KSA creates new fund for struggling students

Up to $14,000 will be available for students with non-academic need

Students facing non-academic troubles will soon be eligible to receive help from the Student Society Emergency Aid Fund.

Alex McGowan, vice president of external affairs and president of the Kwantlen Student Association, explained that the government of British Columbia has recently set up a matching fund for student societies in universities.

The fund is for students who need help with things like paying rent, medical bills, or groceries.

“So, it’s not for things like tuition or books,” McGowan says.

Student societies can put forth up to $7,000 into this fund, and the provincial government will match it dollar for dollar, maximizing the fund out at $14,000 total.

McGowan explained one of the rules with this fund is that half of the money student societies put in have to be raised through fundraising, and that half cannot be drawn from student fees.

“We’ve set the goal of fundraising $3,500 to put towards that fund and another $3,500 from our bursary fund, and then we’ll create that fund for students,” McGowan says.

Students who apply for the fund will be assessed by the university.

“The student can apply for it, and it’s up to the university to decide whether that need is appropriate for accessing the fund,” McGowan says.

The KSA hopes that they will have completed fundraising during the summer time.