Ball State international students from Libya are worried about possible funding cuts from the Libyan government as they study in the United States.
Three students from Libya are studying at Ball State. They are funded by the Canadian Bureau for International Education, which provides funding for Libyan students studying in North America.
"The reason there would be funding cuts is because the U.S. Department of State froze all the Libyan assets in the U.S.," said Yousef Deikna, a master's student studying teaching English to speakers of other languages and linguistics. "This affected the assets that the CBIE rely on to process the financial transactions for the Libyan students."
Deikna said he hopes the CBIE and the State Department can come up with a solution. He said he's looking at different options to help with his funding.
"I am trying to apply for graduate assistantship positions [on] campus, and I hope this will assist me in paying for school tuition and fees," he said. "I live alone in a university apartment, so I might think to get a roommate to share the costs."
While the Rinker Center for International Programs cannot confirm any funding being cut, students still have other worries about protests in their home country.
Deikna said he is monitoring the situation in Libya and has stayed in contact with his family.
"I am very concerned about the situation there and closely watching the news from there," he said. "My family is still safe, but I am worried about them."
Sophomore natural resources and environmental management major Arij Mousi also faces a possible cut in funding.
"It will be a disaster for me," she said. "I do not have any other way to get money, and I am a single mother with one son."
Mousi said her schooling, monthly living allowance and health insurance are funded by the international program.
"I do not know [what will happen]," she said. "But I have faith that my God will not leave me in trouble."
Mousi said she hopes the United States can help out the Libyan students by unfreezing their funds.
"I ask the United States to help us to give priority to Libyan students to have assistantship to finish their degrees until the situation will be solved," she said.
Mousi said it's unsafe to return home.
Another Libyan student doesn't want to go home due to safety concerns.
Chemistry graduate student Sumia Abdalla will graduate in May, but she has only 60 days after graduation to leave the country, according to her visa.
Abdalla said she is also concerned about her family.
"I'm not sure if they are even alive, and I'm worried to death about them," she said. "I was in contact with them, but I haven't heard from them since the no fly zone on Libya decision was made by the U.N."
Like the other Libyan students, her funding hangs in the balance.
"I felt horrible because it is impossible for me to provide that amount," she said. "It's a huge amount of money, and no one would lend me that."
Abdalla said she has a hold on her records for not paying $18,000. She's worried about where she will live.
"I think I will be homeless because in [the U.S.] you have to pay for everything," she said.
Besides her funding and family, Abdalla said she is concerned about the overall situation in Libya.
"I am so scared this might last long or end up [badly]," she said. "We have already lost too many people in this cause, and every day we hear more and more of death."
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