Press Releases

Congressman Earl L. "Buddy" Carter (R-Ga.) today announced federal assistance for college students impacted by the coronavirus in the First District of Georgia.

The United States Department of Education will be distributing funding immediately to colleges and universities to provide direct emergency cash grants to college students whose lives and educations have been disrupted by the pandemic. The funding is available through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which Carter supported in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

"An unexpected global pandemic should not disrupt a student's ability to continue their education," said Carter. "That is another reason the funding in the CARES Act is so important. These grants will provide aid to students for expenses like course materials, technology, housing, food, health care, childcare and more."

In the First District, funding includes:

Coastal Pines Technical College

Total Allocation: $1,758,137
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $879,069

College Of Coastal Georgia

Total Allocation: $2,811,985
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $1,405,993

Georgia Southern University

Total Allocation: $22,748,221

Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $11,374,111

Savannah College Of Art And Design

Total Allocation: $8,209,651
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $4,104,826

Savannah State University

Total Allocation: $6,374,932
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $3,187,466

Savannah Technical College

Total Allocation: $3,257,084
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $1,628,542

South University

Total Allocation: $7,726,176
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $3,863,088

Valdosta State University

Total Allocation: $9,331,398
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $4,665,699

Wiregrass Georgia Technical College

Total Allocation: $2,558,893
Minimum Allocation to be Awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students: $1,279,447

Background from the United States Department of Education:

The CARES Act provides nearly $14 billion to support postsecondary education students and institutions. Colleges and universities are required to utilize the $6.28 billion made available today to provide cash grants to students for expenses related to disruptions to their educations due to the COVID-19 outbreak, including things like course materials and technology as well as food, housing, health care, and childcare. In order to access the funds, the Department must receive a signed certification from the higher education institution affirming they will distribute the funds in accordance with applicable law. The college or university will then determine which students will receive the cash grants.

School allocations are set by formula prescribed in the CARES Act that is weighted significantly by the number of full-time students who are Pell-eligible but also takes into consideration the total population of the school and the number of students who were not enrolled full-time online before the coronavirus outbreak. The Department is utilizing the most recent data available from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and Federal Student Aid (FSA) for this calculation.

Institutions will receive allocations and guidance for the institutional share of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund in the coming weeks. Institutions will be able to use these funds to cover costs associated with significant changes to the delivery of instruction due to the coronavirus.