The U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid agency thought it had found a creative way to remind students to apply for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the upcoming school year. Ahead of the June 30 deadline, the agency tweeted a screenshot of Kristen Wiig from the movie Bridesmaids captioned with “Help me, I’m Poor.” Above the picture, the tweet said, “If this is you, then you better fill out your FAFSA.” Applicants applying to college fill out the form yearly to secure funding for tuition.
The tweet quickly set the Twitter world on fire with responses from undergraduate and graduate students, who are still feeling the pains of student loan debt. One user commented, “Bc I filled out @FAFSA, I am now way more poor than I started out.” Another wrote, “not everyone who completes a FAFSA is poor and mocking those who are at or below FPL is tasteless, offensive, and ignorant.”
Realizing the error of its ways, FAFSA quickly removed the tweet from its feed. By that time it was too late. The agency replaced the previous “joke” with what appeared to be a stock apology: “We apologize for the insensitivity of our previous tweet. Our goal is to make college a reality for all. We’re very sorry.” The agency then announced it was shutting down its virtual office using the hashtag #ASKFAFSA.
