HOUGHTON — In a student-led effort, some Michigan Tech students have elected to donate the money they received from the CARES Act to the Husky Emergency Assistance Fund to help fellow students in need.

In order to help alleviate the financial impact COVID-19 has had on students, Michigan Tech has distributed $1.5 million from its CARES Act relief funds via a $350 grant to all eligible students.

However, many students studying at American universities are not eligible to receive CARES Act funds, including international students. These students are often hardest hit by the pandemic, unable to work off campus due to visa restrictions and many unable to return to their home countries due to international travel restrictions.

Several months ago, in order to further assist students, Michigan Tech set up the Husky Emergency Assistance Fund. Both the Undergraduate Student Government and Graduate Student Government have contributed monetary donations to the Husky Emergency Assistance Fund and have financially supported the purchase of necessary personal protective equipment for all students for the 2020-2021 academic year.

Yet as the pandemic has continued, the Husky Emergency Assistance Fund has diminished. Running with an idea generated by a group of graduate students, Michigan Tech’s GSG has offered to match all donations made by students who elect to donate the $350 CARES Act grant (or a portion of it) they received to the Husky Emergency Assistance Fund, directly helping others who are in more precarious positions. GSG will match up to $10,000 for donations made in the next two weeks.

The donation will go directly to fellow students who are in great need, which includes both international students and students who are CARES Act eligible but who may be experiencing financial hardship that cannot be alleviated by $350 alone.

“I and other students like me have not been impacted by COVID-19 as much as others, and we were in a situation where we could help our fellow students,” said Nathan Ford, GSG president and a PhD student in mechanical engineering.