CARES Act

The "CARES Act” (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act) Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) - expressly stipulated in the Recipient’s Funding Certification and Agreement for Grants to Students - provides funding to institutions to provide directly to students "for their expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to Coronavirus, such as food, housing, course materials, technology, health care, and child-care expenses.”

OCC signed the Certification and Agreement form and submitted it to the Department of Education on April 15, 2020 with assurance that 50% of the funds received would be awarded directly to eligible students. The Department of Education approved the Grant on April 25, 2020 and OCC received the ability to draw funds for OCC students of $3,737,183 on May 12, 2020.

15,263 students were enrolled at OCC for Winter Term 2020 and an estimated 5,400 students were identified as meeting the criteria of the CARES Act. OCC will award grants from $750 to $1500 per eligible student based on qualified credits upon completion of an application to attest they incurred expenses due to the disruption of campus operations due to the coronavirus. Grants will be awarded on a first-come-first-served basis until all funds are awarded.

The CARES Act HEERF grant funds awarded by OCC are summarized as follows:

OCC students who faced expenses related to the disruption of campus operations during the Winter 2020 term due to COVID-19, must apply for this emergency grant award on OCC’s scholarship application website. The application is simple and only takes a few minutes.

Funding will be disbursed to eligible students enrolled in the Winter 2020 term as of March 13, 2020.

In order to be considered for this award, students must have a completed the 2019-2020 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). Students who have not submitted for academic year 2019-2020 have until June 30, 2020 to complete the application.

Unfortunately, students not eligible to complete, or who have decided not to complete, the 2019-2020 FAFSA application, or are ineligible for Title IV aid, will not be able to submit an application for this CARES Emergency Grant Award. Other eligibility requirements include having taken eligible credit hours (see FAQ on eligible credit hours).

Credit hours for courses that were completed before 3/13/2020 are not eligible.

OCC graduates who attended in the Winter 2020 term as of March 13, 2020, and meet the eligibility requirements are deemed eligible by OCC for the grant since they met the criteria for the funds.

No, International F1 students are not eligible to receive Title IV funds.

The award amount of the CARES Emergency grant is $750-$1500 per eligible student enrolled in the Winter 2020 term as of March 13, 2020. Award amount is based on qualified credits. Awards will be on first come, first served based upon applying for the award until funding has been depleted. If funds are available, then Summer 2020 grants will also be awarded to eligible students that have not previously received the CARES Emergency grant in Winter 2020.

No, the CARES Emergency Grant awards are not loans or advance payments and do not have to be paid back.

The CARES Emergency Grant award established by the Federal CARES Act is intended to provide students with emergency financial aid grants for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the Coronavirus, such as food, housing, course materials, technology, health care, and child care.

The CARES Act requires OCC to provide the emergency grants directly to the student. OCC may not apply the funds to satisfy a student’s outstanding account balance. Specifically, the guidance says, "The disbursement of the emergency financial aid grant to the student must remain unencumbered by the institution; debts, charges, fees, or other amounts owed to the institution may not be deducted from the emergency financial aid grant." These funds must be delivered directly to the student by check, ACH/E-check or means deemed appropriate by the institution.

Award funds must be delivered directly to the student using a means such as a check or ACH/E-check. For faster refunds, we encourage all students to sign up for direct deposit (ACH/E-check). Signup on MyOCC under the Student menu, Financial Profile, Bank Information.

There are a number of financial resources available to OCC students, including for those students who are not eligible for CARES Emergency Grant Awards. These include OCC Foundation scholarships, Student Success Fund (please contact an OCC Counselor) and other resources coordinated through OCC’s Financial Aid office.

We also encourage all students to complete the 2020-21 FAFSA form which covers Fall 20, Winter 21 and Summer 21. Completing the FAFSA is the only federally approved instrument that allows an institution to evaluate a student and their family’s ability to pay for college. By completing the FAFSA, OCC’s Financial Aid office has greater ability to work with students and parents with income reductions and other changes that affect the family’s income.

Questions can be emailed to CARES@oaklandcc.edu. Please allow 48 hours for a reply.