Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, announced this week the cancellation of over $500,000 to date on current student accounts. As a result, 646 qualified students received notice from the university that their account now carries a zero balance. This benefit will provide these students with a fresh financial start as they begin the fall 2021 semester.
“I am very excited to make this announcement to our amazing students at ORU,” President William M. Wilson said. “We were able to take over $500,000 of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds given to us as institutional aid to directly help our students in this way. This is in addition to several millions of dollars ORU students have received from the government in other COVID relief funds over the last year. We are always mindful of the cost of a college education, which is why at ORU, we are committed to the value of our educational model. We are grateful to have this occasion to assist so many students in their journey to become Whole Leaders for the Whole World.”
The elimination of the student account balances was accomplished through ORU’s institutional portion of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF), awarded under the American Rescue Plan. ORU’s decision to utilize a portion of its HEERF institutional funds to eliminate unpaid account balances especially benefited students who owed monies that could have been a barrier to continuing their educational endeavors.
Alison Vujnovic, assistant vice president of enrollment management-residential, expressed the excitement felt by ORU students receiving the information, “For these qualified students, this was great news. This development came at a time when many students remained undecided about college. Now, this roadblock is removed, and they can continue their academic journey.”
This is another celebratory moment for ORU, after making national headlines earlier this year when its basketball team became the NCAA “Cinderella Team” during March Madness. ORU’s research into a cure for cancer recently resulted in the university’s first patent. This year, the successful capital campaign called “Whole Leaders for the Whole World” is bringing extensive campus renovations and planned ground-breaking for several structures as well as ribbon-cutting for several educational centers. ORU is also recognized by U.S. News and World Report as the No. 1 Best Value Regional College in the West.
“ORU continues to be one of the most affordable universities in the nation, and all of our capital improvements come from donations, not student tuition,” Wilson added. “As a person who has paid for multiple university degrees myself, I realize that student debt is a severe problem for many young people. We are doing everything we can to assist our students financially, and we’re thrilled to erase this over half a million dollars from student accounts owed to the university.” {eoa|
This article originally appeared at oru.edu.
Those seeking further information about HEERF funds for college or other resources available can learn more at oru.edu/today.
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