UHV supports students through emergency funding
The University of Houston-Victoria is continuing to help students during the COVID-19 pandemic, including assisting those experiencing financial hardship.
One way the university is looking to support students is through the Student Emergency Fund, which helps cover students’ unforeseen emergency expenses that could cause them to drop out. The fund is similar to the UHV Relief Fund that started immediately after Hurricane Harvey. While the Relief Fund was created to specifically help students impacted by Harvey, the Student Emergency Fund was set up in 2019 to help students who had other emergencies that impacted their ability to continue at UHV.
Students must apply for assistance, and most grants are for $300 or less. To apply for the fund, students must be enrolled in at least six credit hours and have an emergency need that could result in the student leaving school or delaying completion of their degree.
“We want to be prepared to help our students who are facing financial struggles during this time when some of them are losing paychecks because of COVID-19,” said Jesse Pisors, UHV vice president for advancement and external relations. “Once students drop out, it is often hard for them to enroll in school again and get a degree. We want to offer assistance so students don’t have to abandon their higher education pursuits, which could change the trajectory of their lives.”
The university also helped students during last week’s spring break by opening JP’s Market, a food pantry that supplies food to UHV and Victoria College students for free. JP’s Market is located at Jaguar Suites, 2703 Houston Highway.
“We are doing everything we can to help our students,” said Jay Lambert, UHV vice president for student affairs. “JP’s Market will be open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays beginning this Friday, in order to better serve its students. There will be a limit of two students inside the market at one time.”
Students who work hourly positions could see a loss in income for an undetermined amount of time because of COVID-19. The global pandemic has caused changes to many businesses, such as restaurants, where dine-in services are suspended. Students who work as wait staff, hosts or in other service-based jobs might see either their positions terminated unexpectedly or their work hours cut drastically.
Emergency situations that the fund has covered include health care costs or help with a car repair bill, Pisors said. The university wants to be prepared in a scenario where there are more student requests for help through the fund now that many businesses where students work are being affected by COVID-19.
“The last thing we want is for students to stop progressing toward a degree when a little financial help could have made all the difference,” Pisors said.
For more information about this program or to learn how you can support it, contact Pisors at 361-570-4829 or pisorsj@uhv.edu.
For more information about the fund or a link to the application, go to www.uhv.edu/student-affairs/emergency-funds or contact Lambert at 361-570-4290 or 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.
