(The Center Square) – The Office of the Dean of Students at Washington State University, or WSU, recently announced they have been awarded $680,000 in grants for students experiencing housing and food insecurity.
The two grants are administered by the Washington Student Achievement Council, funded by the Washington State Legislature. Eligible students will be able to reap the benefits of these grants this fall term at WSU.
Funding comes from two sources, SB 5702 and HB 1559.
The first bill from the Senate is for the purposes of “expanding the students experiencing homelessness and foster youth pilot program,” and the second from the House is “an act relating to the student basic needs at public postsecondary institutions act.”
Both bills close with the paragraph stating that if “specific funding” for the legislation is not provided by June 30, 2023, in the omnibus appropriations act, the legislation is null and void.
That funding is provided courtesy of the state’s operating budget.
The costs to implement the two pieces of legislation are $3,718,000 for SB 5702 and $5,236,000 for HB 1559.
That’s just implementation funding.
There are two additional allocations for SB 5702 and seven for HB 1559, totaling $694,000 and $2,430,000 in funding, respectively.
That brings the totals to $4,412,000 for SB 5702, or the students experiencing homelessness and foster youth program expansion, and $7,666,000 for HB 1559, or the student basic needs at public postsecondary institutions program.
The funding WSU received is, in part, an expansion to a pilot program they participated in over prior years.
“The impact of the pilot grant was significant, as many students were on the verge of being evicted. Students have said the grant funds are life changing and kept them on the path to degree completion,” said Assistant Dean of Students at WSU Heather Case, touting the merits of the pilot program when talking with the school paper WSU Insider.
The funding will be disbursed in the form of grant assistance through the Student Financial Services office, and will apply to various housing and food assistance programs.
The grant dollars also allocate some funding for administrative overhead, allowing staff of “a three-quarter position and a half-time graduate assistant, likely to be housed in the Dean of Students office, to promote the program to students,” according to WSU Insider.
“If we can start educating students when they first come in, give them the tools, resources, and knowledge they need to reduce their risk of experiencing food insecurity, hopefully it sets them up for success throughout their time at WSU,” said Case highlighting the long term benefits the grant funding could provide when speaking with the school newspaper.
WSU students can check if they qualify for these assistant grants at WSU’s Student Financial Aid website.
