When the funeral bills mounted, #MoveInMiami made a difference
After a graduate student sends much of his stipend to his family in Africa, he receives an unexpected gift to pay for food and a winter jacket
Emmanuel Acheampong, a doctoral candidate in Educational Leadership, accepted a gift from the International Student and Scholar Services’ #MoveInMiami fund to pay for groceries and winter clothing after he sent most of his stipend home to Ghana to help cover fees for his father’s funeral.
“[My family] had some financial commitments that we had to take care of like the casket, the ceremony, pay the people who are going to come to do the set up and all that,” Emmanuel said. “It’s quite involved.”
After paying for insurance, semester fees, rent, utilities, and a little food, Emmanuel sent the remainder of his stipend home.
Near the end of the semester, he visited Miami’s office of International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) to investigate receiving financial assistance.
Molly Heidemann, director of ISSS, and her team had a plan. For the past few years, ISSS has participated in #MoveInMiami, Miami’s annual day of giving that welcomes the first-year students to Oxford on move-in day, the Thursday before classes start.
Read More: #MoveInMiami made a difference
