COVID19: Help Temple International Grad Students
Donation protected
Remember, for every $500 we receive in donations, we will send those funds to another randomly drawn international graduate student in need!
Help TUGSA raise money for our international colleagues!
No one has gone unaffected by the current pandemic. But, the recent actions of the Trump administration have made the crisis even more difficult for international students. In addition to the obvious threat of COVID19 that we are all facing, we are hearing from our graduate international students members that they face additional burdens - many are unable to travel home, work other jobs due to visa restrictions, apply for unemployment, or receive stimulus aid.
As if these roadblocks were not enough, Temple’s own administration has not guaranteed to protect graduate international students. The administration has chosen to neither extend their nine-month contracts nor provide emergency relief funding. So, as concerned colleagues, friends and international students ourselves, we are asking you to donate to this fund that will provide assistance where neither Temple’s nor Trump’s administrations have been willing.
These funds could make a world of difference for graduate international students. The stimulus check of $1,200 is not enough to get most people through this crisis, and even that is unavailable to many international students.
Who are we?
Temple University Graduate Students' Association (TUGSA) is the labor union representing all graduate student workers, international and domestic, at Temple University. We are your teaching assistants, researchers and instructors here at Temple and we are raising funds to support our members, colleagues and friends in the international graduate student community.
What is our goal?
Our goal is to raise at least $2,500 and give $500 to five applicants. Recipients can use this money however they see fit -- to pay rent, buy groceries, pay bills etc.
Our initial goal is to raise $2,500, but the more people we can help, the better! There are a lot of international graduate students here at Temple who need help, and with every additional $500, we are able to help another person.
On May 31st our campaign will close and then we will begin distributing funds to the recipients by either check, PayPal, or Venmo.
Who can apply for the funds, and how will people be chosen to receive funds?
These funds will be given to international graduate students at Temple who have NOT been offered employment or other sources of funding from Temple University for this summer.
Interested applicants should fill out this Google form to determine eligibility (it’s painless - we promise!). If you have any questions or feedback about the form please email us at [email redacted].
If you qualify, you’ll be entered into a pool of applicants. Once the campaign ends, five applicants will be chosen at random to receive the funds. There are no restrictions on the funds. This means that the recipient can use the $500 however they see fit.
Are donations tax-deductible?
Funds donated will not be tax-deductible. To make them so would mean establishing a separate entity from TUGSA in order to collect donations, and that is a slow process. Time is of the essence in this response, and we do not want to delay our ability to provide mutual aid any further.
I can't donate, but how else can I help?
Please share our campaign widely on social media and send it to anyone interested in applying for aid or easing the burden this crisis has created for our community!
If you are a graduate student here at Temple and want to learn more about TUGSA or get involved TUGSA please reach out to us at [email redacted]!
We sincerely thank you for your solidarity,
The TUGSA Executive Board
Evan Kassof, President
Bethany Kosmicki, Vice President
John Hess, Secretary
Elysia Petras, Treasurer
Matt Ford, Director of Community Outreach
Robert Carey, Director of Organizing
Min Kyung Boo, Sexual Harassment Officer
Lindsay Bartkowski, Staff Organizer
Marygrace Navarra, Office Organizer
Alexandria Nazar, Membership Organizer
Help TUGSA raise money for our international colleagues!
No one has gone unaffected by the current pandemic. But, the recent actions of the Trump administration have made the crisis even more difficult for international students. In addition to the obvious threat of COVID19 that we are all facing, we are hearing from our graduate international students members that they face additional burdens - many are unable to travel home, work other jobs due to visa restrictions, apply for unemployment, or receive stimulus aid.
As if these roadblocks were not enough, Temple’s own administration has not guaranteed to protect graduate international students. The administration has chosen to neither extend their nine-month contracts nor provide emergency relief funding. So, as concerned colleagues, friends and international students ourselves, we are asking you to donate to this fund that will provide assistance where neither Temple’s nor Trump’s administrations have been willing.
These funds could make a world of difference for graduate international students. The stimulus check of $1,200 is not enough to get most people through this crisis, and even that is unavailable to many international students.
Who are we?
Temple University Graduate Students' Association (TUGSA) is the labor union representing all graduate student workers, international and domestic, at Temple University. We are your teaching assistants, researchers and instructors here at Temple and we are raising funds to support our members, colleagues and friends in the international graduate student community.
What is our goal?
Our goal is to raise at least $2,500 and give $500 to five applicants. Recipients can use this money however they see fit -- to pay rent, buy groceries, pay bills etc.
Our initial goal is to raise $2,500, but the more people we can help, the better! There are a lot of international graduate students here at Temple who need help, and with every additional $500, we are able to help another person.
On May 31st our campaign will close and then we will begin distributing funds to the recipients by either check, PayPal, or Venmo.
Who can apply for the funds, and how will people be chosen to receive funds?
These funds will be given to international graduate students at Temple who have NOT been offered employment or other sources of funding from Temple University for this summer.
Interested applicants should fill out this Google form to determine eligibility (it’s painless - we promise!). If you have any questions or feedback about the form please email us at [email redacted].
If you qualify, you’ll be entered into a pool of applicants. Once the campaign ends, five applicants will be chosen at random to receive the funds. There are no restrictions on the funds. This means that the recipient can use the $500 however they see fit.
Are donations tax-deductible?
Funds donated will not be tax-deductible. To make them so would mean establishing a separate entity from TUGSA in order to collect donations, and that is a slow process. Time is of the essence in this response, and we do not want to delay our ability to provide mutual aid any further.
I can't donate, but how else can I help?
Please share our campaign widely on social media and send it to anyone interested in applying for aid or easing the burden this crisis has created for our community!
If you are a graduate student here at Temple and want to learn more about TUGSA or get involved TUGSA please reach out to us at [email redacted]!
We sincerely thank you for your solidarity,
The TUGSA Executive Board
Evan Kassof, President
Bethany Kosmicki, Vice President
John Hess, Secretary
Elysia Petras, Treasurer
Matt Ford, Director of Community Outreach
Robert Carey, Director of Organizing
Min Kyung Boo, Sexual Harassment Officer
Lindsay Bartkowski, Staff Organizer
Marygrace Navarra, Office Organizer
Alexandria Nazar, Membership Organizer
Fundraising team: TUGSA (3)
TUGSA Local 6290
Organizer
Philadelphia, PA
TUGSA Treasurer
Beneficiary
Alexandria Nazar
Team member
Lindsay Bartkowski
Team member
