An opportunity to give back

MU’s Covid-19 Student Support Fund

Every year, the Maynooth Student Emergency Fund serves as a lifeline for students who find themselves facing extraordinary financial challenges that, for them, may mean all the difference to staying in college or even avoiding homelessness or going hungry.

Covid-19 has hit students from disadvantaged backgrounds particularly hard. Families and individual students are coping with unemployment or lack of sick pay when they miss work. This, in turn, means less money for food, rent and transportation.

“Returning to education was more costly than expected. During the year, I found myself in need of assistance. I felt so guilty to ask for help but I must say I was treated with serious empathy and reassurance. The Student Emergency Fund was the difference between me eating or getting a weekly Leap Card, I would appeal to people to help with this fund when possible but also utilise it when needed. Thanks so much for your support, forever grateful.”

Nigel, 3rd Year Social Science

The shift to largely remote learning has meant a new set of challenges and expenses. While government schemes have broadened access to laptop computers and internet dongles, it’s not enough. They need more costly broadband packages (their mobile phone hot spots and packages hardly sufficient for the rigorous work college demands)--or headsets to drown out roommates or family members. Ruth Killeen, Student Budget Advisor, says she has not only seen the volume of students coming to her increase, but the overall size of an individual’s emergency need has increased too. She says there are students who can’t go home for various reasons – maybe they live in temporary accommodation and there’s no place to study. Maybe they live with family members in high-risk groups. IT connectivity and higher-cost broadband packages are also a major problem, she says. Can you help? By supporting MU’s Student Emergency Fund, you will be directly helping students whose already stark needs have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. For example:

• A gift of €25 will help fund a student’s food for a week. • A gift of €50 will help fund a student’s utilities for a month. • A gift of €100 will help fund a student’s textbooks and learning materials. • A gift of €250 will help fund wi-fi connectivity for one year. • A gift of €500 will help fund a student’s accommodation for one month. • A gift of €1,000 will help fund a student’s work placement costs for a year. • A gift of €2,500 will help fund a student’s accommodation for a full semester.

“What may not sound like much to you means the world for those who need it,” says Marianne Dunne, Director of Student Services. “Students tell us that without the Student Emergency Fund they wouldn’t have stayed in college.” Please consider supporting these resilient Maynooth students by donating at: mu.ie/ covid19appeal or contact Maynooth.

foundation@mu.ie.

Remember Maynooth

Legacy gifts make a lasting impact at Maynooth University. Some alumni and friends may choose to leave their entire estate or a home, others leave a specific gift, but every legacy, large or small, ties together the past and future at Maynooth University.

For more information on how to leave a legacy to Maynooth University, or to let the University know that you have already quietly made plans, please email Maynooth University’s Director of Development and External Relations, Rebecca Doolin, at Rebecca.doolin@mu.ie