Help Fund Shae's Fall Semester at Oxy (URGENT)

Hi everyone - my name is Shae, and I'm a rising sophomore currently studying Art History at Occidental College. While I hope to continue at Oxy, the reality is that my family can't afford even the first two months of this semester’s tuition - even with my current financial aid package - due to several sudden medical obstacles and emergencies that we have had to endure. All that being said, I'm putting together this GoFundMe to humbly ask for support in a time of urgency.

[EDIT: I am currently unable to rely on my family for financial support. I am trying my best to negotiate with my mother, but I am expected to move-in tomorrow and I don't have any funds to pay for August or September's payment. I'm hoping to contribute myself once I've found a job, and I currently already do work-study at Oxy. Anything helps, even advice. Thank you so much - Shae]

This past May, my mother suddenly and unexpectedly fell and broke her foot. Because of this, she was unable to work for a few months, which significantly decreased her income. My father is entirely out of the picture, so I am fully financially dependent on my mother who works three jobs to support me and my three sisters. Currently, my mom is helping to support one of my sisters who is mourning the sudden loss of her children’s father and is presently seeking housing.

Even through all of this, my mother pushes herself to meet deadlines and take on extra work to overcompensate. My mother also suffers from Type 2 diabetes, severe asthma that has resulted in hospitalization, bilateral osto-athritis of the knee, and fibromyalgia, so she has recently started to attend physical therapy twice a week.

Shortly, all these health issues mean that her pharmaceutical and medical expenses are extremely expensive. This financial burden takes a significant toll on my mom's physical and mental health, as well as my own: she works long hours, day and night, without any time to tend to herself. She has made many sacrifices for me throughout my educational journey, and I want to be able to support her in financing my college education in any way that I can. I also worked two jobs this summer to help contibute, but while my savings will help some, they will only cover a small piece. My starting goal on this Gofundme of $8,000 will help me cover tuition for the first two months of school, which will allow my mom to have some time to save for the rest of this semester as well as giving me time to apply for scholarships and/or a more affordable school to possibly transfer to if the rest of this year doesn’t work out.

Since being at Oxy, I have worked hard to make my presence shine. Before my first-year classes even started, I helped my new classmates to connect virtually by creating and running an Instagram page for the Class of 2025. Last year, I worked for Occidental's Communications and Social Media team in the Admissions Office to create content that engages prospective students and highlights the accomplishments of Oxy’s current students. I was on the Dean's list for both semesters of my freshman year, I performed and won second place at the annual Apollo Night talent show, and danced until my legs were sore to get my fellow students excited for our Springfest performer. In many ways, Oxy has allowed me to be passionate without the fear of being called an overachiever. At Oxy, being committed to education and enhancing the experience of the community is celebrated - two values that align with my own life and drew me to Occidental in the first place.

One of my biggest goals is to graduate with my Bachelor of Arts at an institution like Oxy and open a gallery that highlights the art of underprivileged Queer POC artists. I also hope to plan community-building events that make art education more accessible to POC students, like myself, who have never been exposed to art in that way. I can’t imagine building a life that doesn’t surround art, social justice, and supporting my community. However, not being able to afford my own education makes that extremely difficult. This past year, I declared Art History as my major after having committed my time and energy since high school, trying to pave my own path in the art world. I know that being at Oxy can make that possible. I hope that, through this description, whoever might be reading this can better understand my situation, as well as my innate drive to excel in this environment. I’m committed to doing whatever it takes to get the education I know I deserve, whether that means spending extra hours working to make money to help my Mom.