With earlier opening date for FAFSA, roadshows planned to educate families on financial aid process 

The Department of Education has moved the opening date for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) from Jan. 1 to Oct. 1 this year and is allowing students and families to use their prior-year tax return to complete their FAFSA.

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While the earlier opening date gives students more time to complete their FAFSA, many colleges have moved their priority deadlines for submitting the FAFSA to earlier in the year, with some as early as Dec. 1.

To meet this need, HISD’s College Readiness Department is launching their FAFSA Roadshow initiative in the late fall this year. High schools will be hosting FAFSA/TASFA completion workshops, called FAFSA Roadshows, from Oct. 31 to Nov. 18.

FAFSA Roadshow schedule

At each roadshow, there will be knowledgeable HISD staff and trained volunteers from community-based organizations available to answer questions and help families navigate the process of completing their FAFSA or TAFSA. Students and families can create their FSA ID as well, which is used to access financial-aid information and electronically sign federal student-aiddocuments.

In addition, Project GRAD Houston will provide stipends to 17 HISD alumni (called FAFSA Roadies) to assist schools with their roadshows. Campuses will provide open computer labs to complete the FAFSA, as well as one-on-one and small group support.

Students and families should complete this worksheet before attending.

In addition, students and parents will have the opportunity to attend additional roadshows organized by Project GRAD in collaboration with local community-based organizations. View the schedule of these roadshows at Houston FAFSA, which has a calendar listing all of the events.