Skip to agency navigation
Skip to main content

Official website

of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

    The .gov means it's official.

    Local, state, and federal government websites often end in .gov. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania government websites and email systems use "pennsylvania.gov" or "pa.gov" at the end of the address. Before sharing sensitive or personal information, make sure you're on an official state website. 
    ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​PA EmpowerU

    Financial Aid & Wellness for Institutional Leaders

    Financial aid and financial wellness are threads that weave through the successful completion of postsecondary credentials, but also influence how Pennsylvania learners live their lives including building a career, a family, whether to buy a home, how they contribute to society, save for retirement, and potentially build intergenerational wealth.  

    Financial Aid & Wellness for Students

    Institutions should determine what resources are available to learners, but also how they are made available. There is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Your institution can develop strategies to utilize the resources that already exist, like the financial aid office, and determine how they can be more effective and purposeful. Additionally, looking for outside resources from community-based organizations or financial experts can strengthen opportunities for student support. Approaches to promoting financial resources to students can include website information, regularly scheduled seminars, or even classroom presentations to first year students. Think outside the box and let us know what works best for you.

    Thinking Strategically About Financial Supports for Learners

    • Do you have a FAFSA completion strategy in place for applicants to your institution as well as for returning students?
    • Does your institution offer a finance class for non-finance majors?
    • What support do you have in place for emergency funding?

    Regulations to Consider

    Act 69 of 2024 added three sections to the Public School Code:

    An informational PowerPoint, Act 69 Financial Transparency and Affordability Legislation (PDF), is available. 

    Credit Card Marketing is mandated by Article XXIII-A of the PA Public School Code (Act 35 of 2023). Institutions of higher education must establish a policy that regulates the marketing of credit cards on campus. The policy may prohibit any marketing of credit cards on the campus. In establishing the policy, the institution of higher education shall, for students entering in the 2024-2025 school year, incorporate into orientation programming presentations on credit card debt education and money management skills for students.

    Act 121 of 2018​ was signed into law requiring Institutions of Higher Education (IHE) to inform their student loan borrowers, on an annual basis, of how much money they have borrowed to date for their education. IHEs may send the notifications on their own or contract with a third-party vendor. They must provide an annual attestation to PA Department of Education. 

    Financial Wellness Resources for Institutional Leaders

    PA FAFSA Go!​ is the Pennsylvania Department of Education's partnership with the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) and educational partners at the Pennsylvania Association for Student Financial Aid Administrators (PASFAA), the Pennsylvania Association for College Admission Counseling (PACAC), and the Pennsylvania School Counselors Association (PSCA) to promote completion of the FAFSA and offer resources and collaborations to high school counselors, financial aid officers, and community-based organizations in order to assist Pennsylvania learners with the financial aid process.

    PHEAA: One of the Nation's Leading Student Aid Organizations is the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency and offers a variety of publications, resources, and personnel who help students pay for postsecondary education. The Pennsylvania State Grant is the largest grant program in the state.

    Foster Ed, or the PA Fostering Independence Tuition Waiver Program, was implemented to ensure that all tuition and fees are covered for students who were in the Foster Ed system after all other financial aid, including their Chafee Grant eligibility, has been applied to their balance.

    Higher Education Financial Wellness Alliance (HEFWA) is a network of professionals dedicated to bringing together postsecondary organizations to inform national conversations that impact the financial wellness field, public policy, and educational support services.