The crisis in Syria has created an academic emergency, with the break-down of higher education within the country and major obstacles facing Syrian students and scholars who are studying or teaching outside of Syria. Many university students are unable to attend classes and complete their degrees, due to continued violence and campus closures or disruptions. There is an urgent need to provide emergency assistance to these students and scholars to enable them to continue their academic work in safe haven countries until they can return home to help rebuild their country.
To invest in the future of Syria, IIE, in collaboration with Jusoor, a newly established organization focused on engaging the global Syrian diaspora in the economic and social development of Syria, and Illinois Institute of Technology, announced at the annual Clinton Global Initiative that it will lead an initiative to provide emergency support to Syrian students and scholars.
Join the Commitment: A core component of our Commitment to Action is to build a consortium of universities and colleges around the world who will offer scholarships, tuition waivers or other forms of support to assist threatened Syrian students, with a goal of 50 new scholarships in the next year. IIE also calls upon colleges and universities to help provide emergency support to Syrian students already on their campuses who need assistance. And, we are seeking campuses who are able to be a host campus for threatened Syrian scholars who will receive fellowship support from IIE's Scholar Rescue Fund.
We encourage our member institutions to join this effort. Please complete the "Commitment to Action" form and submit to IIE by October 22.
For more information about the Commitment, or to download the form please go to
www.iie.org/syria.