What is the $6,300 stimulus check for students in Atlanta? Who is eligible?

Student debt in the United States has reached historic levels. The total student debt owed in the United State recently hit $1.7 trillion and some economists believe that as the economic recovery continues this debt will become a drag on the economy. Rather than going out and spending money to spur growth, millions will spend their income on loan payments which do not provide the same benefits when compared to consumer spending.

To assist students lower their debt, Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta will offer students a $6,300 grant which some are calling a holiday stimulus check.

Who is eligible?

Students in the Morehouse Medical school will receive the check by 15 December. Medical school can be very expensive and the President Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice said that the check aims to “assist each of our currently enrolled, degree-seeking students with additional academic, financial, and mental health support costs such as childcare, food, transportation, housing, and healthcare needs.” These words come from an email sent to the student body in early December.

Around ninety percent of the students that attend Morehouse for medical school receive need-based financial aid, and this check can help them to reduce the amount in loans they will have to pay back once they graduate.

Where did the money come from?

The funds for the stimulus checks come from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act which was passed in March 2020. Institutions of higher education were one of the primary beneficiaries of the CARES Act. Around $14 billion were allocated to the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) for colleges and students. Under the American Rescue Plan an additional $21.2 billion, were added to the fund. Over 1,700 community colleges and four-year colleges and universities received funding through the HEERF.

Of the more than $34 billion allocated in total, and $446 million earmarked for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Morehouse School of Medicine received around $56.4 million.

Meharry Medical College in Nashville will be granting their 956 students a $10,000 check after receiving funds from the HEERF as well.

The full scale of the projects undertaken to support students at campuses across the country will be known early next year after each institution reports on how they individually decided to distribute the funds.