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FAFSA changes make process easier Lecturer

invests in jolly cows By Dani.Gehr @iowastatedaily.com

What is FAFSA? The FAFSA, Free Application for Federal Student Aid, is a form administered by the U.S. Department of Education that helps evaluate financial need and to determine eligibility for various forms of financial aid. Not only is it directly related to federal funding, but many states and colleges also use it to determine eligibility for state and school aid, including grants, loans and work-study funds, according to the Federal Student Aid, an office of the U.S. Department of Education. The form uses financial and income information from federal income tax returns, W-2s and other records of money earned to determine financial need, according to fafsa.ed.gov. All students are encouraged to fill out the form as soon as possible, because some financial aid opportunities are based on a first-come, first-serve basis. The form has gone through a few major changes recently. Updates FAFSA is undergoing two major changes this year. “One big change this year is that it opens up on Oct. 1, so we have changed our priority deadline to Dec. 1,” said Ann Wessman, assistant director for scholarships and student employment for the office of financial aid. “The other big change is that currently it goes off of the current year’s taxes, and now it’s going to what they call prior-prior year.” Wessman believes that going off of the prior-prior year’s will be a positive change. “One of the biggest obstacles for students in the past has been that their parents haven’t had their taxes done so we’ve always encouraged them to estimate, but now it’s going off of prior-prior year, so everyone should be able to have their taxes done,” Wessman said. “My sense is that the timing of it is going to be a change for a lot of folks, but what I’ve heard from people is the biggest obstacle is having their taxes done by the time they filed their FAFSA, and so removing that barrier, I think people are excited about that.” The sooner date will not affect the contents of students’ financial aid packages, but will change when students will know about their package. This can help with earlier decision-making and diminish the uncertainty of waiting for their financial aid notification. “What it will require from students, however, is a change in their thought process in getting things done earlier than they had to in the past,” said Martino Harmon, senior vice president for Student Affairs. “This time adjustment will affect current students because they will have to get information and fill out the form sooner than they have in the past, but it will arguably have a greater impact on new, incoming students.” This is because these students will be able to make decisions about their college of choice sooner. In the past, students generally would not get information regarding their financial aid package until around late March or early April, which is pretty much across the board for schools, not just Iowa State. By Jenna.Hrdlicka @iowastatedaily.com

“Now, they will have that information sooner and can make better decisions about where to pursue their education and plan more accordingly,” Harmon said. “I think the change will be [very] positive for them.” Overall, it will have a different impact on different students. The biggest challenge will be the time adjustment for current students, Harmon said. Bailey Johnston, sophomore in elementary education, voiced a similar concern. “My only concern is if no one knows about it, then people who didn’t know about it can’t fill it out earlier, and those people might not have [the same opportunities for aid],” she said. “If they make it well known though, then [I think it will be a positive change].” After speaking to students around campus, it became apparent that this lack of knowledge regarding the FAFSA is common. This is often the result of the fact that if students are claimed as dependents by their parents, rather than claiming independent, then the FAFSA requires their parents’ income information. Since this information is generally not known by students, the parents must fill out the form. “This change is really going to require students to be even more responsible to share the information with parents,” Harmon said. “They’re really going to have to say, ‘Hey, did you know about this change? We have to get this done sooner.’” While the university will send out information to the households of students, it will heavily rely on students to engage their parents to make sure that they know. “Ultimately, the student is responsible for their own financial aid process,” Harmon said. “Even if the parent fills out the form, they are responsible.” The university has taken several initiatives to raise awareness of the changes in the FAFSA form, with the Office of Admissions handling most of the communication with prospective incoming students and the Office of Financial Aid communicating with current students to inform them of the change, Harmon said. “I think this needs to be a campus-wide effort,” said Katie Mott, senior admissions and financial adviser. “All of us on faculty and staff interact with students, and so we want our colleagues to know about this. All students are registering for classes in October or November, so involving the conversation of the FAFSA as the students are thinking about registering for spring classes is ideal because that will be right when the FAFSA opens and before it’s due.” Mott said they plan to work with the Parent’s Association because the parent information needed on the FAFSA is a huge component of it, and parents oftentimes are the ones completing the FAFSA for the students. “There’s a lot of moving parts in this in terms of what audiences [we are] communicating with because we want that message to get out in a number of different ways in a number of different constituency groups,” Mott said.

By Ellen.Bombela @iowastatedaily.com

Cow-calf farmer Seth Watkins gave a lecture Thursday in Agronomy Hall on innovative ways to create a better environment for his animals. The lecture was called “Investing in Land: Curiosity, Creativity, and Happy Cows.” Watkins, from southwestern Iowa, owns a cow-calf enterprise of 600 and grows hay and corn. He originally listened to the experts on when to calve, but was bothered by the state he saw his calves in during the harsh winter months. “I decided simply that I was going to farm in a manner that would allow me to sleep at night,” Watkins said. “I decided that if I did things to make my cows more comfortable and I went broke, I could live with that, but I was not going to continue to do things that just didn’t make sense.” Listening to his gut, he decided to stop working against mother nature and started calving in April. Unexpectedly, Watkins saw his profits increase and his livability go up while labor- and disease-related issues went down, all a cause of late-season calving. Watkins also talked about his many other practices including rotational grazing and building ponds to maintain clean water for his cows. He also described his combined use of organic and conventional farming. “I talk to a lot of people who want it to be either organic or conventional, and they don’t understand the beauty of bringing it all together,” Watkins said. The attendees included mostly people from the agronomy department who most likely will not be dealing with cows in their future careers. Despite that, the presentation still was applicable to those who specialize in crop and in cattle. “I’m not trying to make you into cow farmers, I’m trying to make us into thinkers,” Watkins said as he closed up his lecture and opened the floor to questions. At many points during the lecture, Watkins made sure to speak

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Author shares experiences of hitting rock bottom By Jenna.Hrdlicka @iowastatedaily.com Cheryl Strayed, author of New York Times Bestseller “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail” captivated the audience during a lecture Thursday evening as she shared her experiences with hitting rock bottom and ultimately re-finding herself on the Pacific Crest Trail. “Just don’t f--- it up.” This advice, given to Strayed by Reese Witherspoon during the filming of “Wild,” the movie based off Strayed’s book, aligned with an important lesson she learned while completing her famous solo hike at the age of 26. Strayed began one of the strongest eras in her life at her weakest point. It was four years after loosing her mom to to lung cancer — four years filled with griefinduced, self-destructive choices. Strayed’s mother had not only been her parent, but her hero and role-model as well. At the age of 6, Strayed’s mother left her abusive father and moved with her children. She spent the next six years waitressing and working at a factory to support them. When Strayed was 12, her mom remarried and the family moved to northern Minnesota. This home, located in the wilderness with no electricity or running water, was where Strayed spent her teen years. Although it wasn’t fun for her at the time, she now looks fondly back on those years. “It’s character building,” her mother often told her. When Strayed began her college career, the school she applied to, now the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, was allow-

ing parents and grandparents of students to attend college for free for as long as the student was attending the university. “I thought, there is no way in hell you are going with me,” Strayed said. “But in life there’s the truth, and then there’s the deeper truth.” Strayed understood how much her mom sacrificed to provide for her kids. “That truth gave way to a deeper truth, that I couldn’t be the person that stood in the way of my mother and this really wonderful opportunity.” The two went through their college years on separate campuses after transferring after the first year — which opened up the world of writing to Strayed and the world of her mother recognizing herself as an intellectual, being the best student in all of her classes because of her eagerness to learn. During their senior years, Strayed’s mom suddenly got sick with what she thought was a cough. Seven weeks later, she died of lung cancer. “I was utterly devastated,” Strayed said. “I didn’t know how to live without my mother.” She turned to writing, which is when she learned that she wasn’t alone in her grief. She went back to school, trying to be the “good daughter” figure, until she couldn’t anymore. “I did other things that we do when we decide we can’t have happiness.” She was at this point, her rock bottom, when she had a moment of realization that in order to fully honor her mother, she needed to thrive instead of self-destruct

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CyRide enjoys ongoing success By Travis.Charlson @iowastatedaily.com The bells of the Campanile chimed to the tune of “Wheels on the Bus” on Tuesday, as Ames’ public transit system marked its fourth decade of operation this week. CyRide has hauled millions of students and community members around Ames since its inception and now boasts a fleet of more than 100 buses. When the bus system got its start on Sept. 13, 1976, the fleet consisted of a mere two buses. As Ames and the university have grown — Iowa State’s 2016 enrollment of 36,660 students is the highest it’s ever been — CyRide has played an integral part of facilitating that growth. “Over the past 40 years, CyRide has become an agency of the city of Ames,” said Mayor Ann Campbell. Tuesday’s City Council meeting started with a proclamation by Campbell, thanking CyRide and some of its administrators for the organization’s contributions. “Support from these entities has allowed the public to have a premier transit system,” Sheri Kyras, transit director, said during the meeting. “Because of this partnership, CyRide has been able to provide approximately 127 million rides over [these] 40 years.” The transit system, which serves the whole community, has become increasingly integrated with the university after Student Government suggested in 2001 to include bus fares with student tuition and fees. And as the university has grown and evolved, so has CyRide. Ridership figures are in the millions every year, and record enrollments

Emily Blobaum/Iowa State Daily

Karen Jamison, assistant director of operations at CyRide, hands out cookies at Beyer Hall for CyRide’s 40th anniversary.

at Iowa State means more people commuting. “It’s changed both the campus and the Ames community,” said Warren Madden, long-time CyRide Board of Trustees member. “Most of that growth of student apartments and living arrangements out in West Ames is dependent upon CyRide being a connection to come and go from out there.” While its fleet and ridership have grown over the last decade, its routes have remained relatively unchanged, according to a press release sent earlier this week. CyRide has begun working with a consultant to analyze schedules and routes, take rider surveys and count the number of passengers picked up at each bus stop in an effort to find ways to increase efficiency and efficacy. In the coming months, CyRide will collect data from online surveys and public meetings to gain community input on potential changes, with dates yet to be an-

nounced. One of the changes being considered is whether Cyride should avoid the dense pedestrian traffic on campus and instead drop off riders at locations off campus. Seth Kipp, a CyRide driver and former ISU student, said that driving a bus on campus can be difficult at times, especially when students don’t look for traffic before crossing the roads — which is a major reason why officials are discussing moving routes from campus. Kipp enjoys the job, however, despite frequent encounters with inconsiderate motorists and inattentive pedestrians. “It’s a good gig,” Kipp said. “I really enjoy doing it.” CyRide operates 16 to 20 hours a day — depending on the day — and currently brings 197 jobs to the Ames area. “We’re proud to be part of the community,” Kyras said. “We hope to be able to serve the community for another 40 years.”