Indiana Commission for Higher Education

BRIEF OVERVIEW

RESOURCES

  • (Added 2/13/24, Michelle Ashcraft, CHE):A recent press release from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education announced applications for the Career Coaching Grant, due Friday, March 1, 2024 at 5 PM ET. More information on the request for proposals can be found at https://www.in.gov/che/requests-for-proposal/. Counselors and/or their school partners may receive additional follow-up from our K-12 Outreach team to ensure that news of this opportunity is shared as widely as possible. Questions should be directed to grants@che.in.gov.
  • (Added 11/29/23): PRESS RELEASE: State Higher Ed Commission Extends Partnership with University of Indianapolis, INvestEd to Help Indiana Dual Credit Teachers Get Credentials
  • (Added 11/13/23, Hilary Deardorff, CHE):Hilary Deardorff is recruiting a new Outreach Coordinator to join the Indiana Commission for Higher Education‘s K-12 Outreach Team for our Northwest Indiana region. The Outreach Coordinator for Northwest Indiana facilitates outreach, engagement, and support for programs, policies, and partnerships designed to increase the college-going rate for Hoosier K-12 students and their families. Daily efforts will focus on strengthening the utilization of Indiana’s 21st Century Scholars Award and Frank O’Bannon Grant by increasing FAFSA filing and promoting the Learn More Indiana brand and suite of resources.The region currently includes Lake, Porter, LaPorte, St. Joseph, Newton, Jasper, Pulaski, Starke, Marshall, and Fulton counties. This is a fully remote position, as travel throughout the counties is required. To apply: https://workforindiana.in.gov/job/La-Porte-Outreach-Coordinator-IN-46350/1096407200/
  • (Added 11/10/23, CHE): Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 167-2023: FAFSA – Overview During the 2023 legislative session, the Indiana General Assembly passed Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 167-2023 which requires high school seniors to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or affirmatively opt out of filing by April 15. Completing the FAFSA is an important step in a postsecondary education. Students pursuing short-term certificate training, associate/bachelor’s degrees and even some apprenticeships may receive financial aid by completing the FAFSA.
    • Tracking FAFSA Completion
      • High school administrators and counselors can see which students have completed the FAFSA in real-time in ScholarTrack via the FAFSA Completion Project. Additionally, high schools will be able to report the students who choose to opt out and those waived by the high school after April 15 via the Graduation Details upload in ScholarTrack. High schools will not be asked to provide verification of their two attempts to contact students.
      • The Indiana Commission for Higher Education (Commission) will report the number of students who complete the FAFSA, opt out and are waived by the high school to the Indiana Department of Education for inclusion on the Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed Dashboard.
      • Further, high schools’ FAFSA completion rates can be accessed without logging into ScholarTrack via the Learn More Indiana FAFSA Completion Dashboard which will launch in January 2024.
    • Model Notice
      • To assist high schools, the Indiana General Assembly charged the Commission with annually sending a FAFSA model notice that includes:
        • a statement regarding the existence and availability of the FAFSA
        • a description that provides students and parents with an understanding of the process for and benefits of completing the FAFSA; and
        • the state financial aid available to Indiana students.
      • The Commission requests for schools to safelist emails from @che.in.gov and @subscriptions.in.gov so FAFSA communications can be sent directly to students. This will allow the Commission to partner with counselors and educators on FAFSA outreach.
    • Opting Out Students who do not wish to file the FAFSA may opt out in one of the following ways:
      • a parent/guardian of the student submits a FAFSA Waiver Form certifying the student understands what the FAFSA is and declines to complete it;
      • the studentif the student is an emancipated minor or is at least 18 years old, submits a signed waiver certifying the student understands what the FAFSA is and declines to complete it; or
      • the high school principal or counselor of the student waives the requirement due to not being able to reach the family of the student by April 15 after at least two reasonable attempts.
    • The FAFSA Waiver Form will be released on an annual basis on the opening day of the FAFSA. However, the Commission will release this year’s waiver early due to the United States Department of Education delaying the release of the 2024-2025 FAFSA until December 2023. The waiver may be found at https://www.in.gov/che/state-financial-aid/state-financial-aid-by-program/.
    • Questions: High school partners may send questions to schools@che.in.gov or to their Regional Outreach Coordinator.
  • (Added 10/2/23, Michelle Ashcraft, CHE): Sometimes a student does not have an SAT score entered into ScholarTrack. In order to be matched to more than three institutions, students must have both a GPA and SAT score entered into the system. (For those who did not take the SAT, a 0 score can be entered.) GPAs were reported to ScholarTrack by schools and CHE uploaded SAT scores from the Indiana Department of Education. The Outreach Coordinators have been regularly reaching out to pre-admissions contacts to get missing information updated, as the deadline for updates approaches. Missing information can be entered as part of Graduation Details in ScholarTrack (like GPAs and diploma types). If you need assistance, please contact your Outreach Coordinator. Also remember , pre-admissions does not preclude students from applying to schools they are interested in applying to, especially as we do have some institutions that are not participating. That is why we listed all institutions at https://learnmoreindiana.org/preadmit/.
  • (Added 9/7/2023 CELL’s Counselor Lunch & Learn Series): Indiana Pre-Admissions Discussion with the Indiana Commission of Higher Education.
  • (August 1, 2023:): CHE launched a new planning tool for the Indiana College Core. The site, My College Core, allows students, families and school counselors to access information regarding college-level coursework, including dual credit, dual enrollment, Advanced Placement (AP) and College-Level Examination Program (CLEP). Students who utilize the tool can build plans that are specific to the college-level coursework offered at their high school. The tool also allows students to communicate their plans with parents/guardians and school counselors. As students complete coursework they can track their progress toward completing the Indiana College Core certificate.
  • (CounselorTalk, May 2023): Indiana Pre-Admissions: Your Path to College:
    • Graduation Details reporting for 21st Century Scholars and non-Scholars who are earning an Academic Honors Diploma will be due via ScholarTrack by June 15, 2023 for the high school class of 2023.
    • Additionally, the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (CHE), in partnership with Indiana’s colleges and universities, is pleased to unveil the Indiana Pre-Admissions: Your Path to College initiative, a statewide pre-admissions initiative which kicks off with the high school class of 2024. This exciting opportunity will inform Hoosier high school seniors about their choices for education and training beyond high school in Indiana and share various resources to help make the costs of participation more manageable.
      • Students will be pre-admitted to participating Indiana colleges and universities based on 6th semester GPA and/or SAT eligibility criteria as set by the individual institutions.
      • SAT scores will be provided by the Indiana Department of Education to CHE.
      • 6th semester GPAs will be provided by high schools via the Graduation Details portal in ScholarTrackThe deadline is June 15, 2023.
      • For the inaugural year, high schools must opt in for their students to participate.
      • High schools can confirm their participation by completing this Pre-Admissions Form no later than May 26, 2023.
      • In August 2023, students who attend participating high schools will first be notified about the Indiana Pre-Admissions: Your Path to College Initiative via a mailing.
      • In September 2023, ahead of College Application Week, students and their parent(s)/guardian(s) will receive letters listing the colleges and universities to which the students have been pre-admitted. The letters will also promote FAFSA completion and state financial aid opportunities.
      • Students will then be directed to apply to the institutions through the Common App or through institutional websites and prepare for filing the FAFSA. This will be done via a dedicated page on the Learn More website that will go live with the release of pre-admissions letters in September.
    • Comprehensive virtual trainings on Graduation Details and the Indiana Pre-Admissions: Your Path to College initiative can be found on the Learn More Indiana YouTube channel.
    • Questions regarding Graduation Details can be directed to CHE’s regional Outreach Coordinators. View the Outreach Coordinator map to find your designated contact. Additional support is available through HighSchools@che.in.gov.
    • Questions regarding Indiana Pre-Admissions: Your Path to College can be directed to PreAdmissions@che.in.gov.
    • Participating institutions of higher education will not receive the actual GPAs or SAT scores for students from the high schools that opt in to pre-admissions. Rather, we will utilize ScholarTrack for student matching based on students having met the criteria for GPA and/or SAT that institutions have set. Further, a list of students who meet the criteria will be shared with institutions, but it will only be enough biographical information for institutions to match the students to their student information systems. The only way that institutions will have GPA and SAT information is if students take the next step to apply to the institution(s) and choose to share GPA and/or SAT via the application process or submitting transcripts.
    • Additionally, School Users and School Admins in ScholarTrack from participating high schools will have access to a list of students that includes each student’s pre-admitted institutions.
  • CHE Staffing/Contact Updates:
    • Michelle Ashcraft: Associate Commissioner for K-12 Strategy
    • Hilary Deardorff: Director of K-12 Outreach (supervises the regional Outreach Coordinators)
    • McKalaih Mitchell: Director of K-12 Program Implementation.
    • The designated points of contact for school partners are the regional Outreach Coordinators. Their contact information can be found on the Learn More Indiana website and via the Outreach Map.
    • School-based support central email: highschools@che.in.gov.
  • The Indiana Commission for Higher Education Education Value Movement work.

SHARED WISDOM

  • (Added 10/2/23): Q – Does anyone know if school counselors have access to the pre-admission letters through Scholar Track?  I heard we would have access in mid-September. A- There is a report called PreAdmissions in there.

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