Though current law protects shared personal information outside of the federal financial aid process, some fear it won’t be protected
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Amy Morona | Signal Statewide
President Donald Trump’s hardline stance on immigration is causing Ohio college advisers to rethink the financial aid guidance they offer families of U.S. students that include an undocumented parent or guardian.
“There are families that are concerned that if they do file the FAFSA, then that information could be used by ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] in a deportation process,” said Nancy Dunn, who helps families prepare and enroll in college in her role at College Now Greater Cleveland.
About 5 million American households are estimated to fall under the mixed-status umbrella, meaning at least one parent is not a U.S. citizen. But any child born in the United States, regardless of their parents’ legal immigration status, is an American citizen under the U.S. Constitution.
That makes them eligible to seek federal and state aid to pay for college. They can do so by filling out the Free Application For Federal Financial Aid, commonly known as FAFSA. But the form requires detailed information about the identity of the applicant’s parents or guardians, including immigration status.
Though current federal law protects that information from being shared outside of the financial aid process, some fear that privacy won’t be guaranteed by the Trump administration.
The president signed a flurry of immigration-related executive orders on his first day in office, though none explicitly dealt with financial aid issues. (Trump did sign an executive order that refuses to recognize future children born here to undocumented parents. Attorneys general from 18 states sued to block that executive order on his second day of office.)
No ‘one size fits all approach’ for families
It’s estimated that close to 31,800 children in Ohio are U.S. citizens living with at least one undocumented family member, according to the American Immigration Council.
Though they don’t have exact numbers, College Now’s counselors have been talking to mixed-status families specifically in places such as Cuyahoga, Lorain and Medina counties.
In late 2024, a national advising group told families to make a “considered decision” before submitting their FAFSA.
Dunn, College Now’s director of advising programs and services, and her team members are echoing that in their conversations here in Ohio. But each situation is different, she said. There’s no “one-size-fits-all” approach.
“We want our families to talk to each other, to understand the decision they need to make that is the best decision for their family,” she said.
For some families, “filing the FAFSA is not an issue for them, because they know their information could potentially already be available to immigration [agencies]” through things such as tax or work documents.
Others are still deciding to wait. Dunn and her team are encouraging students in those families to reach out directly to the financial aid offices of the colleges they’re considering attending.
Perhaps, she said, those institutions would be willing to extend deadlines for school-based aid or give students additional information to consider.
Ohio colleges hesitate to talk about potential FAFSA changes
Current Ohio law says some of these students may be eligible for in-state tuition rates at public colleges.
At the state’s largest university, a website touts a welcoming environment for students of various immigration backgrounds.
“Your humanity matters,” officials write. “You are welcomed here, you are resilient, you have a community at The Ohio State University.”
Still, though, the university declined Signal Ohio’s request to interview the point person helping those students.
“We’re not going to speculate on specific policy changes,” an Ohio State spokesperson wrote via email. “As always, should federal regulations change, we will follow the law and work to ensure our students, faculty and staff have the resources needed to succeed.”
Some of the state’s private colleges followed suit. Several interview requests went unanswered.
(Amy Morona is the Statewide higher education reporter)
Signal Statewide is a nonprofit news organization covering government, education, health, economy and public safety.
