The message below was sent by Senior Vice President for Business & Finance Len L. Davis to all students on May 12, 2020.
In recent weeks the College received several inquiries about the CARES Act and its effect on our students. The following information summarizes the CARES Act and how the College will implement its provisions.
Congress passed a stimulus bill in April which provided approximately $14 billion to colleges and universities. The CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act authorizes institutions to award emergency financial grants to eligible students for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the Coronavirus. Old Westbury will receive $2,761,337 to be awarded as emergency financial grants to eligible students.
The amount of funds allocated to each school was determined by a formula written in the CARES Act. This formula significantly weighs the number of full-time students who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants, as well as the total number of students who were not previously enrolled full-time online. Students must be eligible for Title IV aid to be considered for these grants. Priority will be given to high need students with limited available resources.
Eligible expenses include food, housing, course materials, technology and computer equipment, health care, dependent care, and transportation. We have created, but have yet to activate, an online application to assist in processing the grant. A link to the application (Request for CARES Emergency Grant) will be provided to all students who qualify based upon Pell and Title IV requirements.
Before funding is obtained, the CARES Act requires each institution to establish a committee responsible for developing a plan which identifies eligible students, determines the appropriate amount for those students, and distributes the funds within a year after receipt of the funds. We have established a CARES Committee and submitted our plan to SUNY for review and approval. Upon approval, we will post details of our CARES Act plan and FAQs on the College’s website.
Old Westbury has received acknowledgement from the US Department of Education (USDOE) that our application is in order. After receipt of the grant funds from the USDOE, we will begin distributing these emergency financial grants to students.
The successful and timely distribution of the grants to students is dependent on all involved organizations satisfactorily completing their respective tasks. We ask for your patience as we move through this intricate process.
Thank you!
Len L. Davis
Sr. Vice President for Business & Finance and CFO