John Jay’s Student Emergency Fund is a lifeline for our most vulnerable students. The program gives students facing financial hardships access to the resources they need to help pay their tuition, rent, or even their light bill. And, in the virtual world we’re currently living, it’s also helping pay for the cost of internet service. “If a student is struggling right now, the Emergency Funding program may be able to help,” says Malaine Clarke, Director of John Jay’s Emergency Funding and the Director of John Jay’s Food Pantry and Health Services. “We want our students to continue on their academic journey, and with grants from emergency funding, we can help remove the obstacles that are in the way. If you need assistance, please apply.” We sat down with Clarke to learn more about the Student Emergency Fund and to find out who can apply for emergency funding, what emergencies the fund covers, and what are the requirements for funding.

Can you tell us what emergency funding is and what it can cover?
Emergency funding is a supplemental help for students who are having economic hardships, and for students who are at risk of dropping out of school because they don’t have the money to continue their education. Emergency funding covers tuition, light, utilities, rent, and water bills. Right now, in this virtual arena, we cover internet service for students so that they can access their classes. We also assist students if they have a medical emergency that is impeding their academic journey. We help students with clothing and school supplies. Let’s say there’s a fire in the student’s home, or their home is flooded, and they are in need of school supplies or need clothes to travel to school, we provide that service through emergency funding. We also help students purchase textbooks. Also, if a student has an internship and is struggling to get to that internship, emergency funding can help with transportation.

For students impacted by the Covid-19 health crisis, how has emergency funding been able to help?
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in March, we’ve helped over 670 students, mostly with the cost of housing and tuition. We have students who lost their jobs or had their hours reduced due to the pandemic, or their parents lost their jobs or had their work hours reduced, and that’s led to housing insecurity. Emergency funding has been able to help students cover some of those housing costs. Please, if you are at risk for eviction or you are behind on your rent, reach out because emergency funding is for you.

If a student wants to apply for emergency funding, but they’re not sure they qualify, what can they do?
Go to our website www.jjay.cuny.edu/emergency-funding and get an understanding of the types of emergencies that we do and don’t cover. On the page there are also frequently asked questions that students can go through to see if they are eligible to apply for funding. Even if you don’t find the answers you’re looking for, I would still suggest you submit an application. This way we can at least know what is affecting you as a student and we can recommend to you which emergency funding you can access. For example, you may not be eligible for help with tuition, but you may be eligible for rent emergency funding or a book voucher. And, if you’re still not sure what it covers, or have questions, you can email us at emergencyfunding@jjay.cuny.edu.

What kind of documents do students need in order to apply for an emergency fund grant?
With the application, you have to send us supporting documents because we need to have checks and balances. We want to make sure that we help the students that are most in need. For example, if you owe tuition, one of the supporting documents we need is a bursar bill. To get the bill, you can contact the bursar’s office, or you can download your e-bill from CUNYfirst. Let’s say a student is asking for help with their rent, the supporting document we would need could be the lease or a letter from the landlord or a subletter stating the amount you are responsible for.

Let’s say a student is approved for an emergency funding grant to help with their rent, how does that transaction work?
Currently, because we are virtual, we are using a CUNY Pay E-form so that we can electronically send the money to the third party. The CUNY Pay E-form gives us permission to make contact with the bank, the realtor, the landlord to say that we are paying on behalf of the student.

Is emergency funding available for international students and immigrant and undocumented students?
Emergency funding is open to all John Jay students, including international and immigrant and undocumented students. You do not need a social security number to apply. These are John Jay-based programs. We do not reveal information to the federal government as they have no claim on emergency funding. So, if you are an undocumented student, an immigrant student, or an international student, you are eligible to apply for emergency funding. We do not question your citizenship or your immigration status.

If a student is on the verge of graduating, but finances are an obstacle, can emergency funding help?
If you are a last-semester senior who is struggling to pay your tuition and you have run out of financial aid, you need to apply for emergency funding. There is a part of the emergency funding award that we give to students to transition them to the work world. Our cap right now is $1,500, however, if for example, you are in your last semester and are owing $1,550 or $2,000, emergency funding will clear that bill on your behalf so that you can graduate, get your transcript, and move on to the working world.

Are there any myths about Emergency Funding that you’d like to dispel?
One of the things students are most leery about is providing supporting documents. They feel like once they give us their documents, it will be used against them in terms of getting aid from any other sources. Please know that the emergency funding grant will not impact your financial aid for the next academic year. It is independent of financial aid. If you are qualified and approved for emergency funding and you received that award, it does not impact your financial aid for the upcoming year, it does not stop you from getting any other scholarships available at John Jay, and, you do not have to pay the emergency grant back. It is yours and it is free.

Is there a recent student success story that showcases how emergency funding has helped our students?
Recently, we had a student who applied for emergency funding as a last-semester senior. She urgently needed help in clearing her Spring 2020 and Summer 2020 bill because she was applying for a job. In her application she said, “I know it is a first-come, first-served basis, but I just got a job interview and I need my transcript for the interview.” That compelled us to spring into action. We were able to pull her application, expedite it, work with the business office so that the bursar could lift that hold, and the College could give her the transcript so that she could go on the interview. She recently emailed us to let us know that she got the job.