When COVID-19 first began to spread across the United States, it didn’t take long for the University of Houston to realize students were going to need financial help.
It turned to an emergency fund that had helped ease unexpected financial hardships before: The Cougar Emergency Fund. Since relaunching the fund in March, the university has raised more than $1 million from private donations and a matching gift to help students stay enrolled and on track despite any financial setbacks caused by the pandemic.
“While I’m proud to see how our students adapted to this new normal of social distancing and online classes, we are sympathetic to their financial struggles and remain committed to providing the necessary support, financial or otherwise, to see them through,” said Richard Walker, UH vice president for student affairs and enrollment services.
The Cougar Emergency Fund offers as much as $1,500 in support to eligible students to pay for:
- Costs related to loss of wages (past due utilities, unpaid rent, childcare)
- Medical expenses
- Food
- Housing (deposits, unexpected moving expenses and emergency lodging)
- Utilities (application, initiation and deposit fees)
- Technology (internet costs, increased data needs, software)
- Tuition assistance (including summer sessions)
- Course materials (textbooks and other required materials)
The Cougar Emergency Fund had originally been created in 2015, and UH reinstated it in 2017 to help students struggling after Hurricane Harvey.
Students who were helped from the fund said they were grateful for the donors who helped ease their financial burden during the pandemic.
Akinola Akinlawon, a management information systems major, said he lost his financial support from sponsors abroad when COVID hit, and he began to worry about paying rent, buying food and making tuition.
“I am grateful to everyone who contributed one way or the other to the realization of the Cougar Emergency Fund,” Akinlawon said. “It is relieving to know that there is a safety net provided by the school in sudden times such as this. I am a proud UH Cougar knowing fully well that my school's got my back.”
When UH relaunched the fund, it received a $500,000 matching challenge from the UH Foundation and the James Wade Rockwell Fund, a private foundation seeking to promote positive community change in the Greater Houston area, to match donations dollar-for-dollar. The matching gift and donations from 1,311 private individuals and foundations contributed $1,041,500 in support to the Cougar Emergency Fund.
So far, UH has distributed $783,679 of the Cougar Emergency Fund to 730 eligible students.
Eligible students include those currently enrolled in undergraduate or graduate courses who are in good standing, with priority given to those enrolled full time. The fund is administered through the UH Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid.
UH will continue to award money to students until the funds run out.
