The amendment was discussed during the senate meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 6. Photo by Fernando ColungaDestiny Hosmer - Contributordrhosmer@uab.edu
Part-time undergraduate students are now eligible to apply for the Andrew M. Sands Memorial Emergency Student Loan Program following an amendment to the Undergraduate Student Government Association Code of Laws on Tuesday, Sept. 6.
The Emergency Student Loan Program, sponsored by USGA, is designed to help undergraduate students in need receive financial assistance for common expenses such as tuition and fees, textbooks, housing, utilities, title payments, medical expenses or emergency travel expenses.
The loan program previously stipulated that applicants must be considered full-time students at UAB to be eligible for the loan, which means they must be enrolled in a minimum of twelve credit hours each semester.
According to the recent amendment, students applying for the ESLP must be enrolled in a minimum of one credit hour each semester.
Akash Vakharia, the USGA vice president of finance and the author of the amendment, said that this will surely benefit part-time students who were previously ineligible.
“Specifically, I disagreed with these [previous] requirements because full-time is considered as twelve hours, even during the summer semester, and a student who is facing financial hardship would likely not be able to afford taking twelve credit hours during the summer semester when scholarships and grants are more difficult to obtain in the first place,” Vakharia said.
Laura Jane Crocker, a senator for the College of Arts and Sciences, said that although a decrease in the required credit hours was necessary, she was initially hesitant of dropping the requirement to one credit hour right away.
“I believe a gradual drop would have been more beneficial in helping us to understand how this amendment would affect the influx of applicants,” Crocker said.
Crocker said that despite this she stands by the decision of her fellow senators, who voted to uanimously pass the decision.
“During the discussion of this amendment, I believe Senator Asutosh Nanda phrased it best when he said that USGA stands for Undergraduate Student Government Association and not Full-Time Undergraduate Student Government Association,” Vakharia said. “And therefore, we should represent all undergraduate students equally.”
The maximum amount of an Emergency Student Loan is $500 and depends upon the circumstances of the student’s case.
Additional requirements include meeting with the ESLP coordinator, providing proof of need such as a bank statement or other proof of income and a bill or letter of delinquency proving need for assistance.
The student is responsible for repaying the loan to Student Financial Services within 60 days. If the student does not repay the loan in time, a hold will be placed on their student account, which will not allow the student to register for classes or graduate.
For more information on the ESLP, visit uab.edu/usga/services/eslp or contact
usga@uab.edu or (205) 934-8020.
