NJ awarded nearly $1.63 million in state aid to undocumented students in the fall semester

New Jersey awarded nearly $1.63 million in state aid to 513 undocumented students who attended college in the fall and were among the first to apply for the new tuition assistance.

“This financial assistance offers these New Jersey students a life-changing opportunity,” David J. Socolow, executive director of the New Jersey Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, said in a statement on Wednesday announcing the figures. “The successes of these first 513 students, who are now attending county colleges, state colleges and universities, and independent institutions around the state, will have a positive impact on countless additional lives.”  

In all, HESAA, the state agency responsible for overseeing financial aid programs — received 1,209 completed applications for aid for the fall semester. Socolow said some applicants did not qualify because they exceeded the eligibility threshold for Tuition Aid Grants, the program that accounts for the overwhelming majority of the aid. 

Click here for a school breakdown of how much financial aid NJ awarded to undocumented students. 

"They were ineligible because they are working, they are making money, and they have verifiable income,'' he said. "They are subject to the exact same income verification rules as every other applicant for state-funded financial aid."

Figures for the spring semester are not available since students have until Friday to fill out the New Jersey Alternative Financial Aid application. Applications for the fall semester are due on April 15.

The aid is applied to the students’ accounts with the schools, said Jennifer Azzarano, a spokeswoman for the agency. 

Gov. Phil Murphy signed the law in May extending financial aid to undocumented students in New Jersey who meet certain criteria. Undocumented immigrants interested in applying for financial aid must have attended high school in New Jersey for three or more years. They also must have registered for selective service, graduated from a New Jersey high school or received the equivalent of a high school diploma in New Jersey.

Applicants also must submit affidavits stating that they will file an application to change their immigration status or that they will file an application as soon as they are able to do so. 

Critics said the measure is not economically feasible, and that any money available to help students pay for college should be awarded to U.S. citizens and others who are living in the country legally. 

Students who completed the financial aid application for the fall and spring semester will also be automatically considered for the Community College Opportunity Grant, a pilot program that provides assistance with tuition and fees for eligible students at 13 county colleges across New Jersey. Murphy announced the program in September, and the state has appropriated $25 million to fund it for the fiscal year that ends on June 30. 

Among the undocumented immigrants who received state financial aid was Eri Torres, 20, of Morristown, who said she received a combined $2,400 for the fall and spring semesters at College County of Morris, where she is in her first year studying criminal justice. With the aid, she pays a little more than $2,000 out of pocket for the year, which she said is a great help.

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"I think it's a great opportunity that the students can have that,'' she said. "We also work, but the pay that we get is not enough to cover all the stuff we have to pay in college." 

Torres, who was born in Colombia and works part time at a dry cleaner, said her mother works as a tailor for a dry cleaning business as well. But she said the money they make from work wouldn't have covered their living expenses in addition to full tuition for her full-time studies and the cost of books and transportation. 

"This semester I paid $300 in books alone,'' she said, noting she also spends about $7 a day on bus fare to and from school. 

Juan, a psychology student at New Jersey City University who asked that his last name not be published, said he received a little more than $6,000 in aid for the school year, money that pays the share of his tuition that is not covered by a scholarship he received. Juan said he has a part-time retail job that pays barely enough to cover his living expenses and the cost of taking a train and the light rail to school in Jersey City every day from his home in Union County. 

"It has helped me a lot,'' Juan said of the tuition assistance. "Before, I used to pay that gap out of pocket, and I would get the installment plan. Now at least I know I don't have to come up with an extra $400 each month for tuition. That has lifted that burden off my shoulder." 

Last month, lawmakers in New York passed legislation that would grant tuition aid to undocumented students in that state. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said he will sign the bill into law.