NRCC News

ACCE program upcoming January deadlines

Dec 09 2019

This is an archived article!

This article was published on Dec 09 2019 and was archived on Sep 01 2020. The information below may be outdated or inaccurate.

New River Community College Educational Foundation would like to remind all local high school students and their families about upcoming Access to Community College Education (ACCE) program deadlines.

ACCE, an economic development public/private partnership that makes college available debt-free to high school and home-schooled graduates by funding NRCC tuition for two years, is available to upcoming high school graduates in NRCC’s service region which includes Floyd, Giles, Montgomery and Pulaski counties and the City of Radford.

All students who wish to participate in ACCE for the Fall 2020 semester should complete the ACCE application by the January 15 deadline.  The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) should also be completed by January 15.  Students who complete the application and FAFSA will be notified of their award by email on April 1 and must accept the award by April 10. 

The FAFSA application can be completed at www.fafsa.gov, and the ACCE application can be completed online at www.nr.edu/acce.

Returning ACCE program recipients who plan to enroll in Fall 2020 classes must complete an ACCE renewal form and FAFSA by January 15 as well.

ACCE students are also expected to complete at least 40 hours of community service 15 days prior to the start of each semester that they are enrolled in ACCE and complete 80 hours total (note: Giles County students must complete 100 hours of service). It is recommended that students complete all hours during the summer before the start of the fall semester. This avoids the student having school and community service at the same time.  Community service meetings will be held in mid-May at each high school to assist students with community service placement locations.  Community service for ACCE must be served at an approved nonprofit location as assigned by the locality's ACCE community service coordinator.

To participate in the ACCE program at NRCC, students must have at least a 2.5 GPA in high school to qualify; maintain a 2.5 GPA while in the program; complete the FAFSA and complete all FAFSA generated documents; must qualify for Virginia instate tuition and reside in Floyd County, Giles County, Montgomery County, Pulaski County, or Radford City at least one year prior to the ACCE application date;  complete at least 80 hours of community service annually; maintain full-time enrollment of 12 credits; pay tuition and fees for credits over 15 (funds will support up to 15 credits during fall and spring semesters); purchase their own textbooks; enroll in a degree or certificate program that meets federal financial aid requirements; take a College Success Skills course during their first NRCC semester; must not take online courses during the first semester, except College Success Skills; reimburse the program for any ACCE-sponsored course in which the student is unsuccessful; complete both English and math placement tests (unless exempt – see Career Coach for more information). Students must also be registered for classes by June 1 and meet all ACCE deadlines in order to receive funding.

For more information about the ACCE program, please contact the NRCC Educational Foundation at (540)674-3618 or visit www.nr.edu/acce.