Hood to receive Federal funding due to pandemic

By Zoe Finholm//

Hood College is set to receive almost $2 million from the federal government as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) was enacted in December 2020 to provide financial support to higher education institutions. “The CRRSAA funds are a one-time grant provided by the U.S. Department of Education to help colleges respond to the pandemic,” according to Vice President for Finance and Treasurer Chuck Mann.

The money is in addition to what the college receives every year from the state of Maryland.

The CRRSAA funds will be divided into student aid and institutional support. According to Mann, $632,542 will be used for student aid and $1.4 million will be used for institutional support.

According to an email sent from President Andrea Chapdelaine, the student aid funds can be used for “any component of the cost of attendance or for emergency costs that arise due to the coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, health care or childcare.”

Students with higher need for this money will be a top priority, Mann said.

Hood is required to “spend the institutional share of the grant to defray expenses associated with the pandemic, including lost revenue,” Mann said.

“Hood is financially healthy and stable,” Mann said. “By exercising fiscal discipline, we have been able to control our operating expenditures and make investments in areas that improve the student experience such as new academic programs and facility improvements.”