Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III Report – Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students

30 Day Funding Report – Distribution as of 04/14/2023

Under the American Rescue Plan the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III (HEERF III), School of Visual Arts 209 East 23rd Street New York, NY 10010 OPEID 007468 received education stabilization funds designated exclusively for emergency financial aid grants to students.

Pursuant to guidance issued by the Department of Education through a Guidance published on 05/11/2021, we are providing the following information about the funds we have received, and how, and to whom, we have distributed them.

1 - On 07/15/2021, the institution signed and returned to the Department the Recipient’s Funding Certification and Agreement (for) Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students required to receive funds allocated under the American Rescue Plan. The institution has used, or intends to use, no less than 100 percent of the total funds received to provide emergency financial aid grants to students.

2 - The total amount of funds that the institution has been authorized to receive from the Department pursuant to the institution’s Certification and Agreement specifically for emergency financial aid grants to students is $1,361,087 and SVA has allocated an additional $23,633.

3 - The total amount of emergency financial aid grants distributed to students under the American Rescue Plan as of the date of this Fund Report is:

• Fall 2021: $555,530. SVA met the obligations of attending to the neediest students by first assisting those students who completed a 2021-22 FAFSA with $266,200 to Pell recipients and $289,100 to non-Pell recipients.
• Spring 2022: $829,450. SVA met the obligations of attending to the neediest students by assisting those students who completed a 2021-22 FAFSA with $390,000 to Pell recipients and $439,450 to non-Pell recipients.

4 - The estimated total number of students at the institution potentially qualified to receive emergency financial aid grants under the American Rescue Plan, as of the date of this Fund Report, is:

• Fall 2021: 1350 students.
• Spring 2022: 1324 students.

5 - The total number of students who have received an emergency financial aid grant under the American Rescue Plan as of the date of this Fund Report is:

• Fall 2021: 1343 students. 758 received direct deposits and 585 students received checks of which 585 have been cashed.
• Spring 2022: 1319 students. 809 received direct deposits and 510 students received checks of which 510 have been cashed.

6 - The methods we used to determine which students receive emergency financial aid grants and how much they would receive under the American Rescue Plan are included below under “Student Emergency Funding Allocation”:

• Fall 2021: Priority for the emergency grant was given to students who successfully completed a 2021-22 FAFSA by the Fall 2021 semester to ensure the funds go to those with the greatest need. Of that population, students who were Pell recipients would receive an award amount of $500 while the remaining funds were divided among non-Pell recipients at $350 per emergency grant.
• Spring 2022: Priority for the emergency grant was given to students who successfully completed a 2021-22 FAFSA by the Spring 2022 semester to ensure the funds go to those with the greatest need. Of that population, students who were Pell recipients would receive an award amount of $750 while the remaining funds were divided among non-Pell recipients at $550 per emergency grant.

7 - The guidance/certification we provided to students concerning the emergency financial aid grants appear below under “Student Notices”:

• Fall 2021: The first batch of emails for eligible students based on the above awarding criteria was 12/06/2021 to their SVA email explaining their rights and responsibilities. Information regarding the emergency grants is posted on the Financial Aid page of the SVA website.
• Spring 2022: The first batch of emails for eligible students based on the above awarding criteria was 02/15/2022 to their SVA email explaining their rights and responsibilities. Information regarding the emergency grants is posted on the Financial Aid page of the SVA website.

Student Emergency Funding Allocation - Student Notices

For questions or concerns regarding this Fund Report, please contact William Berrios, Director of Financial Aid.

Frequently Asked Questions

Emergency Financial Aid Grant to Students

Under the American Rescue Plan 

Overview

The Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III (HEERF III) is authorized by the American Rescue Plan (ARP), Public Law 117-2, signed into law on March 11, 2021, providing $39.6 billion in support to institutions of higher education to serve students and ensure learning continues during the COVID-19 pandemic.

ARP funds are in addition to funds authorized by the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSAA), Public Law 116-260 and the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, Public Law 116-136. Emergency funds available to institutions and their students under all emergency funds total $76.2 billion.

Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

Q: Which students are eligible to receive HEERF III student emergency grant funds?

A: For the first HEERF III disbursement for Fall 2021, priority for the emergency grant was given to students who successfully completed a 2021-22 FAFSA by the Fall 2021 semester to ensure the funds went to those with the greatest need. For the second HEERF III disbursement for Spring 20222, priority for the emergency grant was given to students who successfully completed a 2021-22 FAFSA by the Spring 2022 semester to ensure the funds went to those with the greatest need. One prerequisite is that eligible students must have incurred additional expenses due to campus disruptions due to the pandemic, such as food, housing, technology, course materials, health care, and childcare. After confirming a student meets all requirements, the institution retains discretion over which students will receive HEERF III student emergency grant funds and the amount of the award.

Q: Are students required to have a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on file in order to be eligible for the HEERF III student emergency grant funds?

A: While a FAFSA is not required as per federal guidelines, priority was given to students who successfully completed a 2021 -22 FAFSA by the above listed deadlines to ensure the funds went to those with the greatest need.

Q: What criteria was used to determine who receives the HEERF III student emergency grant funds?

A: Priority for the emergency grant was given to students who successfully completed a 2021-22 FAFSA by the above listed deadlines to ensure the funds go to those with the greatest need.

Q: How much will I receive in the HEERF III student emergency grant assistance and when will it be disbursed?

A: For the first HEERF III disbursement for Fall 2021, students who were Pell recipients received an award amount of $500 while the remaining funds were divided among non-Pell recipients at $350 per emergency grant. Our office determined these amounts to ensure the neediest students received assistance. These funds were disbursed on 12/09/2021. For the second HEERF III disbursement for Spring 2022, students who were Pell recipients received an award amount of $750 while the remaining funds were divided among non-Pell recipients at $550 per emergency grant. Our office determined these amounts to ensure the neediest students received assistance. These funds were disbursed on 02/16/2022.

Q: Which students are not eligible to receive HEERF III student emergency grant funds?

A: Any student who attests they have not incurred additional expenses due to campus disruptions due to the pandemic, such as food, housing, technology, course materials, health care, and childcare would not be eligible to receive HEERF III funds.

Q: Which expenses are the HEERF III student emergency grant funds for? And what can students use these funds for?  

A: HEERF III student emergency grant funds provide monetary assistance to students whose education has been disrupted because of the coronavirus global pandemic. The U.S. Department of Education has made the emergency grant aid available to students of institutions who need financial support for additional expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the COVID-19 outbreak, including things like course materials and technology as well as food, housing, health care, and childcare. For example, because the College changed to online courses, a student may have incurred expenses to purchase a web camera, printer, computer software, or faster internet service. For the first HEERF III disbursement for Fall 2021 only, a student had the option to apply their emergency grant funds towards an outstanding balance created on/after March 13, 2020. Our office provided students who met this criteria with an electronic form allowing them the option to request a portion/all of their emergency grant funds to be applied towards an outstanding balance created on/after March 13, 2020.

Q: What do students need to do, or what type of application does the student need to complete to participate in the HEERF III student emergency funds?

A: There was no application process in order to receive the emergency grant. Our office determined eligible students who met the awarding criteria and notified those students with an email to their SVA email. Students were given the option to opt out of receiving the emergency grant within two business days of receiving the email if they did not incur expenses as a result of the pandemic. If our office did not receive a signed and dated response from the student to that effect within two business days, we assumed that the student had incurred those expenses and will use the emergency grant towards them.

Q: Are there additional HEERF III emergency grant funds available to students with higher expenses and special needs?

A: All funds have been exhausted at this time.

Q: How will the students receive the funds?

A: For those students receiving an emergency grant, they were provided the opportunity to sign up for E-refunds if they had not already done so to have their refund deposited directly into their US bank account. Students who had not signed up for direct deposit received a check mailed to their current address on file. 

Q: Does the HEERF III emergency grant have to be repaid?

A: No, this is grant assistance and does not need to be repaid.