The Peralta Community College District’s (PCCD) Office of International Education was selected to receive $7,500 to support new study abroad scholarships as part of its commitment to the Institute of International Education’s (IIE) Generation Study Abroad initiative to increase the number and diversity of students who study abroad by the end of the decade. Laney College’s Department of Dance will match this funding, to make a total of six student scholarship awards of $2,500 each. These scholarships will be used by students toward the cost of tuition, books, and travel related to Dance Study Abroad between Fall 2016 and Summer 2017.
PCCD will use the IIE Generation Study Abroad Scholarships to help students who otherwise would not be able to participate in a study abroad program. The Department of Dance at Laney College has done a fantastic job of raising funds and is actively working to assist students who wouldn’t typically go abroad be able to do so. The Department of Dance will be nominating the students to participate in one of their programs from Fall 2016-Summer 2017. Eligible students must be from low-income families (Financial Aid eligible) and have never studied abroad before.
Students may apply for the scholarship by clicking here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/IIEScholarshipDance
PCCD is one of 14 colleges and universities selected based on its notable progress toward meeting its Generation Study Abroad commitment. IIE Generation Study Abroad grants are made possible through IIE’s Study Abroad Fund, with the support of IIE, STA Travel and individual donors, to award scholarships for study in any destination that the college approves. IIE will award a total of approximately $200,000 in scholarships for campuses to provide as scholarships to their students. This is IIE’s second round of grants to support campuses’ efforts to provide scholarships to expand study abroad participation among American college students.
Less than 10 percent of American college students study abroad and few of those students come from underrepresented groups. PCCD’s Office of International Education joined the Institute of International Education’s Generation Study Abroad initiative to take action to make it possible for more U.S. students from a broad range of backgrounds to participate in an academic, internship, or service-learning experience abroad.
“All college students need international educational and work experience in order to compete and thrive in a global workforce,” said Allan E. Goodman, IIE’s President and CEO. “But students need financial resources to go abroad. That’s why IIE is dedicated to supporting its Generation Study Abroad commitment partners’ goals to provide more students with international education opportunities.”
This year’s IIE Generation Study Abroad Scholarship grants will go to Appalachian State University; Case Western Reserve University; Central Piedmont Community College; Elmhurst College; Hawaii Pacific University; Johnson & Wales University; Lamar University; Missouri University of Science and Tech; Peralta Community College District; Rochester Institute of Technology; Salve Regina University; University of South Carolina, Upstate; Utah State University; and Washington and Jefferson College.
Some of the actions that winning campuses are taking include: providing funding for first-generation college students to study abroad, developing student ambassador programs to promote study abroad on campus, increasing freshman study abroad programs, and creating targeted advising programs specifically for veterans, minority students, and STEM students.
Launched in March 2014, the Generation Study Abroad network continues to gain momentum and now has over 600 partners from the U.S. and abroad. As part of their commitments, Generation Study Abroad partner campuses have pledged to raise money and give scholarships, and a number of study abroad program providers and host campuses outside of the United States have pledged to award scholarships toward the cost of their programs.