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2024 Parent/Guardian Form


STUDENTS: DO NOT FILL OUT THIS FORM. 
PLEASE HAVE A PARENT/GUARDIAN COMPLETE IT.


Parents/Legal Guardians: College Horizons is excited that your child/student is interested in applying to our college access summer program serving American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian 10th and 11th graders.

This "Parent/Guardian Form" is required as part of your child/student's application to our program. The purpose of this form is for parents/guardians to reflect on your child's well-being, college aspirations and to to collect financial information so that College Horizons can provide accurate financial aid advising to students and families and identify opportunities that students/families may qualify for based on need.

In-Person Summer Programs: We can't wait to meet your student on the hosting campuses of the University of Pennsylvania and University of Notre Dame! Since the 2024 programs will be held in-person, please reserve the following dates on your calendars as no late arrivals or early departures are allowed:

2024 Program Host Sites & Dates:

University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA
June 22-28, 2024

University of Notre Dame | Notre Dame, IN
July 13-19, 2024

Remote Orientation & Opening Session: Leading up to the program, remote orientation, teaching sessions and meetings (via Zoom) will be held and are required. In addition, students will schedule individual meetings with list maker, essay specialist, and meet faculty in their small groups so that you can make the most of your time together in-person at CH.

Family Financial Information: College Horizons uses information from this form for the following purposes:
  • Income Verification for Airfare Financial Assistance,
  • Financial Aid Advising for Scholarships/Grants (merit & need based),
  • Building College Lists with "Family Financial Fit" in mind, and to
  • Expose Parents/Guardians to the College Financial Aid Process.

Form Instructions:
1. Complete the following financial summary form.
2. Submit a copy of Parent 2022 or 2023 tax return information via mail OR upload a .PDF copy at the end of Page 3 on this form. Kindly, please block out any social security numbers on tax forms, but do not block out names of family members.  If mailing tax documentation, please send to us at the following address: 

Amelia Caté, Program Associate
College Horizons
PO Box 1262
Pena Blanca, NM 87041

Important: If parents are divorced, separated, not married and living together, or single, we request (if possible) that the Federal 1040 Tax Return and Parent Form be completed by BOTH the custodial and non-custodial parents. We need to understand the structure of both families in order to provide your family accurate financial aid counseling and financial assistance to the program if you are eligible. 
If your student is admitted to the program, parent/guardians may be asked to submit additional financial information to determine need-based financial aid and college financial fit.


DEADLINE TO SUBMIT Parent/Guardian Form:
January 24, 2024 at 11:59pm MST

Questions? Contact apply@collegehorizons.org.


Your Student


Primary Parent/Guardian Contact
We ask for families to identify one person to serve as the primary contact for this summer’s program. As we resume in-person programming we will need to be able to communicate application and program updates regularly with a parent/guardian by email and phone. Parents/guardians will be asked to book airline tickets for their student with College Horizon's designated travel agent. Please ensure this information is correct and complete.








Mailing Address Confirmation
We need your help verifying the mailing address for your student. All College Horizons participants will receive a college guide book, t-shirts and CH partner college information. We must have the correct mailing and physical address. Please complete this section carefully.
Below, please provide a MAILING address where you currently receive U.S. Postal Service mail. P.O. Boxes are acceptable in this section.






College Horizons also requires you to provide a physical SHIPPING address where you can receive UPS and FedEx packages. This is typically a street address - UPS and FedEx will NOT ship to a P.O. Box.







Parent/Guardian Reflection


Laptop Financial Assistance


CH Program Site Placement & Airfare Financial Assistance
Our goal at College Horizons is to provide program participants with an opportunity to experience life on a residential college campus– including in the dorms, classrooms, and dining halls. College Horizons staff will place your child at either the Penn or Notre Dame campus. When placing students at a program, we take into consideration many factors, including distance, cost of travel, and school year end dates. We craft each cohort of students with diversity in mind (i.e., gender, tribal nation, high school, grade level). If there is a significant difference in airfares costs, students who have qualified for travel assistance will be assigned to the site where the cost is least expensive. 

Although College Horizons staff will assign your child final site placement, we ask that you still select a preference and indicate if there is a summer conflict such as school still being in session (for those on year-round calendars or with semesters lasting until late), ceremonial obligations, summer school or other academics programs. We are not able to accommodate family vacation conflicts. Late arrivals or early departures from a CH program is not allowed.

This summer, CH is not charging a tuition fee (previously $450). However, families are responsible for the cost of round-trip airfare. College Horizons offers financial assistance for travel based on family financial need. To be considered for airfare financial assistance, parents/guardians complete the Parent Financial Summary Form (this form is required for all CH applicants) AND submit recent tax returns (2022 or 2023). Students will book their airline tickets with the CH designated travel agent.





Airport Information
Please indicate below which major or regional airports are situated closest to the student participant. Be aware that families may need to drive 2-3 hours to a major airport as they offer more flight options, have better pricing, and other CH students are likely to fly out of the same airport. 
Airport Code
(Example: ABQ, PHX, DEN, LAX) 		Airport City, State Miles from Home
Airport 1
Airport 2

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PARENT/GUARDIAN FINANCIAL SUMMARY & TAX SECTION


Documentation Required: College Horizons requires parents to complete a financial summary as well as submit a copy of the parent’s 2022 or 2023 tax return information and W-2s. We need your family financial information to determine if a student is eligible to receive financial assistance to CH (for travel), to help students/parents understand the potential costs and potential sources of aid that the family is eligible for, and to expose both the students and parents to the financial aid process.

 

Please enclose a photocopy (not the original) of your tax return and W-2s; please block out (redact) any social security numbers, but do not block out names of family members. CH will shred/delete copies of all tax documents.

  • For those who have recently lost a job, please provide verification of unemployment.
  • For those that receive SNAP/WIC benefits, please provide documentation of benefits.
  • For those that are not required to file an income tax, please explain reason, and provide verification of reason (unemployment, SNAP, SSI benefits, etc.).

Why Do I need to Submit Financial Information? Parents often have questions on why they need to submit detailed financial and tax information to programs such as College Horizons and for good reasons. Sharing personal family information and making sure that your privacy is being protected are fair concerns.

 

Our goal at College Horizons is to expose students to the entire college application process – from selecting schools to apply to, to actually completing a sample college application, drafting a college essay, and understanding the financial aid process (a separate process/system from college admissions). Likewise, College Horizons needs to expose parents to the financial aid process because you will play the most critical role in helping your child navigate the financial aid process by providing the required parent financial information. One of the most important steps you can take as a parent is to make sure that you are filing your IRS Income Tax returns on time – this is the only way colleges and the federal government will determine your child’s eligibility for financial aid (scholarships, grants, educational loans, work- study, etc.).

 

Are We Eligible for Financial Aid? According to a National Postsecondary Student Aid Study  2 million students/families failed to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) because parents incorrectly believed they were ineligible. Of the non- applicants, 33.1% would have qualified for a Pell Grant and 17.1% would have qualified for the maximum Pell Grant! The only way to find out whether a student/family are eligible for financial aid is to calculate the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) using the federal methodology (by FAFSA) or institutional methodology (by a college). A family does not need to be currently receiving federal assistance in order to qualify for financial aid!

 

How Will We Afford College? By exposing parents/students to the financial aid process through the College Horizons application/program we hope to ease anxiety over what financial information has to be submitted when your child actually applies to college. Often, parents believe their income is too high to qualify for aid, but there are many factors that may make your child eligible for aid (number of dependents, how many children/parents are currently in college, medical/disability issues, etc.).

 

Different Types of Aid: It is also important to know that there are different types of aid and eligibility: need-based aid (based on income) or merit-based aid (based on a talent, academic performance, geographic location, etc.); there is eligibility for Federal Student Aid, but also, colleges have their own internal formulas for financial aid. It is possible for a student to qualify for institutional (college) financial aid rather than federal aid.

 

CH Financial Aid: Lastly, we need financial information to determine if a student is eligible to receive financial assistance to CH (for tuition or travel) and for curriculum planning and individualized scholarship searches.

Student's Dependency Status













Examples of unusual circumstances can include: student leaving home due to abusive or threatening environment, student abandoned/estranged from parents, parents are incarcerated, student unable to locate/contact parents, etc.
Household Information





Please indicate the relationship and age for each family member in the household below - to add a person, click the "Add a person" button in the lower right corner of this grid.

EXAMPLES:
Relationship: Mother; Age: 45
Relationship: Brother; Age: 10

Relationship: Age
Household Member
Household Member
Household Member
Household Member
Household Member


In your household, how many siblings will be in college at the time student will be in college? Do not include household members who file as independent.


Family Structure for Financial Aid Counseling







Parent/Guardian Financial Information

Income Tax Filing Status




Parent Income & Tax Information
Based on info from your 2022 or 2023 filed income tax return(s):

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.


Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.


Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.



Parent Assets

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.

Only enter numbers here, no commas or extra characters.
Federal Assistance & Dislocated Worker





Parent/Guardian Tax Documentation Upload

Please upload a photocopy (not the original) of both your tax return and W-2s; please block out (redact) any social security numbers, but do not block out names of family members. CH will shred copies of all tax documents. 


Example of tax return forms to be uploaded can be found here.

Example of W-2s to be uploaded can be found here. 

  • For those who have recently lost a job, please provide verification of unemployment.
  • For those that receive SNAP/WIC benefits, please provide documentation of benefits.
  • For those that are not required to file an income tax, please explain reason, and provide verification of reason (unemployment, SNAP, SSI benefits, etc.).

You may also send copies of your tax documents to College Horizons by mail. If mailing tax documentation, please send to us at the following address and email apply@collegehorizons.org to let us know you are mailing tax info:


Amelia Caté, Program Associate
College Horizons
PO Box 1262
Pena Blanca, NM 87041

PRIVACY STATEMENT & PARTICIPANT CONSENT

College Horizons, Inc. is committed to respecting the privacy rights of College Horizons, Scholars and Graduate Horizons participants, including students, faculty and volunteers. We are also committed to protecting the confidentiality of education records and to maintaining such records in accordance with applicable law.  The following statement describes the organization’s policy with respect to personal information collected from both applicants and participants in any College Horizons Inc. programs.

 

Application Information and Participant Information: Information supplied in a program application (“Applicant Information”) and information provided by a program participant (“Participant Information”) are secured and maintained solely by College Horizons, Inc. and will not be shared, sold, or made available to any unauthorized party except where required by law or court order. Applicant Information and Participant Information is used by authorized College Horizons, Inc. staff for internal and program purposes. College Horizons may use Applicant Information and Participant Information for research purposes and only with approval by the Board of Directors; in such instances, any personally identifiable information will be removed. College Horizons Inc. will publicly release and share basic demographic information of participants to complete fundraising reports, annual reports, and for the purpose of informing the public on meeting the mission of the organization. During the summer programs, faculty review Participant Information for instructional and curricular purposes. Faculty agree to keep all information confidential and private and are not permitted to disseminate or forward student information to any party, organization, or individual not affiliated with College Horizons, Inc. Volunteer counselors affiliated with College Horizons, Inc. agree that they will not use the student contact information to solicit or promote any products or services, including free or educational services, to the participants or their families.

 

Participant Contact Information: College Horizons, Inc. shares with partner colleges/universities the following Participant Contact Information: name, address, phone number, e-mail address, tribal affiliation, high school or college name, gender, and first generation to college status (“Participant Contact Information”). This information is included on a participant-and-faculty roster. College and university admissions representatives working in partnership with College Horizons, Inc. are provided a copy of this roster and encouraged to contact program participants as part of their college admission recruitment and outreach strategy. Participants are also provided with a copy of the roster and are encouraged to contact college and university representatives for more information on their institutions. College Horizons, Inc. also encourages participants to use the roster to stay in touch with other participants and for networking opportunities.

 

Follow Up Outreach: College Horizons, Inc. staff will periodically follow-up with participants and their parents/guardians by email, surveys, phone, and mailing to learn of the participant’s progress on college or graduate school applications, admissions, enrollment, and graduation, and to provide information on other educational opportunities supported by College Horizons Inc. and our partner colleges/universities. In addition, College Horizons, Inc. will send updates, surveys, newsletters, and annual reports to former participants as part of our communications and outreach plan. Following the program, parents/guardians and participants can opt out of College Horizons Inc. communications.

 

By signing below, I understand how Applicant Information and Participant Information will be used. I consent to the use of the information I have provided for research purposes.  I further consent to the publication and sharing of my, or my child’s, Participant Contact Information (as described above) in the participant-and-faculty roster, and I agree that the participant will be added to the College Horizons, Inc. mailing and emailing list to receive notifications about College Horizons information, and receive follow-up contact by College Horizons, Inc. as described in this Privacy Statement and Participant Consent to Use of Information. I understand that following the conclusion of the program, parents/guardians and participants can opt out of College Horizons Inc. communications.




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