CARES Grant Information and Guidance

The CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act) are federal funds to provide emergency financial aid grants to eligible students for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the Coronavirus (including eligible expenses under a student's cost of attendance such as food, housing, course materials, technology, health care, and child care). These funds are intended to address the pressing financial need of students due to the disruption of campus operations from the Coronavirus.

If you are eligible, there is no action needed on your part. The eligibility requirements are noted in Question 7.

The grant will be issued automatically via direct deposit to the bank account on file or a paper check mailed to the home address indicated in your CCSU Student Account on the date of payment.

You will see the disbursement on your eBill under Account Activity, listed as "CARES Act Grant".

No. These payments are direct payments to students and will not be used to reduce a student account balance. The CARES Act requires institutions to provide the emergency financial aid grants to students. CCSU may not use the portion of the set aside for emergency financial aid grants to students to satisfy a student's outstanding account balance. The Department of Education notes that the student may use his or her emergency financial aid grant for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the Coronavirus.

Please refer to www.ccsu.edu/financialaid/graduateeligible for Title IV eligibility information on our Graduate Professional Certification and Non-degree Programs

All requirements are listed in your WebCentral account under the Financial Aid Tab under "Financial Aid Requirements". If you have questions related to these requirements, please direct them to finaid@ccsu.edu.

Documents can be submitted electronically through Financial Aid Forms and click on the blue "Document Submissions".

Instructions for setting up Direct Deposit/ACH via the Web:

1. Navigate to the CCSU CentralPipeline
2. From the CentralPipeline home page, click on the WebCentral-Banner Web link and log in with your CCSU email address and password
3. From the Home tab, click on the eBill/Make Payment link
4. From the My Profile Setup menu on the right, click on Electronic Refunds, or from the top menu bar, click on the Refunds link
5. Click on Set Up Account button
6. Complete the form, select View Example for assistance in identifying the bank routing number and account number and click the Continue button
7. Click check box for I agree then click on Continue button. You will receive a "Your new ACH refund account has been saved" message
8. To modify or cancel an existing direct deposit record, select either Edit or Remove to the right of the Account Description

Please check with your bank first to be sure it hasn't been direct deposited already. Please also be aware that physical check payments to your home address could be delayed due to the current limitations related to the COVID crisis. If you can see the distribution on your eBill and still have not received the funds by May 11, 2020, please submit a Check Reissue Request Form.

For TITLE IV eligibility questions, please email finaid@ccsu.edu.
For questions related to the status of a CARES grant distribution, please email the Bursar's Office at billing-bursar@ccsu.edu.