On April 15, 2020 President Kristin G. Esterberg, on behalf of SUNY Potsdam, signed a Certification and Agreement with the U.S. Department of Education, committing SUNY Potsdam to use no less than 50% of funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students. This amounts to $2,194,755 that will be provided to SUNY Potsdam by the federal government to be paid to students directly.
SUNY Potsdam is committed to providing this economic relief money directly to our students in as transparent and expeditious a manner as possible. We will continue to provide updates, through this webpage and periodic reports to the U.S. Department of Education, on our progress in providing these grants to students.
In total 2,786 of our students met the requirement of having a FAFSA on file with our school by June 1, 2020. Of these students 2,744 students were determined to meet the general eligibility criteria to receive funds provided by HEERF I.
SUNY Potsdam prioritized awarding of Emergency Financial Aid Grants to its students in the following manner:
A base grant amount was offered to all eligible students (please see the FAQs below to better understand the eligibility requirements). Students with the highest level of demonstrated need, based on their Expected Family Contribution (EFC) from FAFSA, were offered a higher level of base grant. Regardless of base grant amount, all eligible students with expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to coronavirus in excess of the base grant amount offered were given the opportunity to apply for an enhanced grant.
The combined base and enhanced grants that a student receives may not exceed $6,195.
Based on guidance provided by the Department of Education, students must meet the following eligibility requirements:
- Have or will have allowable expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to coronavirus
- Not be matriculated in an exclusively online academic program
- Be enrolled during the spring 2020 semester (on or after March 13, 2020)
- Be a citizen of the United States or legal resident
*A valid FAFSA must be on file with the Financial Aid Office by June 1, 2020 to confirm Title IV aid eligibility
Eligible students were contacted via email on July 15, 2020 with instructions on the steps needed to confirm they had allowable expenses for HEERF funds through the BearPAWS portal. Students were asked to complete an attestation for the Base Grant and provided information regarding how to apply for additional funds through the Enhanced Grant application.
*Please note that at this time the Enhanced Grant application has been disabled in BearPAWS. Students can contact cares@potsdam.edu for more information on applying for an Enhanced Grant.
The campus is required to provide the following reporting history:
30-Day Report- May 24, 2020
- As of May 24, 2020 SUNY Potsdam has distributed $0 to 0 students as we work to finalize our plans for awarding and disbursing funds to as many students as possible.
45-Day Report- July 8, 2020
- As of July 8, 2020 SUNY Potsdam has distributed $0 to 0 students as we finalize plans.
45-Day Report- August 22, 2020
- As of August 22, 2020 SUNY Potsdam has distributed $1,974,843 to students. The total number of students who have received funds under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act as of August 22, 2020 is 1,870.
Quarterly Report - Period Ending September 30, 2020
- As of September 30, 2020 SUNY Potsdam has distributed $2,049,228 to students. The total number of students who have received funds under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act as of September 30, 2020 is 1,879.
- From August 22, 2020 (our last reporting date), to September 30, 2020 9 students have received funds under Section 18004 (a) (1) of the CARES Act totaling $74,385.
Quarterly Report - Period Ending December 31, 2020
*Final quarterly report posting which covers all HEERF I fund expenditures for Section 18004 (a)(1) of the CARES Act.
- As of December 31, 2020 SUNY Potsdam has distributed $2,194,755 to students. The total number of students who have received funds under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act as of December 30, 2020 is 1,954.
- From September 30, 2020 (our last reporting date), to December 30, 2020 75 students have received funds under Section 18004 (a) (1) of the CARES Act totaling $145,527.
Quarterly Expenditure Reports for Institutional Funds