TAMPA, Fla. — November is national scholarship month but experts say many Latino students aren't taking advantage of opportunities to get help with schooling.
- UnidosNow helping Latino students with scholarship opportunities
- Program helps students begin process, complete FAFSA
- More info on UnidosNow
When it came to applying for financial aid, student Lucero Guzman said she had no idea where to begin.
UnidosNow Executive Director Luz Corcuera said it's a problem she sees with many Latino students and their families.
"When we explain to them that there are 2.5 million dollars left at the table in pell grants that are not claimed because the students don't complete their FAFSA application, it is an incentive for them," Corcuera said.
Without the FAFSA, students can't apply for additional scholarships. The organization has helped 300 students with the FAFSA so far this year, an increase from last year, by hosting instructional workshops and teaching students how to use the new FAFSA filing app, which launched this year.
"And so if they are ready and they do all their homework ahead of time, applying for a scholarship will not be difficult," Corcuera said.
After students do that, they can access a database of scholarships on the UnidosNow website.
"By compiling this information and making it available to the students, I think we have given them a tool that is easier to navigate but also they get our support as they start applying for different scholarships.
Guzman is now in her second year of college and an intern at UnidosNow, where she encourages others like her to take advantage of financial aid.
"Thinking about what the return will be in your life and what having that return will be able to have you do for other people as well," Corcuera said.
The next FAFSA workshops will take place on December 5 and 14.