Changes to Middlebury’s Student Access and Support (SAS) grant program this fall sparked frustration among some students who rely on the funding, raising questions about accessibility, financial stigma and how the college supports students with demonstrated financial need.
SAS grants — formerly known as Opportunity Grants — are designed to help students on financial aid cover essential and extracurricular costs not included in tuition, room and board. The program supports expenses such as winter clothing, emergency travel, medical needs, technology assistance and conference attendance. Funding for the grants comes from the Seizing Opportunities Fund, Student Support Fund, Dean’s Emergency Fund and Middlebury’s Student Government Association (SGA).
In recent years, applications for SAS grants have increased significantly. According to Assistant Dean for Student Success Elaine Orozco Hammond and Assistant Director of the Anderson Freeman Resource Center (AFC) Steve Zatarain, that growth prompted a review of the program’s policies, including the introduction of a required financial capability workshop for students seeking funding.
“In identifying the growing need, we wanted to create an educational outcome to serve our students throughout their time at and beyond Middlebury,” Hammond and Zatarain wrote in a joint email to The Campus. “The financial capability workshop engages in topics of destigmatizing the socialization of financial spending and savings, engages students to consider short, medium, and long-term goals around finances and concepts associated with them, and provides an opportunity to create a personal budget that is non-specific to how a student would utilize a SAS grant.”
Three in-person workshops were initially offered during the fall semester, and students were required to attend at least one. The requirement became a point of contention during a session held on Nov. 11, when some students raised concerns that the workshop itself created barriers for those the grants are intended to support.
According to Maritza Orozco ’26, who attended the workshop, it began with group introductions and a slideshow about financial stability. Shortly after, some students asked about the workshop’s purpose, sparking a lengthy discussion about access, time constraints and stigma.
“A student mentioned how they had to take a day off from work in order to attend the workshop and how that takes away money they could’ve had earned had they not attended the workshop,” Orozco wrote in an email to The Campus. “Another student stated that they had already applied for the SAS grant, but because they hadn’t attended the current workshop, their funding was being delayed till they attended and that they needed the funding as soon as possible in order to go home during the winter break.”
According to Orozco, the conversation shifted to a matter of anonymity, with students concerned that the workshop would reveal their financial aid status.
“The same student that opened up the conversation stated that at the workshop we should not have to see each other and know who needs financial assistance,” Orozco wrote.
Hammond and Zatarain, who facilitated the workshop, acknowledged the feedback and emphasized that the intent of the workshop was educational, not punitive.
“We heard students’ concerns raised at the November workshop regarding anonymity (these issues had not come up at the September and October workshops),” Hammond and Zatarain wrote. “For that reason, we pivoted and the required workshop is now an on-line, asynchronous workshop in Canvas.”
The new requirement of an asynchronous workshop is a quick online course on Canvas that students can take at their own time. Additionally, students have the option to take a workshop on financial capability and budgeting at Dana Auditorium on either Jan. 27 or March 9, which will be open to the entire Middlebury community.
“Steve and Elaine were very understanding, they did try to explain the purpose of the workshop more in depth and their thought process on creating the workshop,” Orozco wrote.
Hammond and Zatarain emphasized that due to limited funding, SAS grants will continue to prioritize students with the highest financial need determined by Student Financial Services.
“SAS grants continue to be reserved for students on financial aid prioritizing students whose expected financial contribution is $12,000 or below, and proportionally supporting students with an EFC of under $30,000,” Hammond and Zatarain wrote.
In an effort to increase funding, the Senior Class Committee has chosen the Seizing Opportunities Fund for their Class of 2026 and 2026.5 Senior Class Gift.
“After meeting with Elaine Orozco Hammond in November, the committee decided to focus their gift specifically to the Student Access Support grants under the Fund,” Assistant Director of Annual Giving Kara White wrote in an email to The Campus.
Mandy Berghela (she/her) is Editor-in-Chief
Mandy has previously served as the Managing Editor, Senior Local Editor, a Local Section Editor and Staff Writer. She is majoring in Political Science with a minor in History. She is the Co-President for the Southeast Asian Society and an intern with the Conflict Transformation Collaborative. Last summer, Mandy interned with U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and participated in the Bloomberg Journalism Diversity Program.
