At Harford Community College, we used the remainder of our 2023-2024 SGA budget to purchase a claw machine called "Claws for a Cause," which is filled with prizes from our school store, ranging from blankets to polaroid cameras.

While the prizes attract students and staff, the real impact comes from the income generated by the machine. During its first semester, which happened to be over the summer, the machine made roughly $400. As a community college, our budgets are often smaller than those of four-year institutions. During the ASGA conference, my executive board and I had to remind ourselves that it’s okay we can’t do as much as four-year schools. Our budgets, student demographics, and retention rates differ, but our students’ concerns remain similar. They struggle with affording classes and balancing school, work, and family obligations.

What our students don’t know is that the income from the claw machine is being set aside to fund scholarships. Our students expressed the need for financial support, and we listened—but we also made it realistic for a community college setting.