Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

PCC hosts Financial Aid Day Saturday, Jan. 21

Photos and Story by James Hill

PORTLAND, Ore – For Lisa Hummel, last year’s Financial Aid Day gave her the confidence she needed to be successful at her studies. The third-year gerontology program student at Portland Community College used information from the event to get the financial aid and scholarship money she needed to allow her to get through school. "I really needed help with school," said Hummel, a resident of southeast Portland. "I didn’t know how to apply for scholarships. But I was able to learn and find out more information. What they offered at Financial Aid Day really benefited me. I found out where the scholarships were and I ended up getting Portlandia Club, Danish Sisterhood and Ford scholarships." On Saturday, Jan. 21, PCC will host a bigger and better Financial Aid Day, spanning across the college’s district and attracting more than 1,000 current and future college students. PCC is staging Financial Aid Day from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at four campus locations throughout its district:Cascade Campus (705 N. Killingsworth St.), Tri-Met bus lines 4, 40, 72 and Max Yellow Line Rock Creek Campus (17705 N.W. Springville Rd.), Tri-Met bus lines 52 and 67 Sylvania Campus (12000 S.W. 49th Ave.), Tri-Met bus lines 44 and 78 Southeast Center (2305 S.E. 82nd Ave.), Tri-Met bus lines 4 and 72 The one-stop locations will feature PCC advisors providing personalized assistance to future college students with completion of their Federal Student Aid form (FAFSA) form. There will also be scholarship workshops throughout the day to help students find dollars for school. Spanish language advisors will be available at Rock Creek, Cascade and Sylvania campuses. For Hummel, who graduated from the college’s Project Independence program, which serves women who are transitioning to school or the workplace, the event helped her enormously. "I definitely didn’t know the first thing about FAFSA when I started school," said Hummel, a regular volunteer for Loaves and Fishes and Meals on Wheels. "But from going last year I saw advisors really walking people through the form. They do it all right there. I wished I had the help when I first started three years ago because I didn’t know what I was doing. I had to struggle with it at home." Hummel doesn’t struggle anymore. Since she went through the Financial Aid Day scholarship workshops she has the money and confidence to get through school. Today, she is a regular on PCC’s President’s List and serves as the Cascade Campus president for the two-year honor society Phi Theta Kappa. Hummel plans to get a bachelor’s degree in human services and master’s degree in art therapy from Marylhurst University. "Just the other day I found a student filling out a loan application," said Hummel, a single parent, who volunteers her time as a cooking instructor for disabled seniors. "I asked them if they knew that they could probably qualify for a scholarship or federal financial aid. They had no idea. I just cringed when I heard that. Going through Financial Aid Day gives you the confidence. I feel that everybody needs to try." The locations are easy to get to by car, bike and Tri-Met. For more information on what to bring, please visit the Financial Aid Day Web site, or contact, Admissions coordinator Roberto Suarez at 503-978-5291.