Contact: Harriet Laird
STARKVILLE, Miss.— Mississippi State is disbursing more than $12 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funding directly to university students impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Provided through the U.S. Department of Education, the funds are intended to help students experiencing financial need and/or emergency costs due to the ongoing pandemic. These costs can include tuition, food, housing, healthcare and childcare.
Application deadline is Sept. 16, at which point MSU officials will review applications and begin working to distribute funds to students as quickly as possible.
Instructions for completing the brief online application are as follows:
• Log in to the myState portal at http://my.msstate.edu/
• Click the three horizontal lines (hamburger) in the top left corner
• Click on Banner in the menu list on the left
• Click myBanner for students
• Scroll down the Financial and Scholarship tab to ARP Act Application and click to complete.
“We hope this financial assistance will help students during these uncertain times,” said MSU Financial Aid Director Paul McKinney. “Mississippi State is committed to supporting students who need our assistance.”
To comply with guidelines from the U.S. Department of Education and the ARP legislation, signed into law this spring, students must certify on the application that they have experienced financial need and/or have emergency costs due to the pandemic.
All MSU students enrolled for the current fall semester as of August 27 are eligible to receive funding.
The amount of funds distributed will vary by student, with awards being made until the funding is fully utilized. Students will receive the funds via direct deposit or paper check, or they can choose to apply them to their student account to cover any outstanding balance.
For questions about ARP fund eligibility and applications, contact the Office of Student Financial Aid at financialaid@msstate.edu or 662-325-2450.
MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.