Good Morning Angels (Elphus Sibara 4th Year)

Request for:

Elphus Sibara 

 

Angel:

Lauren McNocher, Head of Marketing at Tyger Valley College

  

Sponsoring:

Tyger Valley College will pay the full R 23 537.00 of outstanding fees for Elphus' 2014 university fees, to enable him to enroll for his fourth and final year!  

 

Background:

We met Elphus Sibara in January 2014 - a year ago. As a 22-year old young man, he carries the hopes of his family on his shoulders. He is the eldest son of five children, to an unemployed, single mother. His circumstances sound dire, but Elphus is not allowing his past to derail his future. With financial assistance from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, Elphus completed the first two of his four year studies at the University of Limpopo. He was half-way and motivated to finish his BSC Agricultural Economics degree to enable him to start earning a living - not just for himself - but even more so for his mother and four siblings. Elphus wants to give his family a better life and sees himself as their future breadwinner - a responsibility he has put upon himself and which drives him to achieve. Last year we helped him with outstanding fees to enable him to enroll for his 3rd year. Now, with his fourth and final year ahead, the system has failed to pay all his class fees - and again Elphus is stuck with a bill that he cannot pay.  

 

 

Feedback letter from Elphus (October 2014):

 

Good Day Good Morning Angels,

 

It's Elphus Sibara. Greetings in advance. 

Thanks once more, for what you have done for me and my family. As I have shown how grateful I am for the Good Morning Angels and Warren Hero from Eduloan, what you did for me in order to enable me to be able to further my studies. My family and I shall forever be grateful.

 

As the 2014 academic year closes, I have come to realise that my fees have been R 44,418.00. NSFAS could only manage to pay R 19 000 and the rest was left out. All this happened after I had made an effort of not getting a room for the whole year as to try to keep down my fees and in doing such I was not charged for residence. I was forced to get involved in what is called "squatting", an illegal activity by the university rules and regulations. It's a rule I broke as there was no way I was gonna be able to afford a room and I didn't want my fees to be high up the mountain. With all that, it still proved less of an impact as my fees were still beyond reach.

 

I have now been left owing the university and amount worth R 23 537.00, which up to so far has disallowed me to be able to get my official academic record and I cannot take my results home. As such I am asking for assistance with the payment of the fees, and the scary part is that there hasn't been any guarantee as to whether I will be able to register with an outstanding balance and the last thing on my mind is to drop out on my last year.

 

As I'll be entering my final year next year, there is a recurring problem that I have been able to ignore because of my level of study seems inevitable to come next year. My final year is basically my honours since I am doing an honours degree, thus means I will have to do a lot of researches and with little time given. There will be a high need of a personal computer of which I have never own one, not by choice but because of financial constraints. Throughout my previous years of study I have been able to survive without one, using the university's general labs but come next year I will need to spend more time using it than on a part time basis. I sense a great need of having a personal computer and if ever there was any assistance on it, I would be grateful as it will help improve my final year results.

 

Thank you once more in advance.
Kind Regards
Elphus Sibara

 

Original Request (November 2013)

 My name is Elphus Sibara (22-years old), from the Limpopo province. I live in a village just outside Makhado, called Mpheni. I am the oldest of five, to a single mother, who has been unemployed for many years. We get by on the state's child grant money for my two little brothers and a few piece jobs my mother gets every once in a while. My father has got nothing to do with what happens with us.

 
I am a registered student at the University of Limpopo, Turfloop Campus. I am studying BSC Agricultural Economics (a four year degree), and I just recently finished my second year. I currently do not have a bursary, so NSFAS (National Student Financial Aid Scheme) has been paying for my tuition fees. Last year NSFAS was able to pay the rest of my tuition fees with ease, but this year it was unable to pay the rest of the balance. After it has paid, I have an outstanding balance of R 12 229,00. I know reasonably well that my mother will not be able to pay this high amount of money as she even has trouble supporting our family.

 
If the outstanding balance is not paid this year, it means I will not be able to register for my third year. The only thing that keeps the family going is for them knowing that sooner rather than later I will be putting food on the table and it kills me to realise that it may never happen.
 

I am asking for assistance in paying for my outstanding balance so that I can be able to register for my third year and be able to complete my studies.

 
Thank you in advance.
 
Elphus Sibara
(Please find attached my academic records)