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For Immediate Release: January 24, 2007
$150,000 GRANT TO SUPPORT UMW INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS
Fredericksburg, Va. – Chris Musick, director of international academic services (IAS) at the University of Mary Washington, has been awarded a $150,000 grant from the Institute for Study Abroad Foundation. The grant will be awarded over the course of three years beginning in fall 2007 in $50,000 increments, and will be used to fund ten $5,000 scholarships annually to University of Mary Washington students interested in studying abroad.
“This grant will assist students who may not otherwise have the financial means to go abroad, especially students from the Commonwealth,” Musick said. “Participants will help to create global awareness on campus and in the community through service projects upon their return from studying abroad.”
The scholarships will be part of a new program titled “Cultural Envoys.” The program aims to make international travel available to a wider range of students, to educate students about the country they will be visiting one semester prior to their departure, and to facilitate opportunities to discuss the impact of study abroad and work with students upon their return.
The students selected to be Envoys will be required to work with IAS for one semester prior to their departure. During this time, students will conduct research about the country to which they are traveling. Once abroad, the Envoys will participate in either a culturally intensive service project or work closely with the study abroad office at their international destination to arrange service activities or projects, in addition to their normal course load. Upon their return to the United States, the Envoys will provide an additional semester of service at UMW, adopting a project that builds upon the connections they made abroad and prior to departure.
Currently, one-forth of UMW’s nearly 4,000 undergraduates in the liberal arts and sciences program study abroad. This grant will allow UMW to increase this number by providing scholarships to students who may not be able to study abroad otherwise. Students will be selected based on academic merit, financial need, extracurricular activities, and interest in the study abroad program.
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News release prepared by: Kristynn Sullivan