Outside scholarships does not always affect financial aid as I have seen mentioned.

It appears to be common for colleges to apply outside scholarships first to student loan and work earnings expectations (and unmet need if any) before reducing grants.

For example:

https://financialaid.stanford.edu/aid/outside/ (clear example of various levels of outside scholarship for a student receiving a financial aid grant)

https://fas.ucsd.edu/frequently-asked-questions/index.html (“We would first reduce any unmet need in your financial aid package. If you’re still over the budget, then we’d reduce your other awards in the following order: University loan, work-study, parent PLUS loan, student loans, grants. Any scholarship money that replaces a loan reduces your future loan debt.”)