Colleges and universities in Arizona will get hundreds of millions of dollars designed to help their students and the institutions themselves, the U.S. Department of Education announced Thursday.

The first influx of money the colleges can access should go to students for emergency cash grants, the department said. These grants can be used for things related to education, like course materials and technology, and for other support like food, housing, health care and childcare, the department said.

Arizona State University will get the highest amount of any college in the country. The money was made available through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund that was authorized as part of the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, called the CARES Act, signed into law about two weeks ago.

ASU will receive $63.5 million in total, $31.8 million of which must be allocated as emergency financial aid grants to students, a document compiled by the Education Department detailing each college's allocation states.

In total, the CARES Act includes $14 billion for post-secondary education. Of that, $6.3 billion will be distributed immediately to colleges, which will then be used for direct emergency cash grants to students disrupted by COVID-19, the department said in a press release.

“What’s best for students is at the center of every decision we make,” U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos said in the press release. “That’s why we prioritized getting funding out the door quickly to college students who need it most. We don’t want unmet financial needs due to the coronavirus to derail their learning.”

To access the money, the department must receive a signed certification from the college or university saying they will distribute the funds according to the law.

It's up to the individual colleges to determine which students will receive cash grants, the department said.

The formula the CARES Act used to figure out how much colleges and universities received includes how many full-time students are eligible for Pell grants, the total population of the college, and the number of students who were not enrolled full-time in online courses before the COVID-19 pandemic, the department said.

Money that doesn't go to students will go toward the colleges themselves to cover costs associated with changes to instruction caused by COVID-19. Direction on how those institutional funds can be used should come in the next few weeks, the department said.

Some will give 100% to students

The University of Phoenix said it will give all of its money from the CARES Act, not just 50%, directly to its students.

"University of Phoenix is unequivocally committed to using every penny of CARES Act funding for direct financial assistance to our students — many of whom are nurses, members of the military and veterans who have stepped up on the front lines fighting COVID-19 — to help them navigate these difficult times,” Andrea Smiley, the school's vice president of public relations, said in a statement.

“We strongly believe that every higher education institution should devote the majority of these federal funds to direct financial assistance to students and that the federal government should provide close and careful oversight to ensure that happens."

Grand Canyon University also will give 100% of its CARES Act funds to students as cash grants, the university said Thursday.

“This was an easy decision to make,” GCU President Brian Mueller said in a statement. “It is incumbent on us to take care of our students and families who are trying to navigate the challenges caused by this coronavirus pandemic.”

GCU is working out the details of how funds will be distributed and will give students information on the grants in the coming days, the university said. These funds will not be used to reimburse GCU for any housing or meal plan refunds or credits that have already gone out to students, Mueller said.

The University of Arizona said it is reviewing the federal guidance to make sure funding is used as required to support students.

“We will issue guidance to students as soon as possible,” UA spokeswoman Pam Scott said in an email. “We are grateful that our lawmakers recognized the financial pain that our students are feeling by providing this needed support.”

What colleges are receiving

Here's what some of Arizona's colleges and universities are receiving through the CARES Act, according to calculations by the Education Department:

Arizona State University: $63,533,137 overall, $31,766,569 of which must go to students

University Of Arizona: $30,953,447 overall, $15,476,724 of which must go to students

Northern Arizona University: $23,577,854 overall, $11,788,927 of which must go to students

Grand Canyon University: $22,351,397 overall, $11,175,699 of which must go to students

Glendale Community College: $8,301,836 overall, $4,150,918 of which must go to students

Mesa Community College: $7,352,103 overall, $3,676,052 of which must go to students

Estrella Mountain Community College: $4,856,585 overall, $2,428,293 of which must go to students

Phoenix College: $4,772,192 overall, $2,386,096 of which must go to students

Chandler-Gilbert Community College: $4,350,989 overall, $2,175,495 of which must go to students

Gateway Community College: $2,707,626 overall, $1,353,813 of which must go to students

Paradise Valley Community College: $2,586,404 overall, $1,293,202 of which must go to students

Rio Salado Community College: $2,531,870 overall, $1,265,935 of which must go to students

Scottsdale Community College: $2,386,925 overall, $1,193,463 of which must go to students

South Mountain Community College: $2,098,614 overall, $1,049,307 of which must go to students

Arizona Christian University: $747,009 overall, $373,505 of which must go to students

Arizona College: $3,665,308 overall, $1,832,654 of which must go to students

Arizona Culinary Institute: $209,341 overall, $104,671 of which must go to students

Arizona School Of Acupuncture And Oriental Medicine: $7,856 overall, $3,928 of which must go to students

Arizona School Of Integrative Studies: $163,548 overall, $81,774 of which must go to students

Arizona Western College: $4,528,738 overall, $2,264,369 of which must go to students

University Of Phoenix: $6,589,433 overall, $3,294,717 of which must go to students

Paul Mitchell The School Phoenix: $306,817 overall, $153,409 of which must go to students

Phoenix Institute Of Herbal Medicine & Acupuncture: $37,245 overall, $18,623 of which must go to students

Phoenix Seminary: $42,117 overall, $21,059 of which must go to students

Reach reporter Rachel Leingang by email at rachel.leingang@gannett.com or by phone at 602-444-8157, or find her on Twitter and Facebook.

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