It could be a textbook. It could be a class credit. It could be an unforeseen expense. No matter the hardship, the MSU College of Natural Science Undergraduate Emergency Assistance Fund provides mini grants to students to help give them that “little extra” to get by so that they can continue pursuing their education.
Thanks to the generosity of donors on last year’s Give Green Day, NatSci was able to provide seven mini grants to students in need. Those grants made it possible for two juniors to continue their education; helped a senior who needed assistance with food and rent; and allowed a senior to repeat a course needed for graduation.
For Give Green Day this year, NatSci is hoping to up the ante. The more money raised, the more students in need who can be helped.
NatSci is not the only school focused on emergency funds. The College of Communication Arts and Sciences is establishing the ComArtSci Student Emergency Fund. The Honors College wants to make sure no student falls off track because of an unforeseen hardship. James Madison has a goal of supporting six students with emergency scholarships of $750 to $1,500.
These grants matter.
“It meant I didn’t have to go back home and have nothing going for me,” Jesse Leahy-McGregor, a junior astrophysics major said of the grants he was awarded. “Without school, I don’t have a lot of career opportunities or future plan.”
Financial hardship can come out of nowhere. Support an emergency fund to help a student in need.
The following colleges and programs are using Give Green Day to focus on emergency scholarship funds:
- Communication Arts and Sciences
- Honors College
- James Madison
- Natural Science
- College of Arts and Letters
- MSU Center for Survivors
- University Scholarships
For more, go to givingday.msu.edu.
Liam Boylan-Pett