College Financial Aid Applications In Tucson Area: Compare To AZ

TUCSON, AZ — Just as high school seniors are starting to apply for federal financial aid for college next year, nationwide figures that show applications are down about 3.1 percent compared with the same time last year.

About 660,000 students completed the application as of Nov. 19 for the 2022-23 aid cycle, compared with 681,000 for the same time last year, according to an Associated Press analysis of data on the Free Application For Federal Student Aid.

In Arizona, 12,811 FAFSA applications were completed as of Nov. 19 for the current cycle, compared with 13,697 completions at the same point last year. That is a 6.5 percent decrease. (See how Tucson area high schools compare below.)

It's unclear whether the high school class of 2022 will reverse negative trends in FAFSA completions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, said Bill DeBaun, director of data and evaluation for the National College Attainment Network.

"Many schools, and students, are re-adjusting to being back in person, and students who have lost 20 months of building 'college knowledge' about the process for applying to college are likely to be slow, or reluctant, to complete the FAFSA," DeBaun told Patch. "That said, there’s still a lot of time left in this cycle for the class of 2022 to catch up to, and surpass, previous classes."

College enrollment figures have slipped in recent years. Fall 2021 enrollment was down 3.2 percent from fall 2020 and down 6.5 percent from fall 2019, according to the NCAN.

Last cycle, the decline of FAFSA completions was steeper among Title 1 high schools, meaning those where low-income students make up at least 40 percent of enrollment. However, the decline is steeper for non-Title 1 schools so far this cycle.

So far Arizona is following the national trend. Completed applications dropped 5.1 percent from Title 1 schools, compared with a 7.6 percent drop for non-Title 1 school applications as of Nov. 19.

Here is how schools in the Tucson area are doing with FAFSA completion as of Nov. 19 for the 2020-21 cycle compared with the 2019-20 cycle. See more Tucson area high schools here. Note: Percent changes can be affected by a relatively small difference in completions, especially for smaller schools. FAFSA data only counts students who are no older than 19.

School: Sky Islands
District: Blue Adobe Project (89871)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 5
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 5
• Percent change: 0
• Title 1 status: Not Title I schoolwide

School: Toltecali High School
District: CPLC Community Schools dba Toltecalli High School (80032)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 5
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 6
• Percent change: -16.67
• Title 1 status: Title I schoolwide

School: Tucson International Academy
District:Tucson International Academy Inc. (79979)
Municipality: Tucson

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 5
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 9
• Percent change: -44.44
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Santa Rita High School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 8
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020:
• Percent change:
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: City High School
District:CITY Center for Collaborative Learning (85448)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 9
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 12
• Percent change: -25
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Presidio School
District:Presidio School (4425)
Municipality: Tucson

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 11
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 5
• Percent change: 120
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Sonoran Science Academy - Tucson
District:Daisy Education Corporation dba Sonoran Science Ac (79049)
Municipality: Tucson

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 13
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 14
• Percent change: -7.14
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Academy of Tucson High School
District:Academy of Tucson Inc. (78897)
Municipality: Tucson

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 14
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 5
• Percent change: 180
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Catalina High School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 18
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 28
• Percent change: -35.71
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Palo Verde High Magnet School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 21
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 13
• Percent change: 61.54
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Alta Vista High School
District:American Charter Schools Foundation d.b.a. Alta Vi (80995)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 26
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 8
• Percent change: 225
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: BASIS Tucson North
District:BASIS Charter Schools Inc. (91309)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 35
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 42
• Percent change: -16.67
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Cholla High School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 42
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 78
• Percent change: -46.15
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Andrada Polytechnic High School
District:Vail Unified District (4413)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 45
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 33
• Percent change: 36.36
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Rincon High School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 46
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 58
• Percent change: -20.69
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Empire High School
District:Vail Unified District (4413)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 53
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 87
• Percent change: -39.08
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Sabino High School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 54
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 57
• Percent change: -5.26
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Amphitheater High School
District:Amphitheater Unified District (4406)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 58
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 35
• Percent change: 65.71
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Sahuaro High School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 61
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 74
• Percent change: -17.57
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Flowing Wells High School
District:Flowing Wells Unified District (4405)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 69
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 92
• Percent change: -25
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Tanque Verde High School
District:Tanque Verde Unified District (4408)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 72
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 58
• Percent change: 24.14
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Pueblo High School
District:Tucson Unified District (4403)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 73
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 53
• Percent change: 37.74
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Canyon Del Oro High School
District:Amphitheater Unified District (4406)
Municipality: ORO VALLEY

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 76
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 81
• Percent change: -6.17
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Catalina Foothills High School
District:Catalina Foothills Unified District (4410)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 83
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 156
• Percent change: -46.79
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Desert View High School
District:Sunnyside Unified District (4407)
Municipality: TUCSON

• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2021: 93
• Total FAFSA completions as of Nov. 19, 2020: 100
• Percent change: -7
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

The FAFSA deadline for the 2021-2022 academic year is June 30, 2022, while the 2022-23 deadline is June 30, 2023. Many states and colleges set their own deadlines for aid applications. There has been a push in recent years to have students fill out the FAFSA earlier in their senior year.

Editor’s note: This list was automatically generated using FAFSA data analyzed by the Associated Press. Federal high school counts don't include students over the age of 19. Information isn't available for all schools. Schools with fewer than five completions are omitted from the data. Please report any errors or other feedback to content@patch.com.