Dear IUP Students,
As President Driscoll mentioned in his campus-wide message Wednesday, IUP has received an allocation through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security program (CARES Act). The CARES Act will provide institutions with federal dollars to offer emergency funds to students who have experienced unexpected educational expenses such as childcare, housing, food, technology expenses, and additional course materials as a result of the disruption from the coronavirus pandemic.
Students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels qualify for funding. To be considered for these funds, students must have filed a 2019-20 FAFSA and meet all Federal financial aid eligibility requirements. Federal guidelines prohibit the use of CARES Act funds for tuition or loss of income.
Our initial distribution plan includes assistance to enrolled students who have filed a 2019-2020 FAFSA, meet Federal financial aid eligibility requirements, and meet one or more of the following conditions:
- Have expenses that were incurred from transitioning back home from off-campus housing
- Have additional costs as a result of having to perform all educational experiences from home if already commuting
- Had to withdraw from a course due to change in modality
- Or students in academic programs that cannot be delivered remotely, such as the Academy of Culinary Arts and Police Academy programs
If you are in one or more of these categories, you will automatically be considered for funding, and you do not have to file an application for these CARES Act funds.
Most students in these categories who qualify for this initial funding should receive funds by May 15, except for students in the Culinary Arts program, who will have funding disbursed in the fall or spring semester. If you are receiving funding, you will be notified by the Bursar's Office and provided with more details as they become available.
Because we know that many students outside of these groups have financial need due to the disruption of their education in the spring 2020 semester from the pandemic, we have allocated part of our CARES Act funding as Emergency Response Grants. If you believe that you may qualify for CARES Act emergency grants, please complete this application. By completing this application, you will automatically be considered for funding from the IUP Emergency Response Fund (funded by generous donations from IUP alumni and friends), in case you do not qualify for CARES Act emergency funding.
We know that this continues to be a challenging time, and you may have questions about this process. Please contact iup-hawks@iup.edu with your general questions and concerns. For specifics regarding your eligibility, please contact the Bursar's Office at student-billing@iup.edu.
Tom Segar
Vice President for Student Affairs