By Martin Castro and Megan Lambert (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: October 1, 2014
The Student Union Society (SUS) is giving away $10,000 to a student entering their first year at UFV — and will continue to fund them the same amount annually until they graduate.
The UFV SUS Premiere Entrance Scholarship awards one student $40,000 over a period of four years based on their academic standing, contributions to the community, and future involvement with SUS.
SUS is attempting to mimic prestigious entrance scholarships from other universities.
“[We wanted to offer] a scholarship that … covers everything,” said SUS president Ryan Petersen. “It’s always great having smaller amounts [of money] going to more people, but really, it’s incredibly beneficial to have a [scholarship that] takes care of someone’s education.”
Petersen noted that students receiving this scholarship will be able to focus solely on their volunteer work and academic achievements instead of balancing both work and school.
This scholarship aims to take care of students financially in not only taking care of tuition and textbooks, but in covering the costs of food, rent, and other living expenses.
“Residence fees are expensive,” Petersen said. “If [students] choose to have a meal plan that is also expensive, [the] money tends to get used up fairly quickly.”
There is no regulatory protocol when it comes to whether or not a student is using scholarship money for school, but Petersen stated that if the scholarship money is being spent irresponsibly, students may lose the scholarship the next year. However, the funds could cover a variety of resources.
“[Students] could use the money for things like laptops, if they need them,” he noted.
To remain eligible to continue receiving the scholarship for all four years, recipients need to be largely engaged within SUS and the UFV campus environment. They also must maintain a high academic standing.
SUS is fronting the money for the scholarship, but the decision of how to award it rests solely on the University Scholarship Review Board. Petersen stated that SUS will only provide guidelines as to what qualifications the scholarship recipient should have.
A combination of student fees and SUS’s prior investments fund the scholarship. “In part, [it’s funded] through our fees that we collect from the students, but also through a number of investments,” Petersen said.
Other than the yearly budget posted online, SUS did not advertise the scholarship to the student body.
As this scholarship is awarded yearly, SUS will eventually support four students on campus with the scholarship — equalling an expenditure of $40,000 per year.
