COVID-19 Update: Housing & Meal Plan Refunds & Credits

Dear Goucher Students,

The campus is certainly quiet without you!

I know that the past week has been extremely difficult for everyone. This is certainly not how any of us expected to spend the year. So, I have appreciated your patience as we have worked through the next steps of moving our academic operations online for the remainder of this semester. I will continue to communicate with you often as new developments arise.

Now that we know definitively Goucher students will not be returning to campus this spring, we are in a much better position to answer many of the questions that have been raised regarding how we will be compensating students for housing and meal plans that won’t be used this semester.

Students who vacated the residence halls as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic will receive a prorated credit for room and board charges. For those students who vacated by March 15, that credit will be equal to 50% of the room and board charged, with very few exceptions.

However, each student’s financial aid package is different; therefore, the credit on a student’s account may vary if the student had their room and/or board paid for by specific grants and/or scholarships.
If there is a balance due on a student’s account, the credit will be applied to that amount due first. Any remaining credit will be applied to the student’s next academic term.

We will apply this prorated credit for room and board at the end of the Spring semester.

For all graduating seniors, a refund check will be issued at the end of this semester for any account with a remaining credit balance.

The very few students who were permitted to remain on campus by the College will receive a prorated credit for unused meals but will not receive a credit for room charges.

I’m sure that you will have lots of questions, so we have posted an updated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on our website that we hope will provide you with the answers you need. This FAQ addresses how we will be handling a variety of specific situations. It also provides answers on how we will be paying out Federal Work-Study (FWS) funds this semester. You can find that FAQ here.

If you have any further questions, you may also email finaid@goucher.edu.

Again, thank you for your patience and understanding as we continue to work through these issues. I will be sending further emails out next week with additional updates and information.

Sincerely,

Kent Devereaux, President