Supporting one another
Tuition freeze and relief funds for students
The financial challenges brought on by COVID-19 were very real for students and their families, and it was critical to provide as much relief as possible to help students continue to pursue their academic goals.
In May, the VCU Board of Visitors voted to freeze tuition for in-state and out-of-state undergraduate and graduate students for the 2020-21 academic year. This was the second consecutive year that the board had voted to freeze undergraduate tuition. About that same time, VCU received $10 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act funding for students suffering hardships during the pandemic. Recognizing that not every student in need was eligible for CARES Act funding, VCU launched an additional student emergency fund for one-time financial assistance with unexpected emergency expenses. By the end of June 2020, more than $7.5 million of the CARES Act funding was distributed to more than 6,000 students; and the Dean of Students Office had reviewed 795 applications for financial assistance from the VCU Student Emergency Fund and awarded $128,630 to students.