<p>My son is in a very unique situation. He attends a Title I high school in New Mexico where 98% of the students are Hispanic and 98% are classified to be low income. As a result, every student at the high school qualifies for the free lunch program (despite the fact that I filled out the school census form and honestly reported my income). In a nutshell, my son’s high school is considered one of the poorest high schools in New Mexico (and New Mexico is one of the poorest states in the country). </p>
<p>However, my son is Caucasian, I’m an attorney and we have a high income (over $200,000). My son is one of the few white kids in the school (there are only 7 or 8 total) and we live in a very small section of the high school boundaries where there are some nice houses. All of my peers think that I’m crazy to send my son to this high school. The reality is that he has excelled and fit in very well. While there was concern regarding the academic rigor of the school (admittedly, the school’s primary focus is to prevent drop outs, not teach AP courses), my son has done quite well on the standardized tests (ACT: 28 (90% percentile) and SAT: 1920 (88% percentile)).</p>
<p>Here is my dilemma: My son is definitely on the federal free lunch program, which is clearly one of the qualifying events for college application fee waivers. Thus, I could honestly submit the fee waivers to various colleges and universities. However, my son will likely apply to 20 or so schools and the reality is that I can afford all of the application fees. Further, schools will see my FAFSA numbers. I’m worried that there will be a disconnect in the application review process: schools see the application fee waiver, but then see large income figures in the FAFSA and wonder if we are simply milking the system, which we really would be, even though it would technically be honest and legal.</p>
<p>I’ve already convinced myself to go ahead and pay the application fees because I think it is the honest and ethical thing to do. However, I wanted to run it by everyone and see if anyone felt differently or had any other thoughts? The only thing that I thought may enter the equation as to an argument to use the fee waivers: Do applications that use the fee waver sometimes get preferential treatment or attention because selective schools want kids who qualify for the fee waiver? Even if this was the case, it could still backfire if they see the FAFSA. Thanks in advance for any thoughts.</p>
<p>EPC</p>