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Hello Wesleyan Alumni, Community Members, and Everybody Else!
Mission Statement:
Today, we are reaching out to organize on behalf of the students at Wesleyan University displaced or otherwise uncertain about their financial well-being, which includes but is not limited to access to safe and affordable housing, quality healthcare, nutritional food, and, at a time when we do not know how long states will be quarantining residents, remote job opportunities.
Context:
On Wednesday March 11th, Wesleyan University informed students that, in light of concerns about the spread of COVID-19, they would need to either move out by the end of Spring Break (March 23rd) or petition to stay on campus for reasons of housing insecurity, citizenship status, or other limitations. We recognize that this eviction was necessary for the health of the Middletown and Wesleyan community, but it has left many FGLI students unemployed and worried about their financial well-being for the remainder of the semester and beyond. If you would like more information regarding the University's closure, please navigate to this link.
As of March 15th, the organizers of this campaign were notified that the Office of Advancement will soon be fundraising for the Wesleyan Emergency Fund. We were relieved to hear about this effort, but acknowledge that the administration is restricted in how it can give money to students. More often than not, the student must provide a description of their purchase--an ask that is hard in emergency situations such as these--and, in some cases, proof of payment (receipts, invoices, etc.). Our goal with this alternative campaign is to place funds directly into the pockets of high-need, at-risk students. We fully recognize the scrutiny and liability placed on the organizers of this campaign as representatives of the student body rather than paid employees of the University. However, we believe that need-based, community-driven relief is of utmost importance at this time. In the next few days, the organizers of this campaign will be in contact with the Office of Advancement and other administrators concerned with the financial well-being of at-risk students in hopes of putting these two campaigns in conversations with each other, rather than in competition. To be clear, this campaign is not an official Wesleyan University fundraising campaign; this campaign has been created by and for first-generation, low-income students.
The Campaign at a Glance:
The weekend of March 13th, Jessi Russell ('20) and Mya Valentin ('19) reached out to the campus Resource Center in hopes of creating an email campaign to crowd-sourcing as many direct donations as possible to first generation, low-income, and/or housing insecure students. The first wave of this campaign was directed toward at-risk students. Demetrius Colvin, the director of the Resource Center, sent a campus-wide email requesting that all students populate a google spreadsheet with their name, class year, email address, preferred donation platform, and level of need on a scale of 1-5. A link to this google spreadsheet can be found here, and is also linked below.
As a Wesleyan alumni, community member, or unaffiliated person simply interested in supporting at-risk students, we are now asking you to participate in the second wave of our email campaign. Due to the number of students who have come forward to identify themselves as financially vulnerable as a result of Wesleyan University's closure, our team has created this gofundme to amass as many direct donations to high-need, at-risk students as possible. Here are a few details about this campaign and the philosophies that drive it:
1. Above all else, it is our inten
Mission Statement:
Today, we are reaching out to organize on behalf of the students at Wesleyan University displaced or otherwise uncertain about their financial well-being, which includes but is not limited to access to safe and affordable housing, quality healthcare, nutritional food, and, at a time when we do not know how long states will be quarantining residents, remote job opportunities.
Context:
On Wednesday March 11th, Wesleyan University informed students that, in light of concerns about the spread of COVID-19, they would need to either move out by the end of Spring Break (March 23rd) or petition to stay on campus for reasons of housing insecurity, citizenship status, or other limitations. We recognize that this eviction was necessary for the health of the Middletown and Wesleyan community, but it has left many FGLI students unemployed and worried about their financial well-being for the remainder of the semester and beyond. If you would like more information regarding the University's closure, please navigate to this link.
As of March 15th, the organizers of this campaign were notified that the Office of Advancement will soon be fundraising for the Wesleyan Emergency Fund. We were relieved to hear about this effort, but acknowledge that the administration is restricted in how it can give money to students. More often than not, the student must provide a description of their purchase--an ask that is hard in emergency situations such as these--and, in some cases, proof of payment (receipts, invoices, etc.). Our goal with this alternative campaign is to place funds directly into the pockets of high-need, at-risk students. We fully recognize the scrutiny and liability placed on the organizers of this campaign as representatives of the student body rather than paid employees of the University. However, we believe that need-based, community-driven relief is of utmost importance at this time. In the next few days, the organizers of this campaign will be in contact with the Office of Advancement and other administrators concerned with the financial well-being of at-risk students in hopes of putting these two campaigns in conversations with each other, rather than in competition. To be clear, this campaign is not an official Wesleyan University fundraising campaign; this campaign has been created by and for first-generation, low-income students.
The Campaign at a Glance:
The weekend of March 13th, Jessi Russell ('20) and Mya Valentin ('19) reached out to the campus Resource Center in hopes of creating an email campaign to crowd-sourcing as many direct donations as possible to first generation, low-income, and/or housing insecure students. The first wave of this campaign was directed toward at-risk students. Demetrius Colvin, the director of the Resource Center, sent a campus-wide email requesting that all students populate a google spreadsheet with their name, class year, email address, preferred donation platform, and level of need on a scale of 1-5. A link to this google spreadsheet can be found here, and is also linked below.
As a Wesleyan alumni, community member, or unaffiliated person simply interested in supporting at-risk students, we are now asking you to participate in the second wave of our email campaign. Due to the number of students who have come forward to identify themselves as financially vulnerable as a result of Wesleyan University's closure, our team has created this gofundme to amass as many direct donations to high-need, at-risk students as possible. Here are a few details about this campaign and the philosophies that drive it:
1. Above all else, it is our inten