Financial Aid
Payment Plans
Payment plans allow for flexible payment schedules if a member cannot pay their charges on time and wants to avoid late fines. These plans can last up to 8 weeks. For more information, see the ‘Payment Plans’ section below.
Scholarships
The ICC offers four different scholarships – the MLK scholarship, the Bridge scholarship, the Solidarity Fund scholarship, and the COVID-19 scholarship. All scholarship applications are reviewed on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted. For more information on eligibility and award amounts, please see the relevant sections below.
Appeals
Payment plans and scholarships are voted on by the Finance Committee, made up of Board Representatives and Member Assistants from different ICC houses and chaired by the VP of Finance (non-voting). Applicant names and pronouns are redacted and can only seen by the VP of Finance, Director of Financial Services, and General Manager (payment plans only).
If a member is unsatisfied with the decision that FinCom reaches, they can appeal to the VP of Finance. The VP may request additional documentation or explanation of the applicant’s extenuating circumstances if they believe that applies. The VP may then present the additional information to the Finance Committee for a secondary review.
If the member is unsatisfied with or has a concern about scholarship or payment plan policies, they can request an appointment with the Finance Committee (currently meeting on Monday afternoons for Spring/Summer 2023) to ask questions or discuss their situation.
If the member remains unsatisfied after exploring these options, they can request a review and consultation with the Board of Directors.
Martin Luther King Scholarship
Purpose: This scholarship is intended to provide monthly assistance for members pursuing educational goals with demonstrated financial need (DFN). See the section ‘MLK – How is DFN Calculated?’ below for more information.
Eligibility: For the Fall/Winter contract period, an applicant must be enrolled for the term that they wish to receive aid. If a member is graduating in December, they would be eligible for the MLK scholarship for the Fall term only. For the Spring/Summer contract period, an applicant must either be enrolled in at least one Spring or Summer term class or have been enrolled in the previous Fall and Winter terms and registered for classes for the upcoming Fall term.
Amount: $50-$320/month based on DFN. For more information see the section ‘MLK – How Much Money Will I Get?’ below.
Disbursement: The MLK scholarship is disbursed monthly in the form of credit to the applicant’s Rent Manager account. The award won’t be posted until the contract period has started and the application has been reviewed and approved by the Finance Committee. If an application is approved after the start of the term, retroactive credit will be posted to the member’s account for the previous months.
Application Details: The Spring/Summer 2023 application is now open here and the Finance Committee is actively reviewing applications. Fall/Winter 2023-24 applications are also open and can be accessed here. Spring/Summer 2024 and Fall/Winter 2024-25 applications will open in January 2024 and applicants will receive a provisionary award that will be confirmed once financial aid notices are sent out for that period.
Bridge Scholarship
Purpose: This scholarship is intended to act as emergency assistance for a member experiencing a one-time unforeseen financial difficulty.
Eligibility: The Bridge scholarship is open to any ICC member, including non-students, who are experiencing a loss of income, a change in ability to generate personal income, or unexpected additional expenses that have interfered with their ability to pay charges.
Amount: Average of $300-500
Disbursement: The Bridge scholarship is disbursed as a credit to the applicant’s Rent Manager account once the application is reviewed and approved by the Finance Committee.
Application Details: Bridge scholarships are awarded on a rolling basis throughout the year until funds are exhausted. Applications should be filled out alongside a payment plan – the member should include a cover letter explaining their situation, along with their expected ability to pay and the amount they are requesting – the Finance Committee may grant that request or may make a different decision. The Bridge Scholarship/Payment Plan application can be found here.
Solidarity Fund
Purpose: The Solidarity Fund is a mutual aid scholarship program intended to provide aid for members with financial need who don’t qualify for other scholarships offered by the ICC. It is fully funded by member contributions and alumni donations. Members who can afford to are encouraged to contribute $5/month – the form to sign up to contribute can be found here: . For alumni/friends of the co-op, the preferred ways to donate are through GoFundMe: or JustGiving: .
Eligibility: Any current member of the ICC who isn’t currently receiving an MLK scholarship is eligible.
Amount: Up to $100 per term, based on availability of funds and financial need.
Disbursement: Scholarships funded by the Solidarity Fund are awarded as rent credit to the recipient’s RentManager account.
Application Details: Applications for Solidarity Fund scholarships use the same form as the MLK scholarship. The Finance Committee will first evaluate the applicant for the MLK scholarship, and if the applicant is not eligible (or if MLK funds have run out for the year), the Finance Committee will decide whether to award them a Solidarity Fund scholarship. The MLK application can be found at
COVID-19 Scholarship
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ICC leaders formed a COVID-19 fundraising group to brainstorm ways to solve our member debt problems due to unforeseen circumstances. On May 5th, 2020, ICC leaders launched a GoFundMe campaign on Giving Tuesday to create this scholarship to provide aid for members affected by the COVID-19 virus.
All applicants must provide proof of a positive COVID-19 test and documentation that shows a direct impact to the member’s income.
Yes, we still have funds! This money has been set aside for this purpose and cannot be used for anything else. If you think you might qualify, please apply here.
Payment Plan
Payment plans are designed to assist members who experience a temporary financial disruption to continue paying charges and secure their housing. Payment plans do not release you from any charges, they can only facilitate a temporary, alternative payment schedule.
Members are encouraged to apply before accruing debt if they are expecting a disruption. If a member does not pay by the 15th and does not file a payment plan, the ICC will begin eviction procedures. If the eviction proceeds to legal action, any associated costs will be assessed to the member. Eviction procedures can be stopped by being approved for a payment plan (Standing Rule 15.8.5).
Payment plans cannot last longer than 8 weeks (but they can be shorter), and payment plans are never allowed to cross between contract periods (e.g. a payment plan submitted on July 20th would need to end by August 18th, 2023, the final day of the Spring/Summer contract period, even though this would mean the payment plan would last less than 8 weeks.
By the end of the 5th week of the payment plan, the member must pay at least 50% of their debt (existing balance + ICC and house charges that will be posted for the payment plan duration + any pet fees, AC fees, or house fines posted for the payment plan duration). At the end of a payment plan the member’s balance must be paid down to $0, including all charges applied during the payment plan (Standing Rule 15.8.4).
The member will receive a credit for any late fines accrued during the payment plan if they successfully complete the payment plan. Any late fines posted before the member applies will not be credited and must be included in the payment plan.
If a member misses a payment by more than three business days they will be fined $20 and the ICC will begin eviction procedures (Standing Rule 15.8.6). If a member’s situation changes after being approved for a payment plan and anticipates difficulty complying with their plan, they should reach out to the VP of Finance at vp.finance@icc.coop as soon as possible.
An example payment plan and the required payments are listed below:
I owe $50 on October 31st. On November 1st I am charged $800 in ICC and house charges. Because my balance is higher than $50, I am charged a late fee on November 6th. I fail to make any payments after the late fee and because my balance is still higher than $50 on November 15th, I receive a tier one notice to quit (essentially serves as a warning before the eviction procedure begins). On November 17th, I submit a payment plan – 8 week after November 17th is January 12th, so my payment plan will end. My total debt to pay by the end of my payment plan is $2,450 ($850 starting balance + $800 December charges + $800 January charges).
The maximum grant amount for the 2023-2024 fiscal year (May 2023 through April 2024) is $320 per month. Recently about half of applicants have qualified for the maximum grant. The size of an applicant’s grant is based on their “Demonstrated Financial Need” (DFN). An applicant’s DFN is calculated using the various pieces of personal financial information requested in the application (see the section “How is DFN Calculated?” for more information). The applicant will receive an award in accordance with the table below, unless funds for the term are exhausted.
| Demonstrated Financial Need (monthly) | Scholarship Award (monthly) |
| Less than $100 | Not eligible |
| $100 to $200 | $50 |
| $200 to $400 | $100 |
| $400 to $800 | $200 |
| $800 or more | $320 |
The calculator below will estimate the award you will receive. If you will be applying for a fall only or winter only contract, you can use the Spring/Summer term option and select that you are taking Spring/Summer classes. If you have any questions or notice any errors, please reach out to VP.Finance@icc.coop/
DFN = Expenses – Resources
Expenses are tuition and fees, ICC charges, and house charges.
Resources are scholarships, grants, family/parental contributions, income from working, etc. Income from working is adjusted downwards for the DFN calculation to reflect the challenges associated with working while taking classes.
Labor Income
Labor income is adjusted downward by Ann Arbor minimum wage ($10.10 in 2023). The “adjusted” labor income is calculated using the following formula: (hourly wage – $10.10) * (average hours worked per week) * 4 * (number of months in the contract period). For example, an applicant working 20 hours per week at $15/hour would make approximately $9600, but their adjusted labor income for the DFN calculation would be ($15/hr – $10.10/hr) * (20 hours per week) * (4 weeks per month) * (8 months in a fall/winter contract) = $3136. If you work for less than $10.10/hour, your DFN labor income resource is $0 – it cannot be negative.
Loans
In general, loans are not counted as a resource. If your parents are loaning you their own money with the expectation that you will repay them, this should be reported in the “parental contribution” portion of the application.
Applications for aid are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis. We stop awarding financial aid when our aid funds for the year run out. Therefore, the earlier you apply, the more likely you are to receive a grant.
Applications for Fall/Winter 2023-24 are open now. Applications for Spring/Summer 2024 and Fall/Winter 2024-25 will open in January 2024 and applicants will receive a provisionary award. FinCom will do a final review once financial aid notices have been sent out for the award period to confirm the award amount.
Current and prospective members are encouraged to apply for aid before they sign an occupancy contract. Applying for aid does not obligate you to live in the ICC. If you receive an award and then decide to live elsewhere, please inform us of that decision so we can make the funds reserved for you available to other applicants.
