Associated Students, Inc. had several topics on their agenda during their Friday, Feb. 21 meeting.
The first topic of discussion was making sure students take full advantage of the scholarships available to them.
Academic Scholarship Coordinator, Tanae McCall, said that although the Office of Financial Aid has seen an increase in scholarship applications over the last three years.
“Last year, we received 1,100 applications, most of them from transfer students, ” McCall said in a telephone interview.
The issue was brought forth by ASI Social Sciences and Education Director Stephanie Campos, who heard about it after attending the University Council meeting that same morning.
“Not many students are applying for scholarship; however, a lot of students are going in and asking about scholarships but aren’t following through with the application,” Campos said.
“The problem is students start the application but don’t complete the application because they either forget or they don’t want to write the required essay,” said McCall.
ASI Assistant Director of Campus Programming, Emily Prone, also attended the University Council meeting.
“There’s a wide range of scholarships available and very specific scholarships for different programs… the PG&E Bright Mind scholarships is due next Friday, Feb. 26, they have a very low applications for Kern County,” Prone said.
ASI Arts and Humanities Director Ricardo Perez proposed that ASI work in conjunction with the financial aid and scholarship office to create a board dedicated solely to scholarships, a place students can go and get all the information they need.
This would benefit students tremendously, especially students such as engineering major Rubin Gutierrez, 22, who will be transferring from BC this fall.
“I don’t get much financial aid and it’d be nice to know when and where I can apply for some scholarships,” Gutierrez said.
Students are not aware of the many options available to them.
One of those students is sociology major Anna Sandoval, 19, who didn’t know about any scholarships. “I’ve been here for almost a year and I’m yet to hear about any scholarships,” Sandoval said.
According to ASI Executive Vice President Derek Stotler, only two CSUB students were awarded the Bright Minds Scholarship last year, him being one of them.
For information about scholarships visit the financial aid website.
The deadline to apply for FAFSA is March 2.
To apply for scholarships at CSUB, visit csub.academicworks.com.
The other issue of discussion at the ASI meeting was Homecoming week and putting the finishing touches on the Homecoming dance.
So far ASI has sold 600 tickets but there are still some left. Tickets are $10 for students and $15 for guests.
The Homecoming dance will be held at the Marriott Hotel on Truxtun Avenue, Friday, Feb. 28 at 9 p.m. Music will be provided by DJ Drewskii.