We understand and appreciate the financial commitment families undertake in deciding to send their daughters to Greenwich Academy. And although paying for education is first and foremost the responsibility of a family, we devote significant funds each year to a financial aid budget that helps assist families. In turn, our school community benefits by attracting gifted students who otherwise would not have been able to attend.
The financial aid application process is designed to:
- Provide an equal and fair means by which to evaluate financial need.
- Allow qualified students from families with limited financial means to benefit from the GA experience.
- Enrich the Greenwich Academy community with talented students from diverse economic backgrounds.
To help with what can be a confusing process, here are some useful resources. For more information, contact GA’s Admission Office at 203.625.8990.
Eligibility & Requirements
- Documentation of US citizenship or permanent residency must be submitted with the Application for Financial Aid. Proof is required for both student and parent.
- In keeping with the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) Principles of Good Practice for Financial Aid, Greenwich Academy requires the parents of each financial aid applicant to submit yearly a detailed financial statement to Clarity and Greenwich Academy.
- Every Greenwich Academy family contributes toward the cost of educating their daughter. Two-parent families are expected to be employed full-time, if home and health situation permit. In most cases, it is assumed that both parents will help fund educational costs to the best of their abilities before seeking financial aid from the school. There are no full tuition grants.
- The amount and number of financial aid grants are subject to the availability of funds. Completion of the Clarity application by December 15 is a prerequisite for consideration of grant allocations.
- Financial aid is granted for one year at a time. New application forms must be filed yearly by December 15, to allow time for Clarity to process the forms by the end of January.
- If financial circumstances change, it is assumed that parents will notify the Director of Enrollment and Financial Aid and will take responsibility for an adjusted amount of their daughter’s tuition and fees.
- It is assumed that families who apply for financial aid will have eliminated non-essential expenses such as memberships to clubs that require annual dues or vacation homes.
Computation of Financial Aid
The procedure used in determining the amount of need is closely modeled on that developed by the College Scholarship Service. The Greenwich Academy Financial Aid Committee considers a family’s net worth balanced against taxes, educational expenses of other children, unusual debts, and medical expenses.
If a parent chooses not to work and has children that are in school full time, the Financial Aid Committee will recalculate need using an imputed, minimum income for the non-working parent.
To help us assess objectively what a family is able to contribute to its student(s) education expenses, we use Clarity as a trusted third party. The Clarity analysis of a family’s Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) is a critical component of our financial aid decision. However, it’s just a start. To make our final financial aid award decisions, we use the Clarity figures as the baseline for our own additional review, taking into consideration our total financial aid budget, other information we may have collected, our school’s policies and priorities and the needs of our entire applicant pool. Due to circumstances like these, and others, our school may ask a family to contribute more or less to tuition than what is estimated on the Clarity family report.
Divorced or Separated Parents
If parents are divorced, the custodial and non-custodial parent are both required to complete a Clarity application. If the custodial parent has remarried, the Director of Enrollment and Financial Aid will consider the assets of the step-parent, always bearing in mind the obligations that he/she has to his/her natural children. In addition, all tax information is required from custodial and non-custodial parents.
All of the forms listed above are required in order to ascertain the ability of a parent to assume the financial obligation of tuition. No grant will be made nor contract issued until all forms are received, and it is essential that they be filed on time. Late applications may result in a significantly reduced grant.
