International Students to be Eligible for US COVID-19 Emergency Grants

Neha Joshi
May 22, 2021
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The US Department of Education has announced emergency grants worth quite $36 billion to assist over 5,000 during a bid to assist over 5,000 HEIs within the US, the US Department of Education has announced emergency grants worth quite $36 billion for postsecondary education, which are opened for international students for the primary time.HEIs within the US and offer emergency relief to international students suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

These grants will double the emergency relief aid already available to students and institutions under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) relief legislation and Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES).

Miguel Cardona, US Secretary of Education, said these funds will ensure that those students impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic will have the opportunity to apply, continue their studies, graduate and find jobs.

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This action will allow thousands of US institutions to provide direct relief to most-affected students, which will help them recover from the pandemica and go back to normalcy.

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These funds can also be used for initiatives to retain and reengage students through mental health and virtual projects. However, half of the projects should be aimed at providing direct relief to not just international students but also DACA residents and US students who want to study abroad.

The department said that priority while allocating this funding will, however, be given to domestic students especially at the undergraduate level.

Also Read: Wage-Based Allocation of H-1B Visas to Impact International Students: Study

Executive director of the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, Miriam Feldblum said that the updated guidance to include international students regardless of their immigration status is ‘welcomed news’.

Deputy executive director, public policy at NAFSA, Jill Allen Murray applauded the Biden administration for letting all students have access to these funds based not on their country of origin but on their financial need.

Justin Drager, president of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, pointed out that denying these grants to DACA and undocumented students was both ‘legally questionable’ and a ‘moral failing’.