Ridgewater students eligible for CARES Act assistance

Contributed / Ridgewater College

By Linda Vanderwerf

May 13, 2020 at 5:22 AM

WILLMAR — Many Ridgewater College students this year are eligible for emergency financial aid grants from the federal government.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act was passed by Congress in March to ease financial impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

Students who were enrolled on March 6 at the Willmar or Hutchinson campuses will be eligible for a $125, tax-free cash payment. There are some limits to eligibility. More information is available at ridgewater.edu/covid-19/cares-act/ .

In addition, students who qualify for federal Pell Grants will receive a grant based on their spring enrollment, ranging from $200 to $750.

Students may also apply for emergency grants up to a maximum of $1,000 per student.

Students who feel they don’t need the grants are invited to donate them to the Ridgewarer Foundation, which also provides emergency grants to students in need.

For more information, go to the college’s website or email Jim Rice, director of financial aid, at jim.rice@ridgewater.edu or call 320-222-7488.

By Linda Vanderwerf

In 42 years in the newspaper industry, Linda Vanderwerf has worked at several daily newspapers in Minnesota, including the Mesabi Daily News, now called the Mesabi Tribune in Virginia. Previously, she worked for the Las Cruces Sun-News in New Mexico and the Rapid City Journal in the Black Hills of South Dakota. She has been a reporter at the West Central Tribune for nearly 27 years.

Vanderwerf can be reached at email: lvanderwerf@wctrib.com or phone 320-214-4340

Ridgewater students eligible for CARES Act assistance

Students at the state’s public colleges including Ridgewater College will be eligible for financial assistance through the CARES Act passed by Congress this spring.