For Latino students at Penn, paying for college and college-related expenses may become a little easier thanks to the Association of Latino Alumni. Last Friday night at La Casa Latina's 10th anniversary celebration, ALA announced the creation of an emergency fund to help students in financial straits. Although the grant is available to all Penn students, ALA wants to "help as many of the Latino students as we can," said '91 College and '99 Graduate School of Education alumna Tatiana Olmedo, an ALA Board member. According to ALA President Clemson Smith Muñiz, a former Daily Pennsylvanian sports editor, the emergency grant is similar to those offered by the James Brister Society and the Trustees' Council of Penn Women. Both are open to all students, although TCPW gives special consideration to female students for its emergency grant. Smith Muñiz and Maritza Santiago-Torres, La Casa office coordinator, generated the idea for an emergency grant jointly in 2006 after hearing students frequently express concerns about "money, health problems [and] financial aid," Smith Muñiz said. "I have been a part of multiple conversations with students about financial hardship, unforeseeable circumstances and the possibility of withdrawing from school if certain situations cannot be fixed," said ALA board member Jasmine Perez. READ FULL STORY
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