NEW ORLEANS (September 26, 2019) – The subject of early notification regarding financial aid and fiscal clearance has been a hot topic for sophomores and other upper-class students. Students deserve to be notified about their aid, the process should be smoother and financial aid workers should present better options to students.

But financial aid counselor Katrina Crawford and account collection representative Anitra Johnson offered a different perspective. Crawford said students should check their email regularly since that’s the best way for the university to communicate with students; she said students who don’t read their email often miss out on important information.

Crawford also pointed out that while students vent their frustration to the financial aid office regarding anything related to finances, student notices actually come from the Office of Business and Finance.

And Johnson advised students to become more familiar with their account information in “myDU.”

During a recent meal, students were discussing issues with fiscal clearance and financial aid when Jabari Phillips, a sophomore business major from New Orleans, said, “I would go there over the summer to be fiscally cleared before the deadlines and make calls, but it’s like no one would be in their office or answer the phone.” Other students at the table agreed.

As for emails, sophomore Walter Dixson IV of New Orleans said he checks his email account periodically throughout the day, probably more than most students.

The same information that the Office of Business and Finance can provide also is available to students on through their myDU account, which can be accessed through the Dillard website.

Johnson said, “Students who are more active on their accounts get cleared first, don’t have issues with financial aid and are up on their information.” She added that the only time students may see update delays are during SOAR Week, when freshmen arrive.

Shania Campbell
Mass Communication
Sophomore
LaPlace