As part of its continuing efforts
to expand
the reach and diversity
of the Fulbright Program,
the Colombian Fulbright Commission has
launched four new programs aimed at providing
opportunities for individuals from
traditionally underserved communities
to pursue advanced degree studies in the
United States. The new programs, which
are open to Colombian citizens, include
the Afro-Colombian Leadership Training
Program; the Cultural Studies for Afro-
Colombians and Indigenous Populations
Program; the Antioquia Faculty Grant; and
the Fulbright-Cerrejón Grant. Programs of study for the first group of grantees will begin in the fall of 2009. Each of the new grants provides up to 24 months of master’s or doctoral level study.
The Afro-Colombian Leadership Training Program is the result of a valuable collaboration between the Fulbright Commission in Colombia, the Colombian Ministry of Education, ICETEX (a Colombian governmental agency that helps provide financial access to higher education), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and LASPAU. The new initiative offers up to seven scholarships for Afro-Colombians who wish to pursue master’s or doctoral studies in the United States. The program is open to applicants from any field of study, with the exception of the clinical health sciences. Candidates must be able to demonstrate how their studies will contribute to the development of their communities and country. In addition to the academic program in the United States, the awards include support for English-language courses, standardized test preparation, and leadership training in Colombia.
The new program was launched on March 25, 2008, in Cali, Colombia, at an event attended by Francisco Santos Calderón, vice president of Colombia; Fernando Araújo Perdomo, Colombian foreign minister; Brian A. Nichols, deputy chief of mission of the U.S. Embassy in Bogota; Gabriel Burgos Mantilla, Colombian vice minister of higher education; Martha Lucía Villegas, director of ICETEX; Ann C. Mason, executive director of the Colombian Fulbright Commission; and Liliana Ayalde, director of USAID in Colombia.
In collaboration with the Colombian Ministry of Culture, the Fulbright Commission in Colombia also recently launched the Cultural Studies for Afro-Colombians and Indigenous Populations Program. The program, which is open to applicants from any field of study with a cultural component, provides up to five scholarships for Afro-Colombians and indigenous peoples to study at the master’s or doctoral level in the United States. Candidates must demonstrate a commitment to their culture and community and be able to show how their studies will contribute to community and national development.
An agreement between the Colombian Fulbright Commission and Grupo Suramericana (a group of industrial and service companies based in the Colombian state of Antioquia) has led to the creation of the Antioquia Faculty Grant. One grant is available and the program is open to professors from public universities in the Antioquia region who wish to pursue master’s or doctoral study in the United States. The program also seeks to strengthen existing relationships and create new ones between the academic and scientific communities of Antioquia and the United States. Applicants may be from any field of study, with the exception of the clinical health sciences.
Building on the success of the Graduate Program for the Regions, the Cerrejón Grant is the result of a collaboration between the Colombian Fulbright Commission and Cerrejón (a coal mining company in the Colombian state of La Guajira). The goal of the program is to improve educational opportunities in the state, which has a large indigenous population. One grant is available, and it is open to academics, researchers, and professionals from La Guajira for master’s or doctoral studies in the United States. Successful candidates must demonstrate a commitment to the socioeconomic, scientific, and technological development of the state of La Guajira and to Colombia in general. Preference is given to applicants who reside in La Guajira and have plans to remain there professionally. Applicants may be from any field of study, with the exception of the arts and the clinical health sciences.
For further information, please visit the website of the Colombian Fulbright Commision at www. fulbright.edu.co or contact LASPAU Program Officer Jennifer Haefeli by email (jennifer_haefeli@ harvard.edu) or telephone (617-495-0369).
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