IIE Impact Newsletter Fall 2020
IIE Responds to COVID-19
Earlier this summer, IIE’s Emergency Student Fund (IIE-ESF) provided over 630 grants to aid international students impacted by COVID-19 – and we are currently in the process of making a new round of awards.
When universities closed their campuses in response to the coronavirus pandemic, it was devastating for international students. Many were unable to go home, and their families have been unable to provide funds they were counting on. Their jobs on campus were cancelled, and their other employment options are limited by law. And international students are ineligible for most financial aid, including that provided by the CARES Act.
IIE initially committed $2 million to aid these students. Recent grants from The Cyril Taylor Charitable Foundation, the Duolingo English Test, and the Mellon Foundation, and gifts from many friends of IIE, will enable us to help even more students with a new round of grants, underway right now.
Since 2010, IIE-ESF has awarded more than 1,650 emergency grants to international college students in the U.S. When natural disasters, war, or other crises threaten their education, many face financial pressure to return home or drop out. IIE helps these students cover essential needs, including basic living expenses. Private contributions make this possible. With your help, IIE will be ready to help students during the next crisis.
IIE recently released its latest Covid-19 snapshot survey report on the effects of the pandemic on U.S. colleges and universities and student exchange programs. Of 520 institutions surveyed, 92% reported changes in their instruction approaches for this coming fall semester.
IIE Commemorates 100 years of Scholar Rescue
This year marks the 100th anniversary of IIE’s first Scholar Rescue Effort, which helped more than 600 Russian students and scholars during the Bolshevik Revolution. IIE’s Scholar Rescue Fund (IIE-SRF) is the only global program that arranges and funds fellowships for threatened and displaced scholars at partnering higher education institutions worldwide. This work is made possible by generous contributions from foundations, corporations, and individual donors.
Spotlight: Emmy Noether Chair
“The IIE-SRF Emmy Noether Chair will ensure that women scholars around the world will have the lifelines that they need and the platforms that they deserve to pursue their academic work in safety and security,” said IIE-SRF Chairman Mark Angelson. “We couldn’t be more grateful to Amy and Hartley for this generous gift.”
Dr. Noether’s revolutionary “Noether’s Theorem” complemented Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity. After her death, Einstein wrote in The New York Times that Dr. Noether “…was the most significant creative mathematical genius thus far produced since the higher education of women began.”
IIE-SRF is proud of the 13 endowed chairs that support scholars in fields ranging from STEM to the arts and humanities. Gifts from private individuals and foundations support these chairs and all the work that IIE-SRF does to aid threatened and displaced scholars. Join us in this effort.
Please update your records with our new address:
Institute of International Education, Inc.
One World Trade Center, 36th Floor
New York, NY 10007
Julia Stasch-IIE Scholarships for Refugees
Awardees received $10,000 to cover tuition and living expenses and will participate in a week-long leadership program. These scholarships are providing help at a critical time, as all the awardees plan to continue their education in pursuit of four-year degrees.
The program was created with funding from several prominent foundations and individual donors to honor Julia Stasch, who has made an impact as a leader in the business, government, and philanthropy sectors. Ms. Stasch was president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation from 2014 to 2019. Previously, she served in the administrations of Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and U.S. President Bill Clinton and led companies in banking and real estate.