USF fund helps students meet financial obligations during coronavirus pandemic
TAMPA, Fla. - Making ends meet is a lot harder for USF freshman Lauren Mattozzi and her fellow students because of the coronavirus pandemic.
"Right now, with corona going on, we are all off-campus so all of the on-campus jobs that would be provided for students, we can't work at anymore,” Mattozzi explained. “So a lot of us are struggling to find other places to work."
The struggle has just been made a lot easier thanks to a new USF alumni-sponsored program.
"This is an opportunity for the university to show that it really cares about their well-being and their financial situation," said USF President Steve Currall.
It’s called the USF United Support Fund and the goal is to provide financial assistance to students during the corona crisis.
"In the last few days we had over 430 donors contribute nearly $100,000 to help our students financially navigate through this situation," Currall explained.
The funds can be used for any essential needs that students may have.
"They can use this for housing,” Currall said. “They can use it for food, They can use it for information technology hardware that they may need to maintain their academic continuity.
Freshman Emma Tucker said the program is needed.
"I definitely think it’s a good thing especially with everything that's going on, right now with the virus and stuff people are going to need help so it’s going to be beneficial for a lot of people including myself," Tucker said.
A community coming together to help meet the needs of students during challenging times.
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