Students Helping Students
Students Helping Students looks to promote philanthropy education and help current students understand how important it is to give back to their fellow peers and their university. Below you will find some questions that are asked frequently by students.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Students Helping Students?plus or minus
Students Helping Students is an organization on campus run by students who raise money for the Textbook Scholarship Fund and also raise awareness and education on student philanthropy. Students Helping Students is a branch of the Royal Fund that focuses solely on student philanthropy and students giving back to the university.What is the Textbook Scholarship Fund?plus or minus
The Textbook Scholarship Fund is a scholarship set up for incoming freshmen in need. Each student selected receives a voucher to the bookstore for $600 to cover their first semester of textbooks. Many incoming freshmen experience the burden of a heavy textbook bill their first year. This scholarship is set up to help alleviate the cost their first semester.How do you decide which students receive the textbook scholarships?plus or minus
A few factors play when it comes to awarding the scholarships. The candidate must be an incoming freshman. Beyond that requirement, an outstanding need for aid must be present, or sudden circumstances have arisen that threaten the student's ability to remain enrolled at Scranton. Neither Students Helping Students nor the Royal Fund decide who receives each scholarship. Financial aid takes a place in deciding which incoming freshmen are the most in need.
How can I get involved?plus or minus
One way to get involved is by attending our events. We plan fun events on campus to get students involved, educate about student philanthropy, and to also fundraise donations for the Textbook Scholarship. Students can donate monetarily or simply donate their time!Why should I give back when I'm still attending the University?plus or minus
Giving back to the university while still a student creates and completes the circle of giving. Giving back is a tradition at The University of Scranton. Alumni of the university give back annually to a school that has given them so much and great opportunities. Why not start giving back now? You can help make an instant impact on another student's experience at the University. Giving back while a current student help to show your appreciation for the university.
I did not receive any financial aid or scholarships from the University. Why should I give back to students who did?plus or minus
Many alumni give back in small amounts and in large amounts annually and without their help and support, tuition would be much higher than it is currently. A portion of this support is used to keep tuition from rising. You may not have received any extra funding or financial aid from the University, but the support of alumni has made it possible for you to attend the University.
The tuition to attend the University is still really high. Where does my tuition go?plus or minus
For the 2013-2014 fiscal year alone, it cost $208,154,953 to run the university. That includes bills, utilities, faculty and staff salaries, campus maintenance, and extra curricular equipment. The university has an endowment and is only allowed to use a small percent of it each year. It takes more money to operate the university than its endowment is worth. The rest of the money comes from tuition to be able to run the university each year.
How many students that attend the university receive some sort of financial aid?plus or minus
For the 2013-2014 fiscal year, 90% of all students and 95% of freshman attending The University of Scranton received some sort of financial aid.
What did Students Helping Students do last year?plus or minus
Students Helping Students supplied 15 students with Textbook Scholarships last year by fundraising money from only current students at the university. The Class of 2013 had a 51% participation rate in donating to The Textbook Scholarship Fund. This the Fall 2014 semester, we are planning to raise enough for 17 Textbook Scholarships to give to incoming freshman in need.
Is financial support the only way to help?plus or minus
Not at all! Financial aid is one way to help, but other opportunities exist as well. Throughout the semester, we offer volunteer opportunities at most of our events to students who would like to volunteer their time.