HEDGESVILLE, W.Va. — High school counselors in the Panhandle want area seniors to know that the application for the PROMISE scholarship is due by March 1st.
Normally by this time, high schoolers have had frequent morning announcements and in-person workshops to make sure the $4,750 a year scholarship application is submitted, but this year, with high schools in the Panhandle shut down for weeks at a time due to COVID-19 infection rates, those reminders haven’t been possible.
Earlier in the year, less than half of the applications submitted a year ago had been turned in.
The FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, must also be filed before March 1st in order to qualify for the PROMISE scholarship.
Kevin Frankhouser is a guidance counselor at Hedgesville High School. He does not recommend putting the applications off until the last minute.
“FAFSA is more involved. You have to have your family’s income information, because it’s based on household income. Sometimes questions come up. You need to allow yourself some time to get those resolved because the FAFSA has to be submitted by March 1st,” he says.
Go to www.cfwv.com for more information.