June 3, 2021: The U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, and Partners of the Americas announce 10 grant-winning teams between Colombia and the United States in the most recent Innovation Fund competition sponsored by the Colombian Institute of Educational Loans and Studies Abroad (ICETEX) and the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs.
The 100K Innovation Fund is the dynamic public-private sector collaboration among the U.S. Department of State and Partners of the Americas working with companies, foundations, and academic networks to champion the power of education to support innovative partnerships and training programs between the United States and the rest of the Western Hemisphere. The 100K Fund inspires U.S. universities and colleges to partner with higher education institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean to design and carry out new models of academic training and exchange programs throughout the Americas.
As a result of 100K Fund partnerships, students work in teams, solve real-world problems, and gain technical and linguistic skills critical for today’s workforce. As of June 2021, after 30 grant competitions in seven years, the 100K Fund has awarded 253 grants ($25,000-$35,000 each) to 504 higher education institutions working in teams across 25 countries and 49 U.S. States.
Colombia is the second top-ranked country in this hemisphere-wide education initiative to partner with U.S. colleges and universities to build partnerships and implement exchange and training programs. Through its education entities, the Government of Colombia is the leading regional government to partner with the 100K Innovation Fund. With today’s announcement, a total of 64 grants will be awarded to 108 higher education institutions in 17 Colombian departments and 29 U.S. states that provide access to new models of student exchange and training programs in both countries.
“This 100K Innovation Fund grant opportunity received the highest number of proposals in a single-country competition in the history of the initiative, a clear example of the existing close relationship between the United States and Colombia,” said U.S. Ambassador to Colombia Philip S. Goldberg.
“This call is an example of our conviction that education is the most important powerhouse of development, and that the improvement of conditions and capacities in the higher education system guarantees a future in which young people, through knowledge, learning, exchange and experiences, constitute agents of change in society, in our country and in the Americas as a whole,” said President of ICETEX Manuel Acevedo Jaramillo.
This 100K competition will provide ten grants of $26,175 each to support new partnerships between higher education institutions in Colombia and the United States that will give more students access to innovative academic training and exchange programs in both countries starting in Fall 2021.
Profiles of new 100K grant winning teams between Colombia and the United States:
Alabama A&M University, Normal, Alabama, United States
Universidad de La Sabana, Chía, Cundinamarca, Colombia
Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios, Bogotá, Cundinamarca, Colombia
From Intention to Action: Entrepreneurship and Innovation Initiative
Alabama A&M University has partnered with Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios and Universidad de La Sabana to develop an innovative exchange program to support small businesses. The overall goal of the program is to foster an entrepreneurial mindset in students based on an open innovation approach, while having a tangible impact on small businesses from underserved communities in the U.S. and Colombia.
Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama, United States
Fundación Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla, Atlántico, Colombia
The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States
Alabama-Colombia: Water, Access, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Partnership
In this collaboration between Tuskegee University, Fundación Universidad del Norte, and the University of Alabama, students and professors will investigate water quality, access, expansion, and cultural diversity in the state of Alabama and the city of Barranquilla, Colombia. The goal is to prepare students with the technical knowledge and skills to solve global issues while working in diverse teams.
Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, United States
Universidad El Bosque, Bogotá, Bogotá, D.C, Colombia
Preparing Early Childhood Teacher Candidates in Inclusive STEM Learning through Innovative Virtual and Study Abroad Partnerships
This project between Virginia Commonwealth University and Universidad El Bosque will increase collaboration, innovation, and information-sharing in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education for Colombian and U.S. students. The exchange program will consist of an online course and in-person instruction on STEM education and language support. The innovative curriculum design will include STEM content objectives, experiences, and pedagogical knowledge while also facilitating student and faculty mobility between both countries.
Howard University, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Universidad del Valle, Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
Universidad Tecnológico del Chocó, Quibdó, Chocó, Colombia
Diaspora Connect
“Diaspora Connect” reflects the desire at Howard University, Universidad del Valle, and Universidad Tecnológica del Chocó to support and uplift students of African descent in pursuing and completing higher education while providing them with a transformative international experience. In this exchange program, students will be able to explore the spectrum of Black identities beyond their own, through elements of dialogue and recognition of each other’s different historical backgrounds and current realities, to strengthen their leadership skills and build bridges across the diaspora.
Universidad de La Salle, Bogotá, Bogotá D.C, Colombia
Northwestern Michigan College, Traverse City, Michigan, United States
Bridging Waterways across the Americas: A Partnership for Collaboration between Universidad de La Salle, Northwestern Michigan College, the Teusacá River Basin Project, and the Inland Lakes Association
The “Bridging Waterways across the Americas” program will combine complementary areas of knowledge such as STEM and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) to engage students and faculty members from Universidad de La Salle and Northwestern Michigan College in a comparative study between the Teusacá Water Basin in Bogotá, Colombia and the Boardman River watershed in Michigan.
Universidad Santo Tomás Villavicencio, Villavicencio, Meta, Colombia
The University of Texas El Paso, El Paso, Texas, United States
Colombia-U.S. Transdisciplinary Study Abroad Program for Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene in the Orinoquía Region (OWASH)
This project aims to improve sanitary facilities in vulnerable communities in the Orinoquía, Colombia region. This collaboration between Universidad Santo Tomás Villavicencio and the University of Texas at El Paso will allow students and faculty from the U.S. and Colombia to learn from one of the most biodiverse regions in South America, collaborate with vulnerable communities, and learn new techniques through state-of-the-art equipment in the field of sanitation.
Universidad Nacional de Colombia – Sede Manizales, Manizales, Caldas, Colombia
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Edinburg, Texas, United States
Creating Diverse Scientific Communities in the Americas JUUNTOS: Joining UNAL Manizales and UTRGV in the Development of STEM Collaboration
In this virtual and in-person course, U.S. and Colombian students in mathematics will work in international research teams under the mentorship of program faculty coordinators to collaborate on research projects, which will be presented at academic conferences, and, ultimately, published as academic papers.
Tecnológico de Antioquia, Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia
Morehouse College, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Fundación Universitaria Juan N Corpas, Bogotá, Cundinamarca, Colombia
Universidad Antonio Nariño, Bogotá, Bogotá D.C., Colombia
Fundación Universidad de América, Bogotá, Cundinamarca, Colombia
Youth for Action: From the Classroom to the Community
“Youth for Action: From the Classroom to the Community” is an interdisciplinary program that will build professional learning and capacities of Colombian and U.S. students through collaborative work with local communities. This training program will strengthen global competencies and community engagement of U.S. and Colombian students through Service-Based Learning to contribute to the resolution of challenges with communities of African descent in Medellín and Bogotá, Colombia.
Des Moines University, Des Moines, Iowa, United States
Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Cundinamarca, Colombia
Fundación Universitaria Juan N. Corpas, Bogotá, Cundinamarca, Colombia
Sustainable Health Equity: Alliances for Public Health and Community Wellbeing Project
Through a hybrid student mobility framework, students will participate in experiential learning through interaction with local communities and health stakeholders. In the end, students will create and propose new policies and innovations to policymakers.
Universidad Católica de Manizales, Manizales, Caldas, Colombia
Florida International University, Miami, Florida, United States
Designing Alternative and Digital Strategies to Build U.S.- Colombia Multidisciplinary Intercultural Identities
This academic training program will strengthen creative and cultural industries education knowledge through faculty and student intercultural learning engagement experiences, that will result in the design of alternative and digital strategies to build U.S.-Colombia multidisciplinary intercultural identities.
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100,000 Strong in the Americas Innovation Fund is the public-private sector collaboration between the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and Partners of the Americas working with companies, foundations, regional government entities, and academic networks in the United States and the rest of the Western Hemisphere to create innovative partnerships that result in new models of regional exchange and training programs. The Innovation Fund is the trusted USG-branded mechanism between governments, businesses, foundations, and academia to support this hemispheric-wide education initiative to build partnerships, strengthen institutional capacity, and increase access for underserved students to innovative academic exchange programs. As of June 2021, the 100K Innovation Fund has awarded 253 grants (average $25,000 each) to 504 higher education institutions working in teams 25 countries and 49 U.S. States. Currently, over 2,300 higher education institutions have joined the Innovation Network – including 1,300 universities and colleges in the United States.
JOIN the Network and LEARN more: www.100kstrongamericas.org
The mission of Partners of the Americas is to connect people and organizations across borders to serve and to change lives through lasting partnerships. These partnerships create opportunity, foster understanding, and solve real-life problems. Inspired by President Kennedy and founded in 1964, under the Alliance for Progress, Partners is a non-profit, non-partisan organization with international offices in Washington, DC. Learn more at www.partners.net or via Twitter @partnersamerica.
The Instituto Colombiano de Crédito Educativo y Estudios Técnicos en el Exterior, Mariano Ospina Pérez (ICETEX) is a Colombian public entity that promotes higher education through the granting of educational loans and its collection (with its own resources or from third parties) to populations with few economic opportunities and good academic performance. Within the framework of its Educational Cooperation Policy (Agreement 001/2019), ICETEX promotes the development of internationalization of higher education to improve quality, relevance, equity, research, and innovation through the expansion of mechanisms linked to government entities, higher education institutions abroad or in Colombia. This is how ICETEX implements three development axes in which Colombian citizens, teachers, researchers, national and international experts can strengthen their academic and professional training and receive support through axes such as: a) ICETEX International, in which ICETEX, as a pioneering entity in higher education internationalization, participates in international spaces as a tool for creating new opportunities for Colombians, foreigners, and higher education institutions; b) partnerships for internationalization, in which ICETEX manages cooperation initiatives to strengthen the internationalization of higher education in Colombia; c) regional cooperation, in which ICETEX manages and strengthens international cooperation programs among the regions in order to generate greater opportunities for access and equity to higher education institutions in the Colombian regions.
Press contact: Rachel Falek | rfalek@partners.net