Nearly 200 Ghanaian students at the University of Memphis risk academic dismissal and deportation due to the Ghanaian government’s failure to pay $3.6 million in tuition and housing fees under the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat (GSS) program.
University President Bill Hardgrave, speaking on Action News 5’s Better Memphis show, attributed the payment delays to a regime change following Ghana’s December 2024 general election, which disrupted budgetary commitments.
Only $400,000 of the debt has been paid, leaving a $3.2 million shortfall. The university has warned that students must vacate campus housing by August 9, 2025, and face course deregistration if the debt remains unsettled, jeopardizing their F-1 visa status.
Students, including leaders like Fred Awuku Budu Opoku-Asamoah and Carl Engmann, have appealed to President John Dramani Mahama, the Ministry of Education, and the GSS for urgent intervention, citing the risk to their academic futures and Ghana’s global reputation.
Despite outreach to the Ghana Embassy and Foreign Affairs Ministry, no concrete resolution has emerged. Donations to support the students can be made to the Gary Shorb International Student Support Fund.
