Acknowledgment of Funding and Certification

As a recipient of federal coronavirus relief funding under the CARES Act, PLU was not required to submit an application for federal coronavirus relief funding provided under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA). PLU received its allocation of CRRSAA funding on January 19, 2021. In keeping with the terms of the acceptance of these funds, PLU will use $1,467,935, as stated under Section 314(1)(a) of the CRRSA Act, to provide emergency funding to students for expenses that arise due to coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health), or child care.

Aggregate Award Amount

On January 19, 2021, PLU received a total of $4,339,965 in CRRSAA funding, of which $1,467,935 will provide emergency funding to students for expenses that arise due to coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health), or child care. Students with exceptional need will be prioritized in accordance with the terms and conditions of accepting the CRRSAA funds.

CRRSAA Reporting Schedule

The Department of Education requires regular reporting from each institution of its CRRSAA funding expenditures. Reports must be posted on the institution’s primary website, and the first report is due 30 days after receipt of the institution’s allocation. Reports are then due on a quarterly basis no later than 10 days after the end of the calendar quarter: January 10, April 10, July 10, October 10. At minimum, PLU will update the section below – Funds Distributed and Awards Made – on a quarterly basis in accordance with the dates outlined by the Department of Education. As of February 18, 2021, PLU had not yet distributed any CRRSAA funding to eligible students. PLU did not begin distributing the student portion of its CRRSAA funding until March 2021.

Funds Distributed and Awards Made

As of April 1, 2021, 1,327 students received a total of $1,367,932.41.

As of July 1, 2021, 1,335 students received a total of $1,377,129.61.

As of October 1, 2021, 1,373 students received a total of $1,467,935.

Student Eligibility

Upon receipt of the CRRSAA funding in January 2021, PLU identified 2,109 of its students as potentially eligible for emergency funding based on the number of domestic students enrolled in the Spring 2021 semester who had filed a 2020-21 FAFSA.

Application Process

To expedite the awarding of the CRRSAA funds as quickly as possible to as many eligible students as possible, we asked the 2,109 potentially eligible students to respond Yes or No to a statement of affirmation on their student portal. If students affirmed that they were encountering emergency expenses related to the  coronavirus, then they were awarded CRRSAA funding.

We also asked these students to respond Yes or No to a question asking if they wanted their CRRSAA funding applied to an outstanding balance on their student account. Emergency funds in excess of an outstanding balance were issued directly to the student via ACH or paper check. Likewise, students without an outstanding balance received their CRRSAA funding directly via ACH or paper check.

PLU emailed eligible students on March 3, 2021 with instructions to reply to these two questions no later than Friday, March 12th in order to be considered for CRRSAA funding. Students were sent reminder emails on March 8, 2021 and March 10, 2021.

Students with a 0 EFC received $1,976.78 while other Pell-eligible students received $1,072.05.  Students who were not Pell eligible received $516.59. Eligible students were notified via email on March 23, 2021 of the amount they would be receiving and when the funds would be issued.

Additional Guidance

Using the application process above, PLU distributed all of its CRRSAA funds with the exception of $100,002.59. These remaining funds were set aside for students who missed the deadline to respond to the eligibility questions on the student portal. On a case by case basis, students who missed the deadline were instructed to contact the Dean of Enrollment Management and Student Financial Services to inquire about the availability of funds. These students were provided with a link to a form asking them the same two questions that had appeared on the student portal. As before, students with a 0 EFC received $1,976.78 while other Pell-eligible students received $1,072.05.  Students who were not Pell eligible received $516.59.

On April 26, 2021, students who had withdrawn from PLU since the declaration of the national emergency were invited via email to apply for CRRSAA funding. The email included a link to the form with the same two questions that had appeared on the student portal. Again, students with a 0 EFC received $1,976.78 while other Pell-eligible students received $1,072.05.  Students who were not Pell eligible received $516.59.

As of August 18, 2021, all CRRSAA funds had been distributed to eligible students.

Additional Reporting 

Click here for PLU’s  Quarterly Budget and Expenditure Report for HEERF I through III Institutional Funding.