FAFSA Completions Down In CA: How Los Angeles Area Schools Compare

Los Angeles CA

23 April, 2021

4:24 PM

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LOS ANGELES, CA — 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 California, there were 222,257 FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021, compared with 246,827 completions at the same point last year, according to an Associated Press analysis of FAFSA data. That is a 10.0 percent drop. (See how Los Angeles 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 California, there was a 14.9 percent drop among completed applications from Title 1 schools compared with a 5.0 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 Los Angeles area are doing with FAFSA completion as of March 26. See more Los Angeles area high schools here. Note: Percent changes can be affected by a relatively small difference in completions, especially for smaller schools. School: CENTRAL HIGH District: LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 9 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 23 Percent change: -60.87 Title 1 status: Title I schoolwide School: EDWARD R. ROYBAL LEARNING CENTER District: LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 71 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 165 Percent change: -56.97 Title 1 status: Title I schoolwide School: ROBERT H. LEWIS CONTINUATION District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: SUN VALLEY Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 5 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 11 Percent change: -54.55 Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: FRIDA KAHLO HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 6 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 13 Percent change: -53.85 Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: AUGUSTUS F. HAWKINS HIGH C RSPNSBL INDIGENOUS SOC ENTREPR District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 37 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 75 Percent change: -50.67 Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: MANUAL ARTS SENIOR HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 87 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 176 Percent change: -50.57Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: CRENSHAW SCI TECH ENGR MATH AND MED MAGNET District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 60 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 116 Percent change: -48.28 Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: CAMINO NUEVO CHARTER HIGH District:CAMINO NUEVO CHARTER HIGH DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 24 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 43 Percent change: -44.19Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: THOMAS JEFFERSON SENIOR HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 53 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 94 Percent change: -43.62Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: CAL BURKE HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: PANORAMA CITY Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 12 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 21 Percent change: -42.86Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: GEORGE WASHINGTON PREPARATORY HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 61 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 102 Percent change: -40.2Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: PUC EARLY COLLEGE ACADEMY FOR LEADERS AND SCHOLARS (ECALS) District:PUC EARLY COLLEGE ACAD FOR LEADERS&SCHOLARS(ECALS) DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 56 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 93 Percent change: -39.78Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: ROBERT FULTON COLLEGE PREPARATORY District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: VAN NUYS Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 56 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 93 Percent change: -39.78Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: ALLIANCE TENNENBAUM FAMILY TECHNOLOGY HIGH District:ALLIANCE TENNENBAUM FAMILY TECHNOLOGY HIGH DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 38 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 62 Percent change: -38.71Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: COLLEGE BRIDGE ACADEMY District:COLLEGE BRIDGE ACADEMY DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 22 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 35 Percent change: -37.14Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: ALLIANCE PIERA BARBAGLIA SHAHEEN HEALTH SERVICES ACADEMY District:ALLIANCE PIERA BARBAGLIA SHAHEEN HLT SRVS ACADEMY DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 45 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 71 Percent change: -36.62Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: SANTEE EDUCATION COMPLEX District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 180 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 281 Percent change: -35.94Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: WEST ADAMS PREPARATORY HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 154 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 233 Percent change: -33.91Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: HIGHLAND PARK CONTINUATION District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 6 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 9 Percent change: -33.33Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: JOHN C. FREMONT SENIOR HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 190 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 275 Percent change: -30.91Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: TEACH TECH CHARTER HIGH District:TEACH TECH CHARTER HIGH DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 28 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 40 Percent change: -30Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: ALAIN LEROY LOCKE COLLEGE PREPARATORY ACADEMY District:ALAIN LEROY LOCKE COLLEGE PREPARATORY ACADEMY DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 95 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 135 Percent change: -29.63Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: SIATECH ACADEMY SOUTH District:SIATECH ACADEMY SOUTH DISTRICT Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 5 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 7 Percent change: -28.57Title 1 status:N/A School: RAMON C. CORTINES SCHOOL OF VISUAL AND PERFORMING ARTS District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 146 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 201 Percent change: -27.36Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide School: BELMONT SENIOR HIGH District:LOS ANGELES UNIFIED Municipality: LOS ANGELES Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2021: 68 Total FAFSA completions as of March 26, 2020: 91 Percent change: -25.27Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide Click here to see the numbers for more Los Angeles area high schools. 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 [email protected].