It’s never too early to take steps to secure financial aid to help pay for a college education.
That was one of the messages delivered on an upcoming episode of Kentucky Educational Television’s Education Matters. The one-hour episode, called “Paying for College 2026,” features a panel of Kentucky financial aid experts, including Lindsey Wilson University Director of Financial Aid Audrey Price.
In addition to Price, the panel includes University of Louisville Director of Financial Aid Michael Abboud, Sullivan University Director of Financial Aid & Military Affairs Meshell LaBaun and Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority outreach counselor Conner Vogt. Education Matters is hosted by KET’s Kelsey Starks.
The episode was filmed Tuesday, Oct. 7, at KET’s Louisville studio. It will air for the first time at 8 p.m. CT/9 p.m. ET on Monday, Oct. 13. The episode will be repeated more than a half-dozen times during October on KET and KETKY.
The segment also features Robin Rixon of Russell Springs, who is the college and career readiness counselor at Russell County High School. Rixon discusses the college-application journey her son, Kole, took on his way to becoming a Lindsey Wilson freshman this fall.
The airing of the KET show is perfect timing for Kentucky students and their family members because now is the time to begin the college search and financial-aid process, said Price.
The U.S. Department of Education recently announced that the Free Application for Student Aid — commonly known as the FAFSA — is now open for the 2026-27 school year. The FAFSA’s Sept. 24 launch was the earliest start in the program’s history.
The FAFSA is the bedrock of almost all schools’ student financial aid. On the federal level, it is used to determine if a student is available for a need-based Pell grant. For Kentucky residents who attend a Kentucky college or university, the FAFSA is used to help determine if a student is eligible to receive a need-based College Access Program grant; and for those who attend one of Kentucky’s 18 independent colleges and universities, it determines if they can receive a need-based Kentucky Tuition Grant.
“This KET show is such a great public service,” said Price, who is also president-elect of the Kentucky Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. “The more information out there for students and families to use, the better it makes their financial-aid process.”
Price said the FAFSA takes about 15-20 minutes to complete online. Despite the shutdown of the federal government, the FAFSA is still available at studentaid.gov.
For questions about the FAFSA, contact Price at pricea@lindsey.edu or 270-384-8021.
(By Duane Bonifer)