LAWRENCE, Kan. — A Ukrainian student at the University of Kansas is asking the public for financial help in order to finish his education.
After his parents lost their means of income during the war, Nikita Kuzin became unable to pay his tuition fees. Now, he's afraid his family's sacrifices will be in vain.
“My parents gave a lot of effort and strength to get me here,” Kuzin said.
Two years ago, Kuzin hopped on a plane in his hometown of Odessa, Ukraine, and moved his life to Lawrence, Kansas. He said it's always been his dream to graduate from an American university and bring his knowledge back to his home country.
Kuzin is a junior, double majoring in mathematics and economics. But with two years of college still left to go, he's facing about $50,000 in tuition and housing. The student has had to take on part-time jobs to pay for as much of it as he can, but employment options are restricted for international students.
“I’m only allowed to work 20 hours per week on campus, so there’s not a lot of options for me," Kuzin said. "But that’s still not enough to cover my tuition and other expenses."
With no allowance from his parents and not enough income from his part-time employments, Kuzin decided to ask the public for help. He created GoFundMe pages and Facebook groups to accept donations for his tuition, housing and other related expenses.
“I’m really grateful and thankful for everything they did and they are doing right now,” he said.
After the war began, his mother and two younger siblings fled to Belgium, but his father and grandparents are still stuck in Odessa. Feeling helpless to the situation, Kuzin hopes he can at least finish the education his parents have worked so hard for him to get.
“What am I doing here, enjoying my life when some people are staying there and just basically fighting for their lives, dying and starving?” Kuzin said. “No one knows where like the next missile gonna come, or when or where it’s going to hit ... That’s my biggest fear for now.”
Kuzin has reached about $15,000 of his $65,000 goal so far. Thanks to generous donors like Duane Goertz, he's hopeful he can stay in the U.S. long enough to complete his goal.
“You can’t do a lot, but you can always do something,” Goertz said. “It’s just the right thing to do.”
Kuzin's GoFundMe page is still accepting donations.
