LASPAU

About Us
Frequently Asked Questions
Services
Programs
Workshops and Seminars
Current Grantees
Alumni
Publications
Higher Education Issues and Resources
Grant Opportunities
Home


DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: CURRENT PROGRAMS

Alliance for Excellence Program
Sponsors: Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy, Santo Domingo; Dominican private sector; Government of the Dominican Republic
Country: Dominican Republic
Program focus: Private sector partnerships for education
Timeframe: 2000–2008
Description: The Alliance for Excellence Program increased the number of Fulbright grants available in the Dominican Republic. The Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy raised funds from the Dominican private sector, and the Dominican government contributed 20% matching funds during the first year of the program. From 2000 to 2006, thirty-one individuals received grants for graduate degrees in fields that include agricultural economics, animal sciences, business and management, computer and information systems, construction management, education, engineering, journalism, law, mathematics, music, psychology, public health, public policy studies, and sustainable economic development. The final group of grantees are now completing their programs.

Fulbright Faculty Development Program
Sponsor: Fulbright Program; U.S., Latin American, and Caribbean universities, foundations, and corporations
Countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela
Program focus: Faculty development
Timeframe: 1975–present
Description: The Fulbright Faculty Development Program brings up to 150 educators each year from Latin America and the Caribbean to the United States for advanced studies in a wide variety of disciplines. The program began in 1975 in Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Ecuador and additional countries were added over time. Cost-share partners supplement the basic grant by providing tuition assistance and other forms of complementary funding. To date, over 3,000 faculty members from higher education institutions throughout the region have obtained advanced degrees or conducted research in the United States through the Fulbright Faculty Development Program. Please see the individual country listings for information on specific cost-share initiatives. More information

Leadership Fellowship Program for Latin America and the Caribbean
Sponsor: W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF)
Countries: Bolivia, Brazil (Northeast only), Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico (Yucatan peninsula only), Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru
Program focus: Social leadership
Timeframe: 2001–present
Description: WKKF gave LASPAU a $3.6 million grant to administer this initiative. The five-year grant is designed to train up to 50 fellows through short-term, master’s, and doctoral degree programs in thematic areas critical to WKKF’s goal of implementing and disseminating models to break the cycle of poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean. Current fellows and recent alumni were also invited to participate in leadership strengthening workshops in 2003 and 2004. To date, 35 fellows have participated in the program. More information

Lewis A. Tyler Trustees’ Fund
Sponsor: LASPAU Board of Trustees
Countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela
Program focus: Research grants
Timeframe: 1989–present
Description: The fund provides research support to current LASPAU-administered grantees whose work encourages the exchange of ideas, staff, or resources between institutions in Europe, the United States, or Canada and those in Latin America and the Caribbean. The award enables students to advance their research while strengthening international ties between institutions, two endeavors that embody LASPAU’s vision. The fund, named after former LASPAU executive director Lewis A. Tyler, is sponsored by current and former members of the LASPAU Board of Trustees and by others who support LASPAU’s efforts. More information

Maestrķa de Desarrollo Comunitario Sustentable (MDCS)
Sponsor: W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF)
Countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru
Program focus: Sustainable community development
Timeframe: 2004–2007
Description: This distance-learning master’s degree program in sustainable community development is training a cadre of Latin American and Caribbean community leaders working in rural development and food security. Supported by a grant from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the program is administered by LASPAU in conjunction with the Universidad Nacional of Costa Rica (UNA) and Red Latinoamericana y del Caribe de Seguridad Alimentaria y Desarrollo Sustentable (RedLayc). MDCS began in 2005 with 28 students from 11 countries. The grantees were drawn from the Redlayc network of NGOs supported by WKKF and occupy leadership positions in these organizations. In addition to an introductory workshop and distance-learning courses taught by UNA, the students will participate in two extended field trips organized by RedLayc.

OAS-Placed Graduate Scholarship Program
Sponsor: Organization of American States (OAS)
Countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela
Program focus: Economic diversification and integration, trade liberalization, and market access; education; social development and the creation of productive employment; scientific development and exchange and transfer of technology; strengthening of democratic institutions
Timeframe: 2002–present
Description: This program supports graduate studies for outstanding individuals throughout the Americas who are placed by LASPAU in degree programs at universities in OAS member countries. To ensure that available funds support the maximum number of grants, LASPAU negotiates with admitting universities to secure tuition assistance in the form of scholarships and assistantships. The goal of the program is to fortify the disciplines and institutions most important to building a strong future in the region. To this end, grantees pursue studies in fields critical to addressing issues such as the struggle against poverty and inequality; consolidating democracy; and achieving integral, just, and sustainable social and economic development. To date, over 280 individuals have participated in the program. More information

OAS Self-Placed Graduate Scholarship Program
Sponsor: Organization of American States (OAS)
Countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela
Program focus: Culture; economic diversification and integration, trade liberalization, and market access; education; social development and the creation of productive employment; scientific development and exchange and transfer of technology; strengthening of democratic institutions; sustainable development and the environment; sustainable development of tourism
Timeframe: 2002–present
Description: This effort supports graduate degree programs for outstanding individuals throughout the Americas who have obtained their own university admission. It is designed to fortify the disciplines and institutions most important to building a strong future in the region. To this end, grantees pursue studies in fields critical to addressing issues such as the struggle against poverty and inequality; consolidating democracy; and achieving integral, just, and sustainable social and economic development. To date, approximately 440 individuals have participated in the program. More information in English | Español

 

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: PAST PROGRAMS

Agricultural Sector Training Project
Sponsors: U.S. Agency for International Development/Dominican Republic; Dominican Oficina Nacional de Planificación (ONAPLAN)
Country: Dominican Republic
Program focus: Agriculture
Timeframe: 1984–1991
Description: This project enhanced the administrative capacity of the Dominican government to plan and finance agricultural training programs, assisted universities to develop master’s programs in agriculture, and strengthened Dominican agricultural research and its application by training agricultural professionals at the graduate level. LASPAU administered the master’s and doctoral programs of the 107 grantees at Mexican and U.S. universities. As a subcontractor to LASPAU, the International Agriculture and Food Program at Rutgers University provided technical assistance to ONAPLAN in human resource planning and graduate program development.

Caribbean and Central American Ecology Program
Sponsor: Fulbright Program
Countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago
Program focus: Environment
Timeframe: 1993–2001
Description: The success of the Amazon Basin Scholarship Program led the Fulbright Program to collaborate with LASPAU in the establishment of the Caribbean and Central American Ecology Program. The program provided grants to a total of 54 environmental scientists, researchers, and policymakers from the countries of the Caribbean and Central America for master’s-level study and one-year certificate programs in the United States. More information

Caribbean Basin Scholarship Fund (CBSF)
Sponsor: U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Countries: Barbados, Belize, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama
Program focus: Faculty development, public sector training
Timeframe: 1983–1987
Description: One of six components of the U.S. government’s Caribbean Basin Initiative, CBSF aimed to increase the number of graduate-level training opportunities available to public-sector employees and university faculty members from Caribbean Basin countries. A total of 34 grantees pursued master’s degrees in fields ranging from farm systems management to mariculture to education.

Fundación de Crédito Educativo (FCE)
Sponsors: U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Country: Dominican Republic
Program focus: Strategic planning
Timeframe: 1983
Description: USAID requested LASPAU’s help in determining whether the FCE (a private Dominican foundation that grants loans to Dominicans pursuing postsecondary education) was equipped to expand its programs to include scholarships as well as loans. LASPAU staff members traveled to the Dominican Republic to assess the existing capabilities of the FCE and assist in the development of systems and procedures to support the goals of a joint scholarship program with USAID.

Higher Education in Latin America: Helping Institutions Respond to the Challenges of Reform
Sponsor: Ford Foundation
Countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela
Program focus: Higher education reform
Timeframe: 1996–1997
Description: A far-reaching grant from the Ford Foundation to LASPAU continued the work of the Latin American Fellows Program on Higher Education. The additional funding supported in-country roundtables on higher education reform; case studies to inform practitioners about reform efforts and form the curriculum for a professional development program; a Harvard symposium on higher education reform; and wide dissemination of the published outcomes of the roundtables, case studies, and symposium.

IBM Network Project
Sponsor: IBM Latin America
Countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela
Program focus: Electronic communications
Timeframe: 1990–1992
Description: IBM provided a $50,000 grant to enable LASPAU to establish its Network Project in 1990. The project was designed to encourage computer communications for academic purposes throughout the Americas with the intention of stimulating greater communications among former grantees, their colleagues, and faculty in the United States. As a result of this early program, a number of electronic mailing lists were established, some of which are still in active use. More information

Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC) Program
Sponsor: Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
Country: Dominican Republic
Program focus: Faculty development
Timeframe: 1983–1988
Description: INTEC received a loan from the IDB to expand its facilities and provide master’s- and doctoral-level training for faculty in the fields of engineering, food sciences, education, and educational technology. LASPAU was asked to administer the training component of the program, including placing the 15 grantees at U.S. and Mexican universities and monitoring the progress of their studies.

Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC) Visiting Faculty
Sponsor: Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
Country: Dominican Republic, United States
Program focus: Visiting faculty
Timeframe: 1988–1989
Description: LASPAU assisted INTEC in contracting U.S. professors for short-term lecture visits at INTEC as a complement to the faculty development program.

International Study Grants Program for Latin America and the Caribbean
Sponsor: W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF)
Countries: Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru
Program focus: Social leadership
Timeframe: 1999–2003
Description: Fellowships for long- or short-term study abroad were granted to professionals at institutions—including universities, nongovernmental organizations, and government agencies and ministries—actively engaged in projects funded by WFFK, with the goal of contributing to the success of those projects. To achieve the greatest impact, WKKF targeted grants toward specific areas of community need such as health; food systems and rural development; youth and education; higher education; and philanthropy and volunteerism. Half of the 61 fellows administered by LASPAU studied in the United States, and the other half studied in Latin America or Europe. More information

LASPAU Faculty Development Program
Sponsor: North and South American institutions; U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Countries: Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Venezuela
Program focus: Faculty development
Timeframe: 1965–1975
Description: A collaboration between USAID, U.S. universities, and Latin American universities, this program was LASPAU’s first effort devoted exclusively to faculty development. 1,600 young people from across Latin America obtained U.S. graduate degrees in preparation for careers in academia and returned home to contribute to the teaching and research missions of their home institutions. More information

Latin American Scholarship Program of American Universities
Sponsor: Ford Foundation; U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. universities
Countries: Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru
Program focus: Undergraduate and graduate scholarships
Timeframe: 1964–1968
Description: The original program from which LASPAU’s name is derived, this cooperative venture initiated by Harvard University in 1964 provided full scholarships to colleges across the United States for outstanding Latin American youths of limited economic means. More information

Leadership Strengthening Program I
Sponsor: W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF)
Countries: Argentina, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru
Program focus: Social leadership
Timeframe: 2000–2001
Description: In 1998, WKKF approached LASPAU and the Tec de Monterrey with a request to develop a leadership strengthening program for leaders of nongovernmental organizations that were recipients of WKKF funding. The central idea was to build a cadre of socially minded leaders who, through their projects, would work for the common good and have an increasingly significant social impact on their respective countries. An important theme was creating willingness in existing leaders to mentor and coach others. The program, launched in July 2000, included a three-week session at ITESM in Monterrey, Mexico, one week at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and nine months of online learning for the twenty participants. More information

Leadership Strengthening Program IV
Sponsor: W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF)
Countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru, Nicaragua
Program focus: Social leadership
Timeframe: 2003–2004
Description: A continuation of the previous Leadership Strengthening Programs, this program strengthened the leadership capacity of Latin American grassroots leaders of the Human Nutrition Initiative and rural development projects who have proven their abilities as social leaders committed to promoting social development. The 15 participants undertook a three-week session at INCAE in San Jose, Costa Rica, and one week at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Programa Para el Pequeño Agricultor
Sponsor: U.S. Agency for International Development/Dominican Republic
Country: Dominican Republic
Program focus: Agriculture
Timeframe: 1978–1985
Description: LASPAU administered the second stage of this program that focused on small-scale agriculture in the Dominican Republic. Funded by a loan from USAID to the Dominican Secretaría de Estado de Agricultura (SEA), the program trained 50 individuals, including SEA employees working in agricultural research and extension and professors of agriculture from the Instituto Superior de Agricultura, the Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Ureña, and the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo. Fields of study included agricultural technology, pest control, agricultural economics, and natural resource planning and management.

USAID Training for Development Program
Sponsor: U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Countries: Belize, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru
Program focus: Faculty development
Timeframe: 1977–1986
Description: LASPAU collaborated with USAID missions and host country ministries on this effort to support basic development projects at Latin American and Caribbean universities. A university’s ability to provide service to the neediest sectors of the population was an essential criterion for inclusion. The 164 university teachers, administrators, and researchers funded by the program obtained master’s degrees at U.S. institutions in fields including agriculture, food production, nutrition, health, and education, with areas of concentration such as appropriate technology and rural development. More information

USAID Training Initiatives I
Sponsor: U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Countries: Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, Peru
Program focus: Faculty development, public and private sector training
Timeframe: 1982–1988
Description: Under this program, 50 post-secondary educators, public servants, and private-sector professionals were awarded scholarships for master’s degrees in the sciences, technology, health, education, agriculture, and engineering. More information




Last revised: June 20, 2006
Copyright © 2007 by LASPAU: Academic and Professional Programs for the Americas
25 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge, MA 02138-6095 USA
Tel: (617) 495-5255, Fax: (617) 495-8990, Email: laspau-webmaster@calists.harvard.edu