As a single mother of three children, Renee Hesch knows well the difficulties of trying to raise a family while attending college.
Hesch, a non-traditional student, recently transferred to Ball State after attending Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. While in her final semester at IUPUI, Hesch discovered she had run out of financial aid.
"I found out the harder you try, the more road blocks there seem to be as a single mother trying to finish your education," she said.
Hesch said a major influx of women who are single mothers are discovering that attending college is often an overwhelming task.
"Lots of moms almost give up because what we try to do is so hard," she said. "Balancing school and a family while trying to come up with the money for college is a lot of work."
According to 1999 Federal Census Bureau statistics, two million of the six million women with dependent children under the age of 18 do not have high school diplomas.
Another 2.5 million single mothers have never received a college education, and of the 1.5 million who try, nearly 70 percent drop out within the first year of school.
Hesch said financial hardship was the No. 1 reason women gave for dropping out of college. She said she believes government programs do not make a sufficient effort to help single mothers break out of poverty.
"Food stamps, free meals and textbook assistance provide help for the extreme needy, but not the single mothers who, working and attending college, fall outside the poverty guidelines," she said. "There should be a step in between."
Last March, Hesch decided to take action. The frustrated 40-year-old founded Women Helping Women, Inc., an emergency funding organization for single parents in need of financial, emotional and educational support.
Hesch collected funds and received support from IUPUI, business corporations and private individuals. Within the first few months, Hesch had gathered more than $6,000 to reward to single mothers in the form of scholarships and free school supplies.
Hesch required each applicant to fill out a form proving his or her status as both a parent and student, and she soon began collecting applications both online and through the mail.
"It was so hard to try and decide how to choose who was to receive help," Hesch said. "You'd get these stories from people who were so desperate you would want to help everyone out."
Five applicants met the qualifications of the application, and Hesch said it was a good feeling to be able to provide each of these woman with a grant.
"We gave out the five scholarships and provided 30 kids with school supplies from companies like Wal-mart and Target," she said. "I just wish we could have had more to give out."
Hesch's recent move from Indianapolis to Muncie has forced her to put her volunteer project on hold.
"I tend to get overwhelmed because I do a lot of the work for this group myself," she said. "I moved in October so I've had to push it aside, but I could spend 40 hours a week doing this."
Hesch said her next step is to approach student services in an effort to create a public organization of Women Helping Women, Inc.
"I've had a lot of moms ask me about the organization, and tell me they want to help," Hesch said. "I want to schedule a meeting soon, and I'm hoping it will be easier to get this group off the ground here at Ball State."
Eventually Hesch said she hopes to see the organization become a support group.
Despite her own battles as both a single parent and student, Hesch said she is still determined to finish college.
"There were many times I would get frustrated and fear that, because I was a student, I couldn't get anything done," she said. "No one chooses to be a single mother, and I think more positive feedback in our direction would benefit everyone in the long run."
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