TSU uses $200K grant to provide students financial assistance for fall 2020

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Students interested in attending Tennessee State University this fall could get financial assistance to help with expenses. TSU is using a $200,000 grant from the Charles E. Schell Foundation for Education to help new and returning students stay in school by providing financial relief to those impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

TSU President Glenda Glover

The Foundation was established as a revolving student loan program, with Fifth Third Bank as trustee. Qualifying students will receive a maximum of $2,000.

“TSU is appreciative of the collaboration with the Schell Foundation and Fifth Third Bank and their support of the university and our students,” says President Glenda Glover. “The funds will not only help our students to stay in school, but will also provide a form of relief to them and their families impacted by COVID-19 and the economic downturn we are currently experiencing.”

The foundation gave TSU $100,000 last year, but decided to double the amount this year, partly because of the hardship many students are facing as a result of COVID-19.

“We are pleased to honor Mr. Schell’s wishes to grant these loan dollars to Tennessee State as its administration helps students with expenses on their educational journey,” says Heidi Jark, senior vice president and managing director, The Foundation Office at Fifth Third. “Part of the mission of the Foundation Office at Fifth Third Bank is continuing our clients’ philanthropic impact that provides pathways to opportunity.”

Applicants will be required to meet the selection criteria established by the Charles E. Schell Foundation. They must be citizens of Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia and states adjoining them (including Tennessee); and be between the ages of 18-25, with a minimum 2.0 grade point average. Students are also asked to sign a promissory note to repay the funds to create a revolving loan fund to benefit future TSU students.

The grant is one of several ways TSU is helping students during these unprecedented times.

To help students interested in attending TSU, the University is temporarily waiving the ACT and SAT scores as requirements for incoming freshmen for Fall 2020, and will accept an unofficial transcript. However, students will still be required to have a GPA of 2.5 or higher and a completed application. Students transferring from a 2-year or 4-year institution must submit an official transcript from the last college or university attended.

Not long after TSU students began distance learning in March, President Glover and other university administrators held a live meeting via Zoom with over 200 student leaders to assure them that TSU is dedicated to helping them succeed.

TSU student Treveon Hayes, who will be a sophomore in the fall, says the University’s assistance has been motivating to him and other students.

“It’s been an adjustment, but I have goals, and I can’t let anything stop me from reaching them,” says Hayes, an elementary education major from Memphis, Tennessee.

Other efforts by TSU to help students include: a virtual hourly-workshop on completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA; the 250-Mile Radius Tuition Rate for students from high schools in surrounding states; the HOPE scholarship for Tennessee residents; the Academic High Achiever Scholarship; the TSU Academic Work Scholarship; the TSU Building Bridge Grant, and several others.

To learn more about TSU’s financial aid programs, visit http://www.tnstate.edu/admissions/

About Tennessee State University

Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a premier, historically black university and land-grant institution offering 39 bachelor’s degree programs, 24 master’s degree programs, and seven doctoral degrees. TSU is a comprehensive research intensive institution with a R-2 Carnegie designation, and has a graduate school on its downtown Avon Williams Campus, along with the Otis Floyd Nursery Research Center in McMinnville, Tennessee. With a commitment to excellence, Tennessee State University provides students with a quality education in a nurturing and innovative environment that prepares them as alumni to be global leaders in every facet of society. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.