Hardship Fund

About this Fund

The Hardship Fund is a grant offered to Emory faculty and staff who’ve experienced a catastrophic event or temporary emergency and need financial support for their living expenses.

The Hardship Fund has two tiers:

1. Tier 1 provides financial support to staff and faculty members who are experiencing a financial hardship due to a catastrophic event. Maximum amount is $2,500. View Tier 1 Guidelines.
2. Tier 2 provides financial support to staff and faculty members who are experiencing a financial hardship due to a temporary emergency or who do not meet all criteria to receive funding from Tier 1. Maximum amount is $1,000. View Tier 2 Guidelines.

The Hardship Fund is not a loan, so recipients are not required to pay back the money they receive.

Hardship Fund Eligibility

In order to apply, you must:

• Be a regular faculty or staff member of Emory University working at least 20 hours per week
• Have a minimum of one year of service
• Not have any active disciplinary actions against you that resulted from violating Emory's Standards of Conduct Policy within the past twelve months

The Hardship Fund can’t be used in the following situations:

• If there are 2 or more employees living in the same household, both employees cannot receive an award if they were impacted by the same catastrophic event or temporary emergency. Each eligible employee must be affected by a different event or emergency to be considered for an award.
• If you borrow money from friends or family to pay living expenses, you may not use the Hardship Fund to pay them back. The fund is only available to employees who do not have the means themselves or other resources available to pay their living expenses.

Apply for the Hardship Fund

Complete the Hardship Fund Application Form (pdf) and provide all supporting documentation. If you are unable to apply yourself, an immediate family member may apply for you. Submit your application via email or fax:

• Email: hardship.fund@emory.edu
• Fax: 404‐712‐1470

Applications are reviewed and processed as soon as administratively possible. The Fund Review Committee will do the following as part of the review process:

• Remove any identifying information on your application to preserve your anonymity
• Contact you if your application is incomplete or needs additional information

You will receive an email notification once a decision about your application has been made. If you are not qualified for an award, the Work Life team will share community resources you can consider for assistance.

Donate to the Hardship Fund

The Hardship Fund is funded entirely by voluntary donations from Emory University's faculty and staff as well as any other person or entity wanting to assist Emory community members facing unexpected financial challenges. The program does not receive annual funding from the University.

100% of donated funds go directly to help colleagues in need as part of the Emory University Hardship Fund. No donated money is used to administer the program.