Deadline: 27-Jul-23
The U.S. Embassy in India announces an open competition for organizations to submit applications to carry out a program to enhance student mobility to the U.S. from four cities of India’s Northeast – Itanagar, Shillong, Dimapur, and Imphal.
Project Goal
- The project goal is to increase student mobility to the U.S. from the northeastern states of India by promoting U.S. higher education, highlighting student exchange opportunities, and building strategic partnerships. As this programming is happening in a geopolitically strategic location, awareness raising is a successful result in this case as Consulate Kolkata is trying to establish a U.S. footprint in the northeast at this nascent stage.
- The project is expected to advance this goal by:
- Highlighting the prospect of a wholesome U.S. university education, culture, opportunities for income, jobs, and professional development which will increase their employment prospects when the students return.
Program Objective
- By late 2024, Consulate Kolkata, in collaboration with EducationUSA and the grantee will significantly boost student engagement in Northeast India and establish connections with 3,000 emerging young leaders through USA Road Shows, “Experience America” fairs, and other cultural and media outreach initiatives resulting in an increased number of students applying to U.S. universities, at least 30 nominees for U.S. exchange programs, and overall increased awareness among young leaders about U.S. culture and values.
Funding Information
- Length of performance period: Not to exceed 18 months
- Number of awards anticipated: 1 award
- Award amounts: awards may range from a minimum of $60,000 to a maximum of $80,000
- Total available funding: $80,000
Project Deliverables
- The recipient must be prepared to work closely across Itanagar, Shillong, Dimapur, and Imphal to implement various public diplomacy programs during the performance period, leverage the network of EducationUSA in colleges and universities, and build upon past engagements to the four cities to maximize the scope of outreach, knowledge sharing and ensure that they have an informed cohort of student community aware of the services and tools, generating interest in them about U.S. and its higher education opportunities. The recipient should be able to build a connection with local media outlets, create synergy between media influencers, university management, and student communities, and use media effectively to highlight U.S. programs in the region. The project recipient must highlight the benefits of a stronger U.S. collaboration in these cities, and should be able to achieve the following outcomes:
- Increase U.S. engagements in Northeast India by promoting higher education in the U.S. among university-age students and youth leaders.
- Engage with young audiences in select cities of northeast India to build lasting ties through exchanges, cultural programs, EducationUSA fairs, “Experience America Road Shows,” and partnerships.
- Expand educational, professional, scientific, technological, and technical exchange opportunities to build partnerships in areas of shared focus.
- Support democratic values that acknowledge the importance of youth in leadership roles in northeast India as a key strategic connector to the success of the Indo-Pacific vision.
- Highlight the importance of diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion on U.S. campuses
Priority Region: Northeast India with a focus on the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, and Manipur
Project Audience(s)
- Primary audience: College and university students aged between 19-21 years from the northeast cities of Itanagar, Shillong, Dimapur, and Imphal, in their second or final year of a bachelor’s program, looking to pursue master’s or PhD degrees, but lack information regarding resources, means, and opportunities.
- Young emerging leaders who have a voice and influence in their communities, and who qualify for various U.S. government exchange opportunities.
- Secondary audience: Parents of students, administrators, counsellors of key educational institutes, media professionals, and influencers are secondary audiences who can facilitate engagement with the primary audience.
Eligibility Criteria
- The following organizations are eligible to apply:
- Not-for-profit organizations, including think tanks and civil society/non-governmental organizations.
- Public and private educational institutions
- Public International Organizations and Governmental institutions
For more information, visit Grants.gov.