McGregor
Fund gift will help at-risk students succeed at Wayne State
Wayne State University has received $200,000 from the
McGregor Fund to develop a comprehensive plan for students who are homeless or
at risk of becoming homeless, as well as those experiencing difficulty in
meeting basic non-academic needs.
“Without safe
and reliable housing, or other basic needs being met, students cannot be
successful in college,” said Kate Levin Markel, president of the McGregor Fund.
“We are happy to support this initiative at Wayne State as it works to ensure
that poverty and hardship do not stand in the way of earning a four-year
degree.”
The McGregor
Fund grant will allow Wayne State to investigate and respond to student
homelessness and related needs such as health care, financial planning, and
food insecurity on campus. The grant will be used by Wayne State's Transition
to Independence Program (TIP), the Helping Individuals Go Higher (HIGH)
program, and a committee working on an intensive planning and assessment effort
in the summer of 2016 to create a stronger network of student support services
and determine the full extent of student need. Through the newly established
multidisciplinary Student Needs Committee, the programs will collaborate with
on- and off-campus partners to address the issue. The Dean of Students Office
will lead the planning phase.
“We knew the
issue was bigger than we anticipated, so we will embark on a full-scale
research and information gathering effort,” said David Strauss, dean of
students at Wayne State. “We want all of our students to succeed and that means
we need to do more from the non-academic side, too. The support of the McGregor
Fund helps us do that.”
Wayne State’s
First Lady Jacqueline Wilson founded the HIGH Program in 2013 when she met a
Wayne State student who had experienced homelessness while attending school.
Students in the HIGH Program receive short-term, emergency assistance with the
goal of long-term stability and degree completion.
“We believe
Wayne State is a place where every student can thrive, where something like
housing insecurity should not hold back a student from success,” said Mrs.
Wilson. “I am grateful to the McGregor Fund for their support of this
initiative.”
Located in
the School of Social Work, TIP seeks to improve college access and graduation
rates of students from foster care backgrounds. The program provides a variety
of wrap-around support services, including academic support, financial
assistance, individual counseling, leadership development and more.
“TIP students
are remarkable and show us that they can succeed academically when they are
provided services that allow them to prioritize studies over worrying about how
to obtain basic needs such as where they will sleep or how they will eat on a
given night,” said Angelique Day, assistant professor of social work and TIP
director. “Funding from the McGregor Fund will allow us to expand program
capacity while providing critical support to our students that have aged-out of
the foster care system.”
About the McGregor Fund
The McGregor Fund is a private foundation established in 1925 by Tracy McGregor and his wife Katherine Whitney McGregor “to relieve misfortune and promote the well being of mankind.” The Fund has disbursed over $242 million in grants to nonprofits working in human services, health care, education and arts and culture. Learn more at http://www.mcgregorfund.org.
The McGregor Fund is a private foundation established in 1925 by Tracy McGregor and his wife Katherine Whitney McGregor “to relieve misfortune and promote the well being of mankind.” The Fund has disbursed over $242 million in grants to nonprofits working in human services, health care, education and arts and culture. Learn more at http://www.mcgregorfund.org.
Comments
Post a Comment