HEERF III Emergency Grants

American Rescue Plan (ARP)

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III (HEERF III)

Quarterly Report: For the quarter ending June 30, 2023

Published: July 11, 2023

The Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund III (HEERF III) was authorized by the American Rescue Plan (ARP), Public Law 117-2. It was signed into law on March 11, 2021, and provides $40 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. This new law gives the U.S. Department of Education funding to distribute to institutions of higher education in order to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus through the HEERF III.

Notre Dame de Namur University has signed and returned the Certifications and Agreements for the grants to the U.S. Department of Education and intends to use no less than $1,615,183 of the funds received under the ARP (a)(1) programs to provide emergency financial aid grants to students.
Under ARP section 2003(a)(1), Notre Dame de Namur University (NDNU) was allocated $3.2 million in HEERF III funding. Of this amount, Notre Dame de Namur University was granted $1,615,183 for emergency financial aid grants to students (CFDA 84.425E Student Aid Portion Allocation) and $1,612,898 to be used to defray expenses associated with coronavirus (CFDA 84.425F Institutional Portion Allocation).
For the quarter ended June 30, 2023, the total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under the ARP (a)(1) program is $287,750. As of June 30, 2023, the total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under the ARP (a)(1) program is $1,605,967.
The total number of students that were enrolled at the institution that were eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students under the ARP (a)(1) program during the quarter ended June 30, 2023 was approximately 200 students.
The total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to Students under the ARP (a)(1) program for the quarter was 198 students and the total number of students who received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to Students under the ARP (a)(1) program to date is 428 students.
Students who were enrolled at NDNU in summer 2021, fall 2021, spring 2022, summer 2022, fall 2022 and spring 2023 were eligible to receive grants.
Similar to the previous HEERF I and II funding, the U.S. Department of Education requires institutions to prioritize ARP HEERF III grants to students with exceptional financial need, such as Pell Grant recipients. In compliance with this directive, NDNU has developed an ARP HEERF III grant allocation matrix based on students’ Pell status, Expected Family Contribution (EFC) as calculated in the FAFSA, as well as academic level and enrollment status. For the quarter ended June 30, 2023, grants ranged from $1,300 to $2,000.
There are no more HEERF III funds available for distribution to students beyond spring 2023.

ARP HEERF III Frequently Asked Questions

How much funding is available to NDNU students and how will funds be allocated?

Under the ARP HEERF III program, NDNU has been allocated $1,615,183 to be distributed as emergency financial aid grants to eligible students. NDNU awarded approximately 8% of the available funding to undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in the summer 2021 semester, 31% to students enrolled in fall 2021, 19% to students enrolled in spring 2022, 6% to students enrolled in summer 2022, 19% to students enrolled in fall 2022 and approximately 18% in spring 2023 semester.

Who is eligible to receive an ARP HEERF III emergency grant?

According to the U.S. Department of Education’s final rule (May 14, 2021, 86 FR 26608), the HEERF funding is now available to all students regardless of their Title IV aid status. This means that DACA recipients as well as international students and online students who were previously excluded are now eligible for HEERF student grants.

Students who were enrolled at NDNU in spring 2023 were eligible to receive the grant. Similar to the previous HEERF I and II funding, the U.S. Department of Education requires institutions to prioritize ARP HEERF III grants to students with exceptional financial need, such as Pell Grant recipients. In compliance with this directive, NDNU developed an ARP HEERF III grant allocation matrix based on students’ Pell status, Expected Family Contribution (EFC) as calculated in the FAFSA, as well as academic level and enrollment status.

Are students who are enrolled exclusively in online programs eligible to receive the ARP HEERF III emergency grant?

Yes. This is a change from the previous policy set by Congress under the CARES Act.

Is there an application process?

No. The University determined eligibility and award amount based on an allocation matrix that includes financial need and academic level.

Will I be notified if I qualify for an ARP HEERF III emergency grant?

Students who met the eligibility criteria received notification to their NDNU student email account.

How much aid will I receive if I qualify for an ARP HEERF III emergency grant?

ARP HEERF III emergency grant amounts are based on an allocation matrix using the following criteria:

Prioritization will be given to students who are known to have exceptional need based on information available to the Financial Aid Office, such as those students who receive Pell Grants.
The student’s level of study will also be considered with prioritization given first to undergraduate students and then to graduate students.
The total number of eligible enrolled students is also included in the calculation.

Grants given to students who were enrolled in the following semesters received:

Summer 2021 – between $1,400 to $2,500,
Fall 2021 – between $2,000 and $6,000,
Spring 2022 – between $1,000 and $3,000,
Summer 2022 – between $677 to $1,750,
Fall 2022 – between $1,000 to $2,750, and
Spring 2023 – between $1,300 to $2,000.

How and when will ARP HEERF III emergency grants be distributed to eligible students?

NDNU disbursed ARP HEERF III emergency grants to eligible students after the last day to add/drop for each semester. Checks were issued to students within seven (7) days of the ARP HEERF III emergency grants being posted to students’ accounts. Students received their funds as a paper check, sent through U.S. mail. Any account balances owed to the university were not deducted from the ARP HEERF III emergency grant, unless specifically requested by the student.

Students requested the application of their ARP HEERF III emergency grant funds to their student account by sending an email to the Business Office. This email request was required to be submitted each semester to the Business Office email, businessoffice@ndnu.edu by the due date noted in the email communication sent to student’s NDNU email address and must have been sent from the NDNU student email account.

If the Business Office did not receive a request by the due date, the full amount of the ARP HEERF III emergency grant was issued as a paper check.

Where will I receive my check?

The ARP HEERF III emergency grant checks were mailed to the permanent home address listed on the student portal.

How can I check on the status of my ARP HEERF III emergency grant?

All student account activity is posted to the student Campus Portal. To log onto the student Campus Portal account, please use the following link: https://campusportal.ndnu.edu/ics/

To navigate to the student account and check on the status of the student ARP HEERF III emergency grant:

Enter the Student ID # and password to log in
Click on the Student tab at the top of the page
Click on Student Account Activity in the menu on the left side of the page
Click on My Balance
Click on the actual balance displayed (even if it is $0.00); this will show your account transactions with descriptions and dates.
Scroll to the bottom to view ARP HEERF III disbursements. If it is after the disbursement date and there is no information, this means the student did not qualify for a disbursement. Otherwise, there will be a credit to the account with the description “HEERF III (_*_) Grant”.

* The semester (e.g. Summer 2022, Fall 2022 or Spring 2023)

Please refer to DETAIL, scroll to the bottom to see the descriptions. If a check has been mailed, there will be a debit that with the same description and amount of the disbursement.

Can ARP HEERF III emergency grant funds be used to pay for tuition or outstanding balances for fees, debts or other amounts owed to NDNU?

Yes. The grant funds are for the students to use however they choose but are intended for unexpected expenses, unmet financial need, or expenses related to the disruption of campus operations resulting from the coronavirus. The ARP HEERF III emergency grant funds may be used for any component of the student’s cost of attendance (tuition, course materials, technology) or for costs that arise due to the COVID-19 pandemic, such as food, housing, health care (including mental health care), or childcare.

I got this money as a refund. Does this mean my student account balance has been paid off?

No. Distribution of ARP HEERF III emergency grant funds is made directly to students and are not applied by the University toward any outstanding balances that may still be owed by the student, unless the student has requested the funds be applied to their outstanding student account balance. As such, receipt of the emergency grant funds does not indicate satisfaction of their financial obligations to NDNU for any charges incurred during the current term or any prior terms. Please check your current student account balance on Campus Portal.

Will receiving an ARP HEERF III emergency grant impact my financial aid?

No. Recipients of emergency grants will see no impact on the calculation of their financial need.

Do I have to pay this money back?

No. Any funds a student received from the ARP HEERF III will not need to be repaid.

Are ARP HEERF III emergency grants taxable?

No. The grants are not included in gross taxable income. For that reason also, students who use some of their grant to pay for course materials required for online learning cannot claim that expense as a qualifying tax deduction or credit.

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Mark Dee

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