CHICAGO –The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC), the state’s college access and financial aid agency, is proud to announce the 2025-26 Financial Aid Application Completion Recognition of Excellence awardees, honoring Illinois high schools that demonstrate outstanding leadership and commitment to student success by achieving high financial aid application completion rates. These schools have gone above and beyond in supporting their students and families through the financial aid process. This year, 469 Illinois high schools were honored, almost a 15 percent increase over last year’s honorees.
“Here in Illinois, we’re committed to supporting every student as they pursue opportunities for higher education,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Our high schools play a critical role in ensuring students have the resources they need to achieve their education and career goals, and this year, I’m proud to congratulate the hundreds of model schools working to set their students up for success across Illinois.”
Illinois requires all public high school seniors to complete either the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®), or the Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid (Alternative Application) as part of graduation requirements, or, for students who choose not to file an application, a parent or guardian can opt-out by completing a non-participation form. High schools are expected to provide students and their families with support or guidance necessary to comply with the requirement, and this year’s honoree high schools are leaders in providing this critical support.
High schools can sign up for ISAC’s FAFSA Completion Initiative, a free service to help them identify students who have not filed a financial aid application. This information can then be used by district counselors to help reach students who might not be aware of resources available to make education or training after high school affordable, perhaps helping some decide to attempt college when they might not otherwise have done so. In addition, the ISACorps™, ISAC’s statewide team of near-peer mentors, provides free one-on-one support and workshops to help students and families learn about the financial aid process and complete applications.
“Completing a financial aid application is one of the most important steps students can take to support their education and career goals, no matter what they might be,” said ISAC Executive Director Eric Zarnikow. “But many high school students might not realize that funding is available to make postsecondary education possible for them. We thank all high schools that participate in the FAFSA Completion Initiative and congratulate our Recognition of Excellence honorees for their extraordinary efforts to support students on their educational paths.”
Honorees receive one of four levels of recognition for the Class of 2025 (2025-26) financial aid application completions:
Platinum > 95% Completion: 45 Schools
Gold > 85% Completion: 103 Schools
Silver > 75% Completion: 146 Schools
Bronze > 65% Completion: 175 Schools
Later this fall, each of the 469 honorees will receive banners from their local ISACorps member to display at their school. To view the full list of the Class of 2025 Recognition of Excellence high schools, visit https://www.isac.org/home/fafsa/2025.html.
ISAC’s FAFSA Completion Initiative will begin sharing Class of 2026 (2026-27) high school financial aid application completions in early winter 2025. As always, ISAC is here to support schools, students, and families with free year-round support for college planning and financial aid. https://studentportal.isac.org/. High schools and community partners are encouraged to sign up for this year’s College Changes Everything® fall campaign to receive a downloadable campaign toolkit, materials, swag, and event support for your college application events and financial aid application completion workshops this fall. https://www.collegechangeseverything.org/campaign/.
About ISAC
The mission of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) is to provide Illinois students with information and assistance to help make education beyond high school accessible and affordable. ISAC provides comprehensive, objective, and timely information on education and financial aid for students and their families—giving them access to the tools they need to make the educational choices that are right for them. Then, through the state scholarship and grant programs ISAC administers, ISAC can help students make those choices a reality. Find us at isac.org or on Facebook (@ILStudentAssistance), X and on Instagram @ISACfinaid. and watch our videos on YouTube.