UHV receives $100,000 in scholarship funds to help students with hurricane recovery
A $100,000 donation from the Rebuild Texas Fund via the Qatar Harvey Fund will provide scholarships to University of Houston-Victoria students still struggling with the aftereffects of Hurricane Harvey.
Students unable to re-enroll in courses or near graduation will be given priority. The number of scholarships awarded and amount given will be based on the number of qualified applicants and the degree of need. Each award will be no more than $5,000 a student.
“We appreciate having partners like the Rebuild Texas Fund and Qatar Harvey Fund to assist UHV students still struggling financially after Hurricane Harvey,” UHV President Bob Glenn said. “With this scholarship funding, we hope that our students will continue to pursue their higher education dreams and not worry as much about unexpected expenses they’re still dealing with after the hurricane.”
The donation helping UHV students is part of a $500,000 donation to establish the Qatar Harvey Fund Scholarship program at the University of Houston System. Students from all four UH System universities will benefit from the program created by the Qatar Harvey Fund and Rebuild Texas Fund to help students in southeast Texas.
“Qatar has deep ties in Houston and southeast Texas through many years of economic and educational exchange,” said His Excellency Sheikh Meshal bin Hamad Al-Thani, Qatar’s Ambassador to the U.S. “When we understood the scale of the devastation from Hurricane Harvey, there was no question that Qatar would help this region’s long recovery process.”
The scholarships will assist students during the fall 2019 and spring 2020 semesters with unmet costs of attendance, such as tuition and fees, room and board, books and educational supplies, and transportation expenses.
Priority will be given to students who have exhausted all other forms of aid and are nearing graduation, said Jesse Pisors, UHV vice president for advancement and external relations. In addition, the scholarships will be awarded to students who withdrew during the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and have not re-enrolled, reduced their credit hours as a result of Harvey’s impact or are facing financial challenges in maintaining their current enrollment because of ongoing hardships.
“As we’ve worked up and down the Texas coast, what’s become apparent to us is that there are still needs that haven’t been met for those affected by Hurricane Harvey,” said Cristina Cornejo, program officer for the Rebuild Texas Foundation. “We’ve heard of students not being able to return to school after the hurricane because of unexpected costs of damages made to vehicles, homes and personal belongings. We want to assist in addressing those needs for the students to help them continue to pursue their academic goals and dreams.”
The scholarship funds will be distributed through UHV Financial Aid, and students can apply at uhv.campuslabs.com/engage/submitter/form/start/261584, said Jay Lambert, UHV vice president for student affairs. A committee will evaluate each application. Students are encouraged to apply by June 1, although the application will remain open until funds are exhausted.
This is the sixth external gift of $10,000 or more that UHV has received to assist its students with the aftereffects of Hurricane Harvey. In 2018, the university received $100,000 from the Rebuild Texas Fund.
The Rebuild Texas Fund supports the economic recovery of Texas communities devastated by Hurricane Harvey. The fund is a collaborative project of the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and the OneStar Foundation, funded through the support of more than 30,000 corporate and individual donors. The State of Qatar created the Qatar Harvey Fund in 2017, pledging $30 million to support the people of Texas in the aftermath of the hurricane. UH System Chancellor Renu Khator is a member of the Qatar Harvey Fund’s Advisory Board.
“We deeply appreciate the Rebuild Texas Foundation and Qatar Harvey Fund for helping us do more to keep our students at the university and building their futures,” Pisors said. “We can help a lot more students thanks to them.”
For more information about applying for the scholarship, contact Lambert at lambertj1@uhv.edu.
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 80 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.
