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U.S. Department of Education

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- What is the purpose of the Student Support Services Program?
- What kinds of activities can be supported with grant funds?
- How often are competitions generally held?
- What is the duration of the average grant?
- What is the average annual grant amount?
- Is there a cost matching requirement?  If so, are in-kind contributions acceptable as part of the grantee’s match?
- What are the reporting requirements for grantees?  What kind of records and data should be maintained or collected in order to complete required reports?
- Are there program-wide performance measures?
- What are a few concrete examples of allowable activities?

The purpose of the Student Support Services Program (SSS) is to increase the number of disadvantaged low-income college students, first-generation college students, and college students with disabilities in the United States who successfully complete a program of study at the postsecondary level.

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A Student Support Services project **must** provide the following services:

- Academic tutoring, directly or through other services provided by the institution, to enable students to complete postsecondary courses, which may include instruction in reading, writing, study skills, mathematics, science, and other subjects.
- Advice and assistance in postsecondary course selection.
- Information on both the full range of Federal student financial aid programs and benefits (including  Federal Pell Grant  awards and loan forgiveness) and resources for locating public and private scholarships; and
Assistance in completing financial aid applications, including the 
Free Application for Federal Student Aid
 (FAFSA).

- Education or counseling services designed to improve the financial and economic literacy of students, including financial planning for postsecondary education.
- Activities designed to assist participants enrolled in four-year institutions of higher education in applying for admission to, and obtaining financial assistance for enrollment in, graduate and professional programs.
- Activities designed to assist students enrolled in two-year institutions of higher education in applying for admission to, and obtaining financial assistance for enrollment in, a four-year program of postsecondary education.

A Student Support Services project **may** provide the following services:

- Individualized counseling for personal, career, and academic matters provided by assigned counselors.
- Information, activities, and instruction designed to acquaint students participating in the project with the range of career options available to the students.
- Exposure to cultural events and academic programs not usually available to disadvantaged students.
- Mentoring programs involving faculty or upper class students, or a combination thereof.
- Securing temporary housing during breaks in the academic year for—
Students who are homeless children and youths or were formerly homeless children and youths; and foster care youths.

- Programs and activities specially designed for students who are limited English proficient, students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students who are individuals with disabilities, students who are homeless children and youths, students who are foster care youth, or other disconnected students.

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SSS Program competitions are held every four years.

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All SSS grants are funded for five-year grant award cycles.

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The estimated average grant amount is $290,949.

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Generally, there is no cost matching requirement for grants funded under the Student Support Services Program.  However, successful applicants that choose to use SSS Program funds to provide grant aid to students must provide matching funds, in cash, from non-federal funds source(s), in an amount that is not less than 33 percent of the total amount of the SSS Program funds used for this aid.  This matching requirement does not apply to a grant recipient that is an institution of higher education eligible to receive funds under Part A or Part B of Title III or under Title V of the Higher Education Act (HEA).

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All SSS Program grantees are required to submit an annual performance report documenting the persistence and degree attainment of their participants. Since students may take different lengths of time to complete their degrees, multiple years of performance report data are needed to determine the degree completion rates of SSS Program participants. The Department of Education will aggregate the data provided in the annual performance reports from all grantees to determine the accomplishment level.

All SSS Program grantees are required to maintain participant records that show—

- The basis for the grantee's determination that each participant is eligible to participate in the program if the student meets all of the following requirements:
Is a citizen or national of the United States or meets the residency requirements for Federal student 
financial assistance
.
Is enrolled at the grantee institution or accepted for enrollment in the next academic term at that institution.
Has a need for academic support, as determined by the grantee, in order to pursue successfully a postsecondary educational program.
Is—
- A low-income individual;
- A first-generation college student; or
- An individual with disabilities;
- The grantee's basis for determining the academic need for each participant;
- The services that are provided to each participant;
- The performance and progress of each participant by cohort for the duration of the participant's attendance at the grantee institution; and
- To the extent practicable, any services the participant receives during the project year from another Federal TRIO program or another federally funded program that serves populations similar to those served under the SSS program.

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The success of the Student Support Services Program is measured by the postsecondary persistence and degree completion rates of SSS participants that remain at the grantee institution.

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Academic tutoring; instruction in reading, writing, study skills, mathematics, science, and other subjects; advice and assistance in postsecondary course selection; information on both the full range of Federal student financial aid programs and benefits; assistance in applying for admission to, and obtaining financial assistance for enrollment in, graduate and professional programs; activities designed to assist students enrolled in two-year institutions of higher education in applying for admission to, and obtaining financial assistance for enrollment in, a four-year program of postsecondary education; and peer and professional tutoring, remedial instruction, and peer mentoring.

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