office Hours M-F: 8:00 am to 4:30 pm
CLOSED on Friday: 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm
(At lunch, 12:00 pm to 12:30 pm)
 
Don't hesitate to get in touch with me for information, to check if your student file is complete, to set up FAFSA appointments & FAFSA assistance, work-study applications, work-study human resource forms, timesheets; verification of FAFSA info, financial aid paperwork, educational planner, etc., scholarship listings or Facebook posts, assistance getting tax transcripts, student verification paperwork, and helping with the FSA ID. If you have questions, stop by, email, or call.    

HIRING Looking for Workstudy Applicants

Federal Work-Study jobs help students earn money to pay for college or career school.

Undergraduate and graduate students with work-study jobs will work part-time on or off campus while enrolled. Federal Work-Study provides part-time jobs for undergra...

Read more HIRING Looking for Workstudy Applicants Read more

Who’s My Parent When I Fill Out My FAFSA® Form?

A parent means your legal (biological or adoptive) parent or stepparent, or a person that the state has determined to be your legal parent by state or local law. 

  • Question 1: Are your parents married to each other?

If yes, then report information for b...

Read more Who’s My Parent When I Fill Out My FAFSA® Form? Read more

What do I do if my family financial situation has changed?

Many FAFSA applicants have experienced recent financial changes due to the COVID-19 emergency or other reasons.

Has your (or your family’s) financial situation changed from what is reflected on your federal income tax return? For example, you or a fa...

Read more What do I do if my family financial situation has changed? Read more

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Understand Financial Aid

As you prepare for college or career school, explore how financial aid works, learn about the types of aid, and find out if you’re eligible. You can also estimate your eligible aid when you check out the Federal Student Aid Estimator.

You can access your federal student loan, provided you have chosen to take a loan to finance your education.

You can look up your loans by signing in and checking your account. 

P.S.

BFCC does not participate in the student loan program at this time.

Nor do we offer the Indian Fee Waiver; the waiver is only accessible through the Montana University System. 


The American Indian College Fund provides scholarships to American Indian and Alaska Native college students who are enrolled in certificate, undergraduate, or graduate programs at tribal colleges and universities or nonprofit, accredited schools

Eligibility

The FAFSA is a year-to-year application provided by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) that determines a student's eligibility for need-based federal financial aid for college based on their financial situation.
 
Use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form to apply for college or graduate school financial aid each year. Please create your FSA ID to sign the FAFSA; this is your electronic signature. Keep the FSA login in a safe place. You will use it if you attend any eligible USA college.
To be eligible to receive financial aid, applicants must:
  • Demonstrate financial need to further their education by completing the yearly FAFSA
  • Be a citizen or an eligible non-citizen
  • Be enrolled in 6 or more credits or accepted for enrollment as a regular student in an eligible degree or certificate program.
  • Maintain satisfactory academic progress in a declared course of study or certificate.
  • Not be in default on any student loans
  • Not owe repayment or overpayment on any grants
  • Submit Financial Aid Forms: Educational Planner, Title IX, and Student Intake form. See below. 
Title Description File type

Purpose of the Title IX training: the Clery Act, the Alcohol and Drug Policy and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), & Staying Healthy in a Changing EnvironmentBlackfeet Community College (bfcc.edu)

 

For students, click on the VECTOR Tile (see image) and begin the training online. If the tile does not work, please email fin_aid@bfcc.edu, and we will send you the link. 

 

Students registered at Blackfeet Community College and, most importantly, those receiving federal funding, i.e., the Pell Grant, FSEOG, Work-study, Private Grants, Scholarships, etc., must complete these courses before funds are disbursed to the student.

If you have not started or have started but have not finished the Title IX training, a reminder will be sent to your email until you have completed it. 

 

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Remember to use your BFCC Educational Two-Year Planner to stay on track with your degree plan for Financial Aid and Graduation requirements.

Before registering for classes, you must make an appointment with your advisor to ensure you are on the right path to graduation.

Complete this form and get the original to the financial aid office, with both the advisor and student's signature. 

 

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A student intake form is a document that collects essential information about a student, such as their address, phone number, their program of study, etc. 

The information you give on the intake form will help us in financial aid connect you with resources and support networks to help you transition from BFCC. 

Please click this link to complete the form online: 

https://forms.gle/o5YLu8HiFXNiMNuz8

 

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Students Can Decline or Return Pell Grant Funds

Students can decline or return Pell Grant funds within the academic year to preserve eligibility for future enrollment periods. The form is located in the BFCC Student Portal. 

• Students may decline their Pell Grant Funding that has not yet been disbursed.  

• Students may decline all or part of a Pell Grant award during the award year. 

• Students may not request to decline or return a Pell Grant from a prior academic year.  

• Students may return the Pell Grant Funds already disbursed for the current year only.  

Print and download the form to decline or return Pell Grant Funding: 

Request to Decline or Return Pell Grant Award

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Have you been Verified?

You might see a note on your SAR saying you’ve been selected for verification, or your school might contact you to inform you that you’ve been selected. Verification is the process your school uses to confirm that the data reported on your FAFSA form is accurate. If you’re selected for verification, your school will request additional documentation supporting your reported information.

Don’t assume you’re being accused of doing anything wrong. Some people are randomly selected for verification, and some schools verify all students' FAFSA forms. All you need to do is provide the documentation your school asks for—and be sure to do so by the school’s deadline, or you won’t be able to get federal student aid.

Now, are you Dependent or Independent? If you know, please choose the correct verification form. If you do not know, please go to the "Am I independent or dependent form" to help determine which form you have to complete. 

Title Description File type

Your answers to questions on the FAFSA form determine whether you’re considered a dependent or independent student. Your dependency status determines the information you must report when filling out the FAFSA form. If you’re a dependent student, you’ll report your and your parents’ information. If you’re an independent student, you’ll report your information (and, if you’re married, your spouse’s).

Your dependency status determines whose information you need to report when you fill out the FAFSA® form. This worksheet will help you make this determination.

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Verification Process *

Verification is the process your school uses to confirm that the data reported on your FAFSA form is accurate. If you're selected for verification, your school can request additional documentation to verify your FAFSA. Don't assume you're being accused of doing anything wrong.

Verification requires the student to verify the accuracy of their application by providing the Financial Aid Office with the documents necessary to complete the process.

However, we cannot pay the student until all documentation is received. 

Thank you. 

 

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Verification Process *

Verification is the process your school uses to confirm that the data reported on your FAFSA form is accurate. If you're selected for verification, your school will request additional documentation that supports the information you reported. Don't assume you're being accused of doing anything wrong.

Verification requires the student to verify the accuracy of their application by providing the Financial Aid Office with the documents necessary to complete the verification process.

But note, that we are unable to post financial assistance until the verification process is completed.

Thank you 

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Financial Aid Forms

Remember the following information about forms you may need or would like to access: 

Title Description File type
Click this link to sign the form using Adobe PDF: Financial Aid Needs Analysis.
 
What is an FNA? The Financial Needs Analysis (FNA) provides agencies with the student’s financial status and unmet need figures, determining agency funding eligibility. Unmet need is determined by taking the BFCC federally calculated student expenses minus the resources available to the student.
 
What is the SAI? The Student Aid Index (SAI) is the number that determines how much aid, aka funding, a student will get based on the information they enter when they complete and submit the FAFSA application. 
 
How to Request a Financial Aid Needs Analysis (FNA): First, the student’s FAFSA must be on file with BFCC before an FNA request can be made. All students must complete the BFCC  form online here in JICS. Other individual agency forms will be completed, as with the BFCC FNA form. Email them or hand them in. 
 
Once the request the FNA is submitted to the BFCC Financial Aid Office. Please allow three (3) days for processing. 
 
BFCC can only complete an FNA for a student with a FAFSA on file. This assures the college provides the agency with the most accurate financial aid information at the time of the request. Exceptions can only be made for students suspended from receiving financial assistance or default status.
 
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What if I forget my FSA ID username or password?
 
If you’ve forgotten your username or password, don’t worry; we provide options for you to recover your account information.
 
On most of our log-in pages, you’ll find links that say something like “Forgot My Username” and “Forgot My Password” so you can start the process of recovering your information.
 
Recovering Your Username by clicking on the “Forgot My Username” (or similar) link on the site you want to log in.  
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Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act aka FERPA
 
FERPA is a Federal law that is administered by the Family Policy Compliance Office (Office) in the U.S. Department of Education (Department). 20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99. FERPA applies to all educational agencies and institutions (e.g., schools) that receive funding under any program administered by the department. Parochial and private schools at the elementary and secondary levels generally do not receive such funding and are, therefore, not subject to FERPA. Private postsecondary schools, however, generally do receive such funding and are subject to FERPA.
 
Once students reach 18 years of age or attend a postsecondary institution, they become "eligible students," and all rights formerly given to parents under FERPA transfer to the students.
 
Eligible students have the right to access their education records, to seek to have the records amended, to control the disclosure of personally identifiable information from the records (except in certain circumstances specified in the FERPA regulations), and to file a complaint with the Department.
Click here for the FERPA Release form: FERPA Release Form
 
The term "education records" contains information directly related to a student and maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution. See FERPA: https://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/
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