Actually 4500 is a little high, 900 of that is a state grant. It's complicated, but in essence they set a budget based on what they estimate you need and fund it as best they can, usually relying pretty heavily on student loans. It was fun for a while, you could get CDs with better rates than the loans lol. Anyway yea you have to make passable grades, but one failure doesn't ruin the whole show, it's really best to get informed and go ask the financial aid office directly.
Also Pell Grant eligibility immediately qualifies you for
food stamps and state health care in a lot of states, could be worth looking into. I don't get food stamps, but the health plan saves a lot of money.