FIU welcomes students from Puerto Rico and other Caribbean islands


The message below was sent Oct. 17, 2017, to the university community regarding disaster response and recovery following hurricanes Irma and Maria:

This week we welcome students from Puerto Rico and other Caribbean islands to our October term – an eight-week mini session available to all FIU students.

More than 300 students from islands devastated by hurricanes Irma and Maria have applied to be visiting students at FIU under our #FIUstrong initiative, which offers these students an out-of-state tuition waiver through the spring of 2018. We expect many of them to begin classes this week.

Many of these students arrived in South Florida with very limited resources and are in need of housing and other essentials. To help meet their needs, the FIU Foundation has established the Disaster Response and Recovery Fund. One hundred percent of the money raised through this fund will go to helping those impacted. Please consider donating online or at Barnes and Noble’s on-campus stores.

Students from the Caribbean who have applied to FIU may request assistance.

Affected students are also welcome to visit the food pantries at BBC (WUC 307) and MMC (DM 166). Please note FIU is not a drop-off site for relief supplies for the Caribbean. Donations to the FIU pantries are encouraged; are only for FIU students.

For more information, please call 305-348-3481 or email fiustrong@fiu.edu.