Annual report 2018

Annual Report
2018

About the Georgia Student Finance Commission
The Georgia Student Finance Commission (GSFC) is the state's single education finance agency and is responsible for administering nearly 20 state- and lottery-funded scholarship, grant and student loan programs. GSFC's mission is to promote and increase access to education for Georgians and works towards its related goals through a number of initiatives. The agency is focused on both successful program administration and sound stewardship of the funds in which it is entrusted. In addition, GSFC provides numerous outreach and education activities related to financial literacy and college planning. Central to these efforts over the last year has been a renewed focus on FAFSA Completion, raising the number of federal financial aid applications submitted by Georgia's students. Each year we work with students, parents, high school counselors, and our postsecondary partners to increase the number of Georgians with access to an affordable postsecondary education.
Fiscal Year 2018 Highlights
GSFC provided more than $817 million in scholarships, grants and loans to over 232,000 Georgians to help pay for higher education expenses.
More than 43,000 students from over 650 public and private high schools participated in Dual Enrollment. In total, over 554,000 college credits were taken by Dual Enrollment students, providing them the opportunity to get an early start on completing a college credential.
GAfutures.org continues to serve as a premiere resource for students in their college planning process. The website had more than 1.5 million visits and more than 254,000 accounts were created in FY 2018. Improved accessibility, new functions and information continue to enhance the user experience.
GSFC's K-12 and postsecondary outreach representatives conducted nearly 3,000 events/visits at high schools, colleges and community organizations across the state. More than 117,000 students and their families were provided information about federal and state financial aid programs and the application process.
Thirty new school districts enrolled in the REACH Georgia program for the 2018-2019 school year. As a result, almost 1,800 Scholars will be actively participating in the needs-based scholarship and mentorship program. The REACH Georgia Foundation raised $466,800 in support of the program during FY 2018.
More than 18,000 Path2College 529 Plan accounts were opened in FY 2018 with contributions of $347.5 million. Georgia's official college savings plan saw assets under management grow to $2.7 billion, resulting in a significant reduction in fees. In addition, families utilized more than $145.6 million in qualified withdrawals to pay for higher education purposes.
Message from the Interim President
Throughout FY 2018, GSFC remained focused on our mission of increasing access to education beyond high school for Georgians. Our steadfast attention to program integrity and administration combined with our increased efforts on outreach and education have laid a solid foundation for us to enter a new year.
Our mission continues in FY 2019 with the launch of the postsecondary HOPE GPA calculation system (CHECS), a multi-year statewide project, as well as other operational enhancements. We are working to identify new and innovative ways to increase the number of students and families we reach and serve each year with FAFSA Completion, program applications, and other college preparations and are excited to share those initiatives as they develop. As always, none of our goals could be achieved without the support of our Board of Commissioners, staff and statewide partners. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to GSFC and the students of Georgia.
Caylee Noggle

Fiscal Year 2018 How GSFC Helps Students Pay for College

HOPE Program $672,304,802

GSFC Use of Funds for Fiscal Year 2018:
$817,663,451

Tuition Equalization Grants $22,398,713
Student Access Loans $28,445,762
Dual Enrollment $86,331,598
Military Programs* $5,981,672
Other Programs** $2,200,904

* Military Programs include: Georgia Military College State Service Scholarship, Georgia National Guard Service Cancelable Loan Scholarship, HERO Scholarship, University of North Georgia Military Scholarship, University of North Georgia ROTC Grant, and University of North Georgia ROTC Grant for Future Officers. ** Other Programs include: Scholarship for Engineering Education, Scholarship for Engineering Education for Minorities and Georgia Public Safety Memorial Grant. There were no John R. Justice Student Loan Repayment Program disbursements in FY 2018.
Figures in chart represent awards for FY 2018. The information in this display is presented only to show the general nature of the Georgia Student Finance Commission's business and does not represent its financial position nor conform to generally accepted accounting principles.

HOPE Program

2017-2018 in Detail
Program
HOPE Scholarship Public Colleges* Private Colleges
HOPE Grant HOPE GED Zell Miller Grant HOPE Career Grant Zell Miller Scholarship
Public Colleges* Private Colleges 2017-2018 Totals**

Students
90,997 11,035 35,453
996 12,033 16,296
23,096 2,390
170,592

Awards
$375,097,112 $39,083,838 $31,854,938 $497,557 $14,812,159 $10,154,251
$190,587,354 $10,217,593
$672,304,802

* University System of Georgia and Technical College System of Georgia institutions. ** 2017-2018 Totals for the HOPE Program are unduplicated. Students who received multiple awards and/or enrolled in more than one type of institution were only counted once.

Services & Programs Services
FAFSA Completion Financial Literacy GAfutures.org
Programs
Dual Enrollment Georgia Military College State Service Scholarship Georgia National Guard Service Cancelable Loan Scholarship HERO Scholarship HOPE Career Grant HOPE GED Grant HOPE Grant HOPE Scholarship Public Safety Memorial Grant Path2College 529 Plan REACH Georgia Scholarship

K-12 and Postsecondary Outreach Loan Servicing State Financial Aid Information Services
Scholarship for EngineeringEducation Scholarship for Engineering Education for Minorities Student Access Loan Tuition Equalization Grant University of North Georgia Military Scholarship University of North Georgia ROTC Grant University of North Georgia ROTC Grant for Future Officers Zell Miller Grant Zell Miller Scholarship

Board of Commissioners

Anna Chafin
First Congressional District
F. Faison Middleton, IV
Second Congressional District
Linda McWhorter
Third Congressional District
Thomas E. Bowen
Fourth Congressional District
Laura Morgan
Fifth Congressional District
Vacant
Sixth Congressional District
Lee Tucker
Seventh Congressional District

Dr. Sarah Beck Hawthorne
Eighth Congressional District
Vacant
Ninth Congressional District
A. Middleton Ramsey
Tenth Congressional District
Donald D. Howard
Eleventh Congressional District
Roy Kilpatrick
Twelfth Congressional District
Vacant
Thirteenth Congressional District
Lowery May
Fourteenth Congressional District

Caylee Noggle
Interim President & Ex Officio Board Member

2018 GSFC. All Rights Reserved.

2082 East Exchange Place - Tucker, Georgia 30084 800.505.4732 - www.gsfc.org - www.GAfutures.org