As a result of the CARES Higher Education Emergency Relief (HEERF) Certification and Agreement that Colorado State University signed and submitted to the Department of Education in April 2020, Colorado State University received $17,693,711 through the initial Federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Of these funds, $8,846,855 was allocated directly to students in the form of emergency financial aid grants for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to coronavirus. In January 2021, the University received an additional $8,846,856 in funding for students through the Federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA).
As of December 31, 2020 CSU disbursed a total of $8,731,950 in Emergency Financial Aid Grants to 9,131 students. An estimated total of 17,012 students at CSU are eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
As a result of the university going to an online format after March 25rd, the university also used these funds to reimburse for refunds provided to students for room and board. In total, the university reimbursed $13,468,166 back to students for room and board (including apartment rents) and dining charges to cover the period after online classes started.
For more information on the HEERF I or HEERF II legislation, please visit the Department of Education’s CARES Act: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF I) page or the CRRSAA: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF II) page.