Rider distributes CARES Act III funds to students

By Tori Pender

Rider distributed approximately $4.7 million received from the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act III, which is funded by the Higher Education Emergency Relief III Fund and authorized by the American Rescue Plan. These funds are intended to help assist students with educational or emergency costs that rose due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Eligible students were notified via university email on Sept. 28. Before this round of CARES Act funding, the university received just over $3.6 million to directly support students.

Vice President of Enrollment Management Drew Aromando said the range students received was from “$250 to $2,000 with the most needy students receiving the higher amounts.”

Approximately 4,300 students received money from this round.

In a previous interview with The Rider News, Aromando said it was unclear whether students from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), undocumented students or international students would receive funds.

The only requirements for this round were for students to be enrolled in courses that were credit bearing
as of Oct. 1, which allowed DACA, undocumented and international students to qualify.

Gabriel Martin, a sophomore game and interactive media design major received $1,700 from CARES Act III.

“At the start of the pandemic, most of my immediate family was furloughed for at least a month before they were able to start working again. That made the money coming into the house a lot slower, so it did get kind of rough at home for the time,” said Martin. “My family did struggle for a period of time until people
were able to work again when the pandemic slightly died down.”

Martin explained that he was not expecting to receive money from the CARES Act.

“It could help my family pay bills, buy groceries, stuff around the house really,” said Martin.