Extended Deadline for Western Union Scholarship

The Western Union Family Scholarship Program helps immigrant/migrant fathers and sons, mothers and daughters and brothers and sisters move up the economic development ladder through education. Scholarships can be used for college tuition, language acquisition, technical training and GED classes, with two family members receiving a scholarship to help achieve the type of education they need in order to create a brighter future for their entire family.

Eligibility requirements:
All applicants for scholarships must be age 18 or older.
Both applicants are members of the same family.
Applicants must have been in the United States for 7 years or less.
Both applicants must have been born outside of the United States.
Both applicants must be living in the United States currently.
Applicants must reside in one of the following U.S. locations: Los Angeles, California; San Francisco, California; Denver, Colorado; Chicago, Illinois; New York, New York; Washington, DC; Miami, Florida
The educational institutions for both of the family members must be in the United States.
The application must include educational institutions for both the primary and secondary award recipients (the two family members).
Scholarships may be used for tuition for college/university education, language acquisition classes, technical/skill training, and/or financial literacy.
Scholarships may not be used for advanced degrees (such as Masters, PhD).
Scholarships will only be made to nonprofit accredited higher education institutions and nonprofit training/educational providers.
Western Union employees, Western Union Agents and dependents are not eligible to apply for these scholarships.

Process for Selection

Scholarship recipients are determined in a selection process independently managed by the Institute of International Education (IIE), an international non-profit educational exchange organization. All scholarship awards will be paid directly to the educational providers. No payments will be made to individuals.

Timeline

August 27, 2012: Application open and available
October 19, 2012: Application due date
November 26 - 30, 2012: Notifications made

Contact Information

For questions related to this scholarship program, please contact the administering organization, Institute of International Education (IIE) by phone, fax, or e-mail at:

Institute of International Education
1400 K St. NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20005
Tel: (202)326-7861
Fax: (202)326-7696
Email: wufoundation@iie.org

Institutions, Party Politics, and Private Sector Development in Africa

What: "Institutions, Party Politics, and Private Sector Development in Africa" lecture by Anne Pitcher

When: Tuesday, October 23, 2012, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM  

Where: 620 Library Place, Conference Room Evanston, IL 60201

For more information please contact Kate Dargis at 847-491-7323 or african-studies@northwestern.edu.

 

Professor Anne Pitcher from the University of Michigan will be holding a lecture on October 23rd discussing, "Institutions, Party Politics, and Private Sector Development in Africa." Drawing on the theory developed in her recent book, Party Politics and Economic Reform in Africa's Democracies, Anne Pitcher offers an explanation for the different outcomes of neoliberal economic reforms adopted by African countries over the last two decades. Pitcher argues that patterns of private sector development depend not only on the kinds of institutional arrangements adopted by states in order to create or expand their private sectors, but also on the nature of party system competition and the quality of democracy in particular countries. After discussing the institutional choices made by African governments to create or expand their private sectors, the lecture will demonstrate how party politics shaped the privatization process in Mozambique and Zambia. 

Property and Political Order in Africa: Land Rights and the Structure of Politics

What: Property and Political Order in Africa: Land Rights and the Structure of Politics

When: Tuesday, October 23, 2012, 4:30 - 6:00 PM  

Where: Roberta Buffett Center for International and Comparative Studies -1902 Sheridan Road 

Evanston, IL 60208

For more information you can contact Elizabeth Morrissey at e-morrissey@northwestern.edu

Dr. Catherine Boone of the University of Texas- Austin will be talking about "Property and Political Order in Africa: Land Rights and the Structure of Politics" at Northwestern University. This lecture is part of the EDGS Speaker Series on Property Rights, Power, and the Rule of Law. Boone specializes in comparative politics, with an emphasis on theories of political economy and economic development. She has conducted research on industrial, commercial, and land tenure policies in West Africa and East Africa, with research funding from the Social Science Research Council, Fulbright, the World Bank, and the Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the University of Texas. Her current research focuses on territorial politics and rural property rights in contemporary Africa.

Chinese in Africa, African Responses

What: "The Chinese in Africa, African Responses" Lecture By Yoon Jung Park

When: Thursday, October 18, 2012 from 6-7 PM  

Where: DePaul University, Arts and Letters Hall, 2315 N. Kenmore Ave., Room 410, Chicago, IL

For more information please call Kate Dargis at (847) 491-7323 or african-studies@northwestern.edu

                

Dr. Yoon Jung Park will be discussing "Chinese in Africa, African Responses." Recent headlines from Africa would lead readers to believe that Africa has a huge problem with Chinese workers, traders and criminals. Kenya, Malawi, Zambia and Angola have recently featured in articles covering incidents involving Chinese in their midst. Based on both quantitative and qualitative research in southern Africa carried out over several years, Dr Park argues, however, that African responses to Chinese migrants are wide-ranging, varying from country to country (and even within countries) and change rapidly in response to local circumstances. African perceptions of and responses to Chinese migrants must be seen as socially embedded and historically rooted. She illustrates some of the different responses with stories of encounters from Lesotho, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

Dr. Yoon Jung Park is currently a freelance researcher. She has affiliations with the Sociology Department at Rhodes University (Grahamstown, South Africa) and the African Studies Department at Howard University (Washington, DC). She also serves as the convener/coordinator of the Chinese in Africa/Africans in China (CA/AC) Research Network, an international network of scholars, researchers, graduate students, journalists, filmmakers and practitioners, which she helped to establish in 2007.

Widely considered an expert on Chinese in South Africa and Chinese migration in Africa, Dr Park is currently working on a new book on Chinese migrants in Africa for ZED books. She is the author of A Matter of Honour. Being Chinese in South Africa (Jacana/Lexington Books) and dozens of articles and book chapters in scholarly publications including Les Temps Modernes, African Studies, African & Asian Studies, Transformation, and the Journal of Chinese Overseas. Her current research interests include Chinese in southern Africa and perceptions of Chinese by local communities; migration; race, ethnicity and identity; race, class and power dynamics; affirmative action and Chinese South Africans; and xenophobia.

Between Heaven & Earth: Birds in Ancient Egypt

What: Gallery Talk: Between Heaven & Earth: Birds in Ancient Egypt

When: Wednesday, October 17 at 12:15 pm

Where: The Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago 

1155 East 58th Street Chicago, IL 60637

Price: Free

The University of Chicago's Oriental Institute will be holding a gallery talk entitled, "Between Heaven & Earth: Birds in Ancient Egypt" on Wednesday, October 17th. Exhibit curator Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer will show visitors how the millions of migratory birds that filled the skies every spring and fall influenced all aspects of ancient Egyptian life and culture.This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please call the Oriental Institute's Public Education Office at 773-702-9507. 

African Forum & Film Series 2012

The Kemetic Institute presents: "African Forum & Film Series 2012" - This film series will feature four films on African issues. 

What: The Gullah/Geechee Nation

When: October 12

Where: 700 East Oakwood Bvd. Chicago, IL 60653

Price: Free with a suggested donation of $5

TPS extended for Haitians

The Department Homeland Security (DHS) recently extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians for an additional 18 months. They also extended the suspension of certain requirements for F-1 nonimmigrant Haitian students.

The extension of TPS for Haiti will begin Jan. 23, 2013, and end July 22, 2014. DHS first designated Haiti for TPS on Jan. 21, 2010, after major earthquakes devastated the country.

Current Haitian TPS beneficiaries, who have continuously resided in the United States since Jan. 12, 2011, and seek to extend their TPS status, must re-register during the 60-day re-registration period that runs through Nov. 30, 2012, if they wish to maintain their TPS. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) encourages beneficiaries to re-register as soon as possible within the 60-day period. USCIS will accept applications starting now through Nov. 30, 2012. Individuals who have not continuously resided in the United States since Jan. 12, 2011, will not be eligible.

The 18-month extension also allows TPS re-registrants to apply for a new Employment Authorization Document (EAD). Eligible Haitian TPS beneficiaries who timely re-register will receive a new EAD, if requested, with an expiration date of July 22, 2014. USCIS recognizes that all re-registrants may not receive their new EADs until after their current EADs expire. Therefore, USCIS is extending currently valid TPS Haiti EADs bearing a Jan. 22, 2013, expiration date for an additional six months, through July 22, 2013.

DHS also suspended certain requirements for F-1 nonimmigrant Haitian students. The extension will enable these F-1 students to continue to obtain employment authorization, work an increased number of hours while school is in session, and reduce their course load, while maintaining their F-1 student status. The suspension of the regulatory requirements will remain in effect for an additional 18 months, through July 22, 2014.

For information on the TPS application process and eligibility requirements, go to www.uscis.gov/tps.