Syracuse University’s Student Association has promoted financial assistance and other services to students affected by the recent partial government shutdown.

The shutdown ended Jan. 25, but President Donald Trump has threatened to shut down the government again, unless congressional leaders provide millions of dollars in funding for his controversial border wall.

SA President Ghufran Salih, in a recent interview, said she was affected by the government shutdown. She spoke to students who said they received their tuition reimbursements late and their parents couldn’t send money for them.

“From hearing that, (Vice President Kyle Rosenblum) and I said this is something that needs to be addressed, and these resources need to be put out in front of students,” Salih said.

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Salih and Rosenblum listed several university services that could help students on SA’s social media and in a campus-wide email last week. Those services included the Student Opportunity Fund of Hendricks Chapel, the financial aid and student assistance offices, as well as SU’s Counseling Center.

The Student Opportunity Fund of Hendricks Chapel was created to help cover costs for students struggling to cover their basic needs or unanticipated costs, Rosenblum said in the campus-wide email. The program will help students better focus on their coursework and maintain their academic progress, he said.

The Office of Student Assistance performs a similar function — helping students who are dealing with food insecurity or can’t afford their textbooks, Rosenblum said.

“Sometimes asking for help is scary, and you think it’s a moment of weakness, but it’s not,” said Salih, in an interview. “The reason Student Association is here is for the students, and I want to make sure that every one of them knows they can come to us.”

Rosenblum said he hopes that marketing these resources will help students in the case of future government shutdowns.

“It’s not talked enough about how the government shutdown can really affect students in different ways, and it’s very important that we’re making all the resources available as possible,” he said.

Published on February 3, 2019 at 9:26 pm

Contact Abby: akweiss@syr.edu | @abbyweiss_21