BOSTON – The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending almost $2.8 million to the State of Rhode Island to reimburse Providence College for some of the costs of sheltering students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The $2,792,703 Public Assistance grant will reimburse the private Catholic university for the cost of providing hotels rooms and wraparound services for students exposed to COVID-19 between January and May 2021.
The school contracted with the Providence Marriott and Hilton Providence to provide isolation housing to undergraduate students who tested positive for COVID-19 and quarantine housing for students identified as close contacts of those who tested positive for the coronavirus.
Providence College will also be reimbursed for the costs of meal services, laundry services, security, disinfectant cleaning services, and onsite medical personnel.
“FEMA is pleased to be able to assist Providence College with these costs,” said FEMA Region 1 Regional Administrator Lori Ehrlich. “Providing resources for our institutions of higher education to combat the COVID-19 pandemic is critical to their success, and to our success as a nation.”
FEMA’s Public Assistance program is an essential source of funding for states and communities recovering from a federally declared disaster or emergency.
This grant brings the total awarded by FEMA to the State of Rhode Island to almost $793 million to reimburse the state for pandemic-related expenses.