Institute of International Education Announces Transformational Gifts of $33 Million to Support Life-Changing Programs

NEW YORK, Oct. 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Institute of International Education (IIE), the world's leader in international educational exchange and scholar rescue, announced trustee gifts of $33 million to address the world's most challenging higher education crises. The contributions will support visionary programs focused on protecting scholars under threat, creating pathways of opportunity for displaced students, and safeguarding national academies.

Five esteemed donor families and pioneering corporate philanthropists lead this historic giving to IIE. "The need for IIE's help has never been more pressing, and the need for leadership support has never been more clear," said IIE Chair Emeritus, Thomas S. Johnson. "With great humility, Mark Angelson and I, along with Vice Chairs Hartley Rogers and Linda Vester, Trustee Martin Tang, and Exelon Foundation led by Vice Chair Calvin Butler, join others to offer the largest combined commitment in IIE's history. We ask that like-minded supporters join us in fostering access to IIE's critical programs for students and scholars who seek freedom from tyranny in these troubled times."

"We are honored to stand in the shoes of our past Chairs," said IIE Chair Mark A. Angelson. "In addition to Tom, these leaders have included eminent broadcaster Edward R. Murrow, U.S. Senator Charles Percy, Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg, and many others. With these gifts and those that will follow, we seek to ensure that the essential work of IIE will carry on for the remainder of the twenty-first century and beyond."

Inspirational and Impactful Commitments

With these new transformational gifts, IIE will deepen the impact of groundbreaking programs, including IIE's Scholar Rescue Fund and its Odyssey Scholarship for refugee and displaced students that help thousands of people overcome systemic barriers to access higher education the world over, secure safe havens for teaching and research, contribute to the rebuilding of nations, and ultimately impact millions of lives through a powerful multiplier effect.

IIE Scholar Rescue Fund (IIE-SRF) places threatened and displaced scholars in safe havens and preserves their voices, ideas, and livelihoods. These commitments dramatically increase the IIE-SRF endowment, which will enable scholars to continue their work at IIE partner institutions and ensure that their scholarship will endure. IIE pioneered rescue efforts more than a century ago, starting with the rescue of 600 students and scholars caught in the crossfire of the Bolshevik Revolution, followed by those displaced by the Spanish Civil War, Nazi Germany, the Hungarian Revolution, and South African Apartheid. More recent efforts have enabled scholar rescue in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, Iran, Sub-Saharan Africa, and elsewhere around the globe. Though demand for aid far outweighs available resources, these new commitments will enable IIE to activate its methodologies, frameworks, and networks in aid of threatened and repressed professors and others in hotspots around the world, including entire national academies when need be.

IIE Odyssey Scholarship for refugees and displaced students removes financial and systemic barriers to higher education by providing full scholarships to displaced youth worldwide. These gifts have made it possible to award more than 130 scholarships in the program's launch stage and build an endowment that will sustain the program in perpetuity. These scholarships accelerate access to education for refugee students and invest in our future world leaders.

The Time is Now

"We are inspired and humbled by the generosity of our Trustees, Partners, current and past Board Chairs, Vice Chairs, and their families," said IIE CEO Allan E. Goodman. "With these trustee gifts, IIE will grow its signature programs, strengthen protections for scholars facing persecution, and expand access to higher education for refugee and displaced students. Along with these distinguished leaders, IIE challenges other donors to make additional commitments. We ask each of you to consider how you will help make a difference with your own support."

About the Institute of International Education 

The Institute of International Education (IIE) is the leader in designing and implementing international education strategies and program services. We work with governments, policymakers, educators, public and private foundations, and employers across the globe to prepare students and professionals for the global workforce and equip them to solve the increasingly complex challenges facing our interconnected world. IIE administers the Fulbright Program, the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and has an established track record of securing contributions that add significant value to the Program. For example, private donations have secured the Fulbright Legacy Fund in perpetuity with more than $20 million.

With donor support, we create initiatives that assist students, scholars, and artists whose lives and work are threatened, expand teaching and learning across cultures, and provide opportunities to underserved populations. A not-for-profit organization founded in 1919, IIE has a network of 15 offices, 11 affiliates, and over 1,600 higher education partners worldwide.

SOURCE Institute of International Education