Scholarship disbursements coming after delay

After a month's delay, the Office of Navajo Nation Scholarship and Financial Assistance is finally able to award scholarships for the 2011 spring semester.

Rose Graham, scholarship office director, said the process was delayed this year due to delays in passing a 2011 budget at the federal and tribal level. Both the U.S. and Navajo Nation governments are being run under continuing resolutions that fund only existing commitments and then only at current or reduced levels.

"We couldn't make any commitments because at the time we didn't have the numbers," said Graham, explaining that her office usually starts awarding spring semester scholarships right after the Nov. 25 application deadline.

"Another reason for our delay is because ONNSFA offices at Tsaile and Shiprock were experiencing facility problems," Graham said. "Internet connection at the Tsaile office continues to be a challenge.

"Students have been calling about the status of their scholarships," Graham said. "We are asking them to be patient as we sort out the bureaucracy associated with federal and tribal funding."

For fiscal year 2011, the scholarship office is expecting to receive about $12.5 million in federal funds for scholarships and operating costs. In addition, about $3.5 million from the Navajo Nation's trust funds and general funds is expected for scholarships.

However, Graham said, as usual the money won't be sufficient to fund all those who are eligible, and she urged students to submit their complete application package as early as possible because the scholarships are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

There was an 18 percent increase in the number of applications in 2010 compared with 2009, Graham said.

In fall 2010, there were 9,576 applications, up from 8,104 a year earlier, she said. Of those, 4,869 - or just over half - were awarded scholarship money in 2010 and 4,282 in '09, she said.

Graham encourages students to check the status of their scholarship application on the Web site, www.onnsfa.org, and to confirm that all needed documents have been received by the office.

"We also encourage everyone to apply for other sources of funding," Graham said. "Many of those sources are listed on www.onnsfa.org under 'funding types.'"

Graham further encouraged high school students to start early in looking for sources of college financial aid, work with their high school counselors to line up financial aid, and see if they qualify for the Navajo Nation's top award, the Chief Manuelito Scholarship.

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