On February 12, 2018, when Mersadies Shantie was 12 years old, her mom suddenly and unexpectedly passed away. That night, still stunned from the loss, Mersadies left her home in Mooers Forks, New York, and moved to Sheldon, Vermont, to live with her dad, stepmom and three adopted sisters. “It was…

I’ve always loved to learn, but I never thought I would go to college. As a teen, I was more interested in getting out into the working world, and once I’d established a successful career, I thought, why would I need to go to college now? But as I got deeper into my chosen field of birth and…

This past fall the U.S. Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) announced plans to release an updated Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the 2024-2025 school year. The FAFSA is the first step in getting financial aid for college and many career training programs…