“Yale is well equipped and full of potential to lead the change in student contribution – I hope it capitalizes on that to alleviate the stress that it can for students like myself.”

The pandemic has served as a harsh reminder of the large disparity between first generation low income students and the majority of Yalies. My tight income household struggles to provide me with many of the privileges financially free households are able to provide. That disparity can be a slight difference, just something to work around, but in light of emergencies like the COVID pandemic, it has manifested as a clear disadvantage, like needing to supplement basic family finances. The last thing students need is to be forced to supplement additional finances, like that of the student income contribution. Yale is well equipped and full of potential to lead the change in student contribution – I hope it capitalizes on that to alleviate the stress that it can for students like myself.

Wasil Ahmed, He/Him/His. 2021, Benjamin Franklin