About the Fund

Employees must meet the following requirements to be eligible to receive funding:

1. Be a current benefits-eligible employee of Ithaca College;
2. Have successfully completed at least one year of continuous service at Ithaca College; and
3. Have not received any disciplinary actions that resulted from violating any of the policies outlined in the Ithaca College Policy Manual within the past year.

Employees must be able to show all 3 types of documentation for an application to be complete:

1. Evidence of catastrophic event or temporary emergency;
2. Evidence of the financial hardship; and
3. Evidence of how this hardship is affecting their basic living needs (e.g. currently past due bills).

• Natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, winter storms, tornadoes, and earthquakes.
• Residential fires, building collapses, or floods.
• Dislocation due to an unhealthy or unsafe living environment.
• One-time medical emergency or personal injury expenses that are not covered by insurance for the employee or an immediate family member. An immediate family member is a dependent, spouse/domestic partner, or other family member (regardless of biological connection) for whom the employee provides at least half of the financial support and resides with.
• Domestic abuse or family crisis.
• Homelessness/inability of the employee to meet basic needs for food/shelter due to exceptional unforeseen circumstances.
• Loss of income when a financially contributing household member (not employed by Ithaca College) has died or due to a new disability.

• Loss of employment (unless the result a of sudden disability or death of a family member who resides in the household).
• Ongoing or increased costs of household bills (such as utilities, credit cards, rent/mortgage, taxes, vehicle bills, and veterinary bills).
• A situation that does not directly threaten the faculty or staff member’s ability to meet their own basic living expenses.
• An event that is the result of an action taken by the staff or faculty member.
• Bills related to an ongoing medical condition.
• Past due bills not related to the emergency such as rent, heat, and vehicle payments.

• The Ithaca College Employee Emergency Relief Fund is administered by the Office of Human Resources to ensure compliance with federal guidelines.
• The Office of Human Resource will seek applications from faculty and staff to serve on the Employee Emergency Relief Fund application review committee.
• The Employee Emergency Relief Fund committee chair will have access to the employee’s complete application, however, all identifying information is removed before it is sent to the full committee. All applications are kept confidential.
• Employees may re-apply every 12 months; however, first-time applicants will be given priority to available funding.
• Financial assistance provided through the Ithaca College Employee Emergency Relief Fundis treated as taxable income and is subject to FICA and Federal Withholding.