Long Island Area Completion Rates For College Aid Applications

LONG ISLAND, NY — Among the many disruptions caused by the pandemic is a decline in the number of students filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which is used to apply for college financial aid.

FAFSA form completions are often seen as a harbinger of future enrollment. The decline of applications this year, especially among low-income students, has some experts worried.

“This year is clawing back relative to last year, but it’s still not a good FAFSA completion situation,” said Bill DeBaun, director of data and evaluation for the National College Attainment Network.

Nationally, the total number of FAFSA completions is down 6.7 percent through the week ending April 9 compared with the same date last year; there were 1.88 million applications last year compared with 1.75 million this year.

There has been improvement in recent weeks and the situation is looking more optimsitic compared to the fall; in November 2020 there was a year-over-year percent drop of 16.8 percent in FAFSA completions.

In New York, there were 93,503 FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021, compared with 100,131 completions at the same point last year, according to an Associated Press analysis of FAFSA data. That is a 6.6 percent drop. (See how Long Island area high schools did at bottom of article.)

At this point, it’s hard to say whether the decline in FAFSA applications suggests a decline in college enrollment for the fall 2021 semester, DeBaun said.

“If we don’t help students complete the milestones now, there is no guarantee that they will hop on a postsecondary path in the fall,” he said.

Freshman enrollment dropped 13 percent nationally in fall 2020, according to the National Student Clearinghouse. The largest decrease occurred at community colleges. Total undergraduate enrollment was down 4.4 percent in the fall.

Other changes are at hand in the college application process this year. Many top-tier schools made test scores optional and saw a massive surge in applications, according to The New York Times. At the same time many smaller schools and state colleges reported a drop in applicants.

The decline in FAFSA applications is owing largely to the coronavirus pandemic, DeBaun said. The high school senior class of 2021 experienced disruption for part of its junior year and all of its senior year, including restricted access to high school-based help with completion of FAFSA forms.

The FAFSA process isn’t intuitive for many students and their families. Primary support often comes from school-based financial aid events. 

Completion rates have declined even faster at Title 1 high schools, meaning those where low-income students make up at least 40 percent of enrollment. The completion rate dropped 9.4 percent this year at Title 1 schools as of April 9, compared with 4.6 percent for non-Title 1 schools, according to NCAN’s FAFSA status tracker.

In New York, there was a 10.8 percent drop among completed applications from Title 1 schools compared with a 2.8 percent drop for non-Title 1 school applications as of March 26.

The widening gap is largely due to the disruption in support that schools give families in completing the FAFSA.

Here is how schools in the Long Island area are doing with FAFSA completion as of March 26. See more Long Island area high schools here. Note: Percent changes can be affected by a relatively small difference in completions, especially for smaller schools.

School: WYANDANCH MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL
District: WYANDANCH UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: WYANDANCH

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 12
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 38
• Percent change: -68.42
• Title 1 status: Title I schoolwide

School: ROSLYN HIGH SCHOOL
District: ROSLYN UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: ROSLYN HEIGHTS

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 114
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 149
• Percent change: -23.49
• Title 1 status: Not Title I schoolwide

School: CENTER MORICHES HIGH SCHOOL
District:CENTER MORICHES UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: CENTER MORICHES

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 55
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 71
• Percent change: -22.54
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: ISLIP HIGH SCHOOL
District:ISLIP UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: ISLIP

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 116
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 147
• Percent change: -21.09
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL
District:WESTBURY UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: OLD WESTBURY

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 89
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 112
• Percent change: -20.54
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: MANHASSET SECONDARY SCHOOL
District:MANHASSET UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: MANHASSET

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 126
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 157
• Percent change: -19.75
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: KINGS PARK HIGH SCHOOL
District:KINGS PARK CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: KINGS PARK

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 144
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 178
• Percent change: -19.1
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: EAST HAMPTON HIGH SCHOOL
District:EAST HAMPTON UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: EAST HAMPTON

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 102
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 126
• Percent change: -19.05
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: CARLE PLACE MIDDLE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
District:CARLE PLACE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: CARLE PLACE

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 61
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 75
• Percent change: -18.67
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: W TRESPER CLARKE HIGH SCHOOL
District:EAST MEADOW UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: WESTBURY

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 114
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 139
• Percent change: -17.99
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: GREENPORT HIGH SCHOOL
District:GREENPORT UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: GREENPORT

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 19
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 23
• Percent change: -17.39
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: FREEPORT HIGH SCHOOL
District:FREEPORT UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: FREEPORT

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 166
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 199
• Percent change: -16.58
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: LIFE SCIENCES SECONDARY SCHOOL
District:NEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT # 2
Municipality: NEW YORK

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 47
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 56
• Percent change: -16.07
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: WILLIAM FLOYD HIGH SCHOOL
District:WILLIAM FLOYD UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: MASTIC BEACH

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 203
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 238
• Percent change: -14.71
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: VILLAGE SCHOOL
District:GREAT NECK UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: GREAT NECK

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 6
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 7
• Percent change: -14.29
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: HUNTINGTON HIGH SCHOOL
District:HUNTINGTON UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: HUNTINGTON

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 169
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 191
• Percent change: -11.52
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: SEAFORD SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
District:SEAFORD UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: SEAFORD

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 118
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 133
• Percent change: -11.28
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: WANTAGH SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
District:WANTAGH UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: WANTAGH

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 158
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 177
• Percent change: -10.73
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: PLAINEDGE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
District:PLAINEDGE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: MASSAPEQUA

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 139
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 154
• Percent change: -9.74
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: PAUL D SCHREIBER SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
District:PORT WASHINGTON UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: PORT WASHINGTON

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 204
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 226
• Percent change: -9.73
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: EAST MEADOW HIGH SCHOOL
District:EAST MEADOW UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: EAST MEADOW

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 218
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 241
• Percent change: -9.54
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: NORTHPORT SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
District:NORTHPORT-EAST NORTHPORT UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: NORTHPORT

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 284
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 313
• Percent change: -9.27
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: RIVERHEAD SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
District:RIVERHEAD CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: RIVERHEAD

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 159
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 175
• Percent change: -9.14
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: MILLER PLACE HIGH SCHOOL
District:MILLER PLACE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: MILLER PLACE

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 127
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 138
• Percent change: -7.97
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: WALT WHITMAN HIGH SCHOOL
District:SOUTH HUNTINGTON UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Municipality: HUNTINGTON STATION

• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 235
• Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 255
• Percent change: -7.84
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

Any student who is even remotely considering attending college in the fall should fill out the FAFSA, DeBaun said. Some colleges have been more flexible with their aid deadlines.

“If you have any aspiration for attending in the fall, it’s still important to fill out the FAFSA," he said, "and it’s not too late to do so."

Editor’s note: This list was automatically generated using FAFSA data analyzed by the Associated Press. Information isn't available for all schools. Schools with fewer than five completions are omitted from the data. Please report any errors or other feedback to content@patch.com.