By Ashlyn Beck | News Editor
Hurricanes Helene and Milton made landfall nearly a month ago, but the aftermath hasn’t let up. A scholarship fund being raised by the On Campus Mom Foundation is one step the Baylor community is taking to aid in relief.
OCM Foundation Director Beth Dutschmann is a North Carolina native. After the devastation from Helene and Milton, Dutschmann felt a responsibility for Baylor students who were affected. She and her husband decided to start a Go Fund Me to raise scholarships for Baylor students affected by the hurricanes.
“By launching a crowdfunding campaign, we know that we can reach a multitude of people versus just those who are familiar with our foundation on campus,” Dutschmann said.
According to Dutshmann, the foundation is setting a goal of $50,000 to fund student scholarships. It will be available to all impacted, but Dutschmann is specifically targeting students from North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.
“We know there are a lot of individuals in Bear Nation — as well as their friends and family members — who have hearts and can find in their hearts to support this,” Dutschmann said. “It doesn’t matter the amount. Everything adds up toward the goal.”
The scholarship will be launched after homecoming if all goes according to plan, Dutschmann said. While the foudation hopes to help all ages of students affected, its primary goal is to help college seniors.
“Right now, [our] No. 1 [goal is] getting seniors across the finish line. They will be given first priority, followed by the other classes from these areas of devastation,” Dutschmann said.
As of mid-October, USA Today reported more than 300 lives lost from Helene and Milton in the U.S and Caribbean. Mountain communities were flooded, landslides formed, highways collapsed and cities were flattened.
For many Baylor students, losing their homes also meant losing assets, work and much more, making paying for private school tuition all the more daunting. Additionally, the timing of the hurricanes makes tuition a struggle. Scholarship deadlines have passed and there are less than 100 days until spring tuition is due.
“I have concerns with the possibility of Baylor students who have been on their path — some just starting — not having the resources to cross the finish line,” Dutschmann said.
There is simply not enough time for families to scrounge together funds, scholarships or loans before tuition is due, Dutschmann said.
“We know that we can’t financially afford to assist everyone, and there’s strength in numbers,” Dutschmann said. “By kicking off a crowdfunding campaign, I know we can accomplish anything.”
Associate Professor of English Dan Walden is from the coast of North Carolina. He said Helene in particular was so destructive because the western part of the Carolinas are ill-prepared for hurricanes and didn’t expect Helene to come so far inland.
“A lot of the destruction was because of rivers that flooded from all the rain [and] funneled down into these rivers and creeks that overflowed tremendously,” Walden said. “There’s just really not a whole lot you can do to prepare for that because it’s not something that generally affects that area.”
Navarre, Fla., junior Ryan Chandler said although his hometown wasn’t in the path of Milton, he has friends whose families considered evacuating in preparation for the then-Category 5 hurricane.
“If it would have hit my hometown, I would have tried to drive or fly home to help and take maybe a week off,” Chandler said.
Dutschmann’s goal is to give every student a chance to finish their education without being held back because of cost.
“I feel like we cannot stand back and turn a blind eye to the needs of these students,” Dutschmann said. “It’s about getting them to the finish line and getting these young people out into the workforce.”
Dutschmann, Chandler and Walden are all in positions to empathize with those affected as Florida and North Carolina natives who currently live in Texas.
While they didn’t see the destruction firsthand, they have heard about it from friends and family back home. Dutschmann said it has been difficult for her to hear about without being able to do anything about it.
“It [has] been gut-wrenching. I basically had to put down social media for a couple days because I was so broken by it,” Dutschmann said.
According to Walden,there’s a tendency for people for forget these events once something bigger comes up in the news. Walden said simply being there for friends who were affected can make all the difference.
“Not forgetting that it’s happening and that people are still dealing with the aftermath of this weeks later I think is actually a pretty important thing,” Walden said.
The scholarship is a way to ensure that college students are able to pursue their passions and dreams, regardless of what stands in their way, Dutschmann said.
“Nobody’s dream should come to an end when it is of no fault of their own, and that’s why I think it’s very important that we do all we can to help those from these areas,” Dutschmann said.
