Twice a year community colleges all across Ventura County offer the Cash for College workshop, assisting students with the challenging aspects of applying for financial aid.
On Saturday, Oct. 13, 2018, the Cash for College workshop was hosted by Moorpark College in Fountain Hall.
Both current and future students were able to attend the event and meet with members of the Financial Aid office to help direct them in the correct path to apply for FASFA or the California Dream Act.
“I encourage students to attend this event,” said Kimberly Korinke, Moorpark College’s Financial Aid Officer. “It could help students and parents apply without the challenges of not knowing what to do.”
The workshop was open to the public and many high school students decided to attend. They felt that it was a difficult process to execute the financial aid process alone.
Newbury Park High school senior Areli Perez joined the group.
“All the help you get is helpful,” said Perez. “I would really recommend others to come. It’s much easier to do it here and get it over with, and I would definitely come again.”
In addition to the workshops, the Ventura County Credit Union was also present at the college to help students and parents with financial planning for their student’s future.
Eric Garcia of Ventura County Credit Union had some wise advice.
“We tell people to use their money wisely and keep it safe,” said García, “We have a huge increase in student population coming to our banks, so we try to help you out.”
Though the credit union didn’t have a workshop, it was helpful to understand the spending standards students have throughout their college years. García mentioned how they are planning to create a few workshops during the February event in order to reach out to more students and their parents.
“Students have been asking me if we had a workshop today,” Garcia stated. “I will definitely bring it up to corporate and we will try to have a workshop for all the students who would like to know more about their financial [expenditures] in the next few years.”
Deadlines for submission for FASFA application are June 30, 2019 and California Dream Act application are due March 2, 2019. For more information about future workshops or events, stop by the Financial Aid office or visit https://www.vcccd.edu/students/financial-aid-information/cash-for-college-workshops.
