Jon Mark Beilue: Affordability During a Pandemic

Students face financial unknown as WT seeks to ease burden

Anastasia Hawkins’ story is her own, but then again, it’s not. The specifics of her struggle are unique, but her challenges are what almost every West Texas A&M University student – and, really, most higher education students – face.

“A lot of my friends, especially with two to three semesters before graduation, are all concerned about this,” she said. “Are we going to be set back? Are we going to be pushing back graduation because of this? Or are we going to move forward and will we be as prepared going forward because of this? I have friends in tears on nearly a daily basis because of this.”

Hawkins is a junior mechanical engineering student from Shallowater. Her husband Cristoval works in the IT department at WT. She carries 16 hours this spring semester, while she simultaneously holds down three part-time jobs, 32 hours a week.

Or more accurately, held. 

The COVID-19 pandemic is costing lives and livelihoods. Positive cases climbed to more than 600,000 and more than 27,000 deaths by mid-April. More than 22 million have filed for unemployment benefits, with a possible 17 percent unemployment rate looming — the highest since the Great Depression.

College students were particularly hard hit. Most on-campus jobs were held by students, but now the campus is all but closed. Off campus, hourly employees — many of them students — were among the first to lose their jobs.

Hawkins wants to pursue graduate degrees while working in the field of juvenile prosthetics. In the future, when having a family, she’d like to transition to teaching before a return to engineering, possibly biomedical engineering.

Juvenile prosthetics and teaching have one important commonality – children.

“I want to do something to benefit people,” Hawkins said, “more so than just earning a paycheck.”

But even earning a paycheck is gone, and the length of that is uncertain. Hawkins had three different teaching jobs prior to spring break.

One was with Kumon Math and Reading Center in Amarillo for ages 3 to 18. Instructors fill in the gaps from basic learning skills through college-level classes. A second job was tutoring high school students of lower-income families in ACT and SAT preparation. The final one was with Snapology of Amarillo. It’s a Lego-themed robotics program with engineering concepts taught at the elementary school level, including some in Amarillo.

“All of those jobs were time-consuming, but I enjoy them and we need the money,” Hawkins said. “We definitely needed the money.”

By the end of March, all three jobs were on permanent hold. There was some possible online work, but not enough families signed up to make that worthwhile.

Hawkins can get a knot in her stomach thinking of an uncertain future. There’s the normal expenses – apartment rent, utilities and food – but tuition for summer classes is approaching.

 In addition, Hawkins requires medication for depression and anxiety, and even with insurance, that adds up. There’s also a possibility they could get custody of a nephew. One silver lining is Cristoval has been able to keep his job.

“I’ve been completely self-supportive – I have to be – since I started college,” she said, “but to go from two incomes to one is tough. I watch the CDC reports, and they expect this to lessen by June, but kick back up in August. If that happens, what are we going to do then?

“Are we going to be able to pay for anything? We are able to make a living and go to school without federal aid. We work so we don’t have to rely on government aid. But what will happen if we don’t have supplemental income? We could get into the cycle of, ‘OK, we got that paid for, how do we pay for this?’ And then make sure you’re successful in class, too.”

That’s just one story out of thousands at WT: Students faced with additional affordability concerns. Families hitting the pause button on plans to send children to universities in the fall.

For universities, budgets will be under scrutiny. New ways to not just attract, but also keep students will be implemented. There are a lot of balls in the air to juggle, and those big-picture questions can keep a university president up at night.

“How much do I think about those things?” asked WT President Dr. Walter Wendler. “Not much – only every waking minute of the day.”

Already, Baylor University has announced a budget cut between $65 and $80 million. St. Edwards University in Austin, an NCAA Division II school like WT, is cutting six sports. Those are private schools, but private or public, many are about to follow.

WT has implemented four measures to help. Are they game-changers? One could be, but perhaps it’s more the act than the result.

• Students living in on-campus dorms who moved out at spring break will receive credit prorated for housing and meal plans. At the end of the semester, any remaining credit will be refunded into their direct deposit bank account or mailed as a check.
   
• Free drive-in Wi-Fi sites are available 24-7 to the community on the public WTCONNECT network with “gobuffsgo” as the password. The free Wi-Fi are available in lots at the First United Bank Center and Mary Moody Northen Hall at WT, and the Harrington Academic Hall on Tyler Street in downtown Amarillo.

“A lot of people in West Texas don’t have access to good Wi-Fi service,” Wendler said. “We still have 400 to 500 in the dorm, and one reason is internet access. They don’t have it at home.”

• The $40 student application is waived or deferred through May 31 for students enrolling at WT.
   
• Buff Promise, which pays for a student’s in-state tuition for the fall and spring semesters plus student fees, has been expanded to those with a gross annual family income of under $80,000. Previously, it was $40,000.

“We thought doubling that in this unprecedented time was the right thing to do,” Wendler said. “I have told Chancellor Sharp (John Sharp, Chancellor of the Texas A&M system) that we’re just trying to do right by people in the Panhandle.

“I live and die on the people of the Panhandle and South Plains. That’s why we’re out there trying to do these things. Now some are modest, I understand, but some, like expanding the Buff Promise, we hope will impact families in a positive way. We’re doing this because it’s the right thing to do.”

Do you know of a student, faculty member, project, an alumnus or any other story idea for “WT: The Heart and Soul of the Texas Panhandle?” If so, email Jon Mark Beilue at jbeilue@wtamu.edu.

—WTAMU—