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Main | RI Foundation | RI Polio Plus | RI Alumni Relations | Object of Rotary

THE ROTARY FOUNDATION


The Rotary Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation that supports the efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs.

The Foundation's Humanitarian Programs fund international Rotary club and district projects designed to improve the quality of life. Providing health care, clean water, food, education, and housing are a few of the basic goals that these projects work toward -- primarily in the developing world. One of the key humanitarian programs is PolioPlus, which seeks to eradicate the polio virus worldwide by the year 2000.

Through its Educational Programs the Foundation provides funding for about 1200 students to study abroad each year. Grants are also awarded to university teachers to teach in developing countries and for exchanges of business and professional people. In all cases, recipients are expected to act as ambassadors of goodwill, furthering international understanding and promoting friendly relations between their host and sponsoring countries. Former participants in the Foundation's educational programs often continue their affiliation with Rotary as Foundation Alumni.

The Rotary Foundation is supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share its vision of a better world. Contributions to the Foundation's Annual Programs Fund are invested for three years, with interest being used to cover all administrative costs. Fully 100 percent of every dollar donated goes directly to humanitarian and educational program expenditures three years later. Gifts to the Foundation's Permanent Fund are invested, with only the earnings being used to support programs(See Foundation Support.).

The Rotary Foundation is governed by 13 Trustees -- four of whom are past RI Presidents -- who were appointed by the current President of RI and confirmed by the Board of Directors.

The Foundation was conceived as an endowment fund in 1917 by Rotary's sixth president, Arch C. Klumph, "for the purpose of doing good in the world." Although The Rotary Foundation was formally established in 1928, significant contributions were not received until 1947, when the death of Rotary founder Paul Harris generated an outpouring of support. Since that time, The Foundation's nine programs have been established, and cumulative contributions have reached about US$825 million

Foundation Support
The Rotary Foundation is supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share its vision of a better world. The financial support the Foundation receives today will help secure many better tomorrows for people all over the world, assisted through the Foundation's many humanitarian and educational programs.  

Humanitarian Grants Programs
The Rotary Foundation's Humanitarian Programs support a wide range of international service activities, from exploratory missions through finished projects. Humanitarian grants are used by Rotary clubs and districts worldwide to combat hunger, disease, ignorance, and poverty. Designed to bring clubs together in an international partnership, these six programs also foster and nurture an understanding between different cultures.  

Educational Programs
The Rotary Foundation Educational Programs promote international understanding through scholarships, grants and cultural exchanges.

The Ambassadorial Scholarships program sponsors more than 1,200 scholars each year to study in a country other than their own. It is the largest and most international privately sponsored scholarship program in the world.

The Foundation's Group Study Exchange (GSE) program sponsors international exchanges of teams of non-Rotarian men and women in the early stages of their business and professional careers. Participants spend four to six weeks studying the institutions and culture of the host country while exchanging vocational information with the local representatives of their particular professions.

Rotary Grants for University Teachers are awarded to university or college faculty members to teach in a developing nation for three to ten months. These grants enable teachers to share their expertise in a part of the world where it is most needed.

Participants in the Foundation's educational programs often continue their affiliation with Rotary long after they've returned home as Foundation Alumni.

Ambassadorial Scholarships
The Rotary Foundation's oldest and best-known program is Ambassadorial Scholarships, established in 1947. Since that time, nearly 30,000 young people from 100 nations have studied abroad under its auspices. The primary objective of the scholarships program is to promote international understanding as the scholars are expected to serve as ambassadors of goodwill during the term of their scholarships. Three types of scholarships are currently available:
  • Academic-Year Ambassadorial Scholarship. Candidates may be of any age as long as they have completed two years of university study or appropriate professional experience prior to the commencement of the scholarship. This award provides funding for transportation, tuition, fees, room and board and limited language training (as assigned by The Rotary Foundation) up to a specified financial limit for one academic year of full-time study in another country. In 1999-2000, no award will exceed US$23,000.
  • Multi-Year Ambassadorial Scholarship. Either a two- or three-year award, this scholarship is intended to help defray the costs of degree-oriented study in another country. This scholarship provides a flat grant of US$11,000 per year. Eligibility requirements for Multi-Year Ambassadorial Scholarships are the same as those for Academic-Year Ambassadorial Scholarships, with the additional requirement that a candidate must be committed to the pursuit of specific academic degree.
  • Cultural Ambassadorial Scholarship. This scholarship may be either a three- or six-month award for intensive language training and cultural immersion in another country. Applications will be considered for candidates interested in studying Arabic, English, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swahili or Swedish. Eligibility requirements for Cultural Ambassadorial Scholarships are the same as those for Academic-Year Ambassadorial Scholarship, with the additional requirement that candidates have at least one year of university level training or equivalent experience in their proposed language. This award provides tuition and fees, reasonable room and board (usually homestay accommodations) and the cost of round-trip transportation up to a designated limit.
Group Study Exchange
Since its inception in 1965, the Group Study Exchange program has provided grants for countless teams of men and women in the early stages of their business and professional careers to travel abroad and share vocational information with the representatives of their respective professions in another country. Team members spend four to six weeks studying the host country's institutions, economy, and culture, while observing how their own professions are practiced abroad. More than 500 exchanges between paired Rotary districts occur each year, advancing the program's ultimate goal of promoting international understanding and goodwill.

Rotary districts select teams comprising four non-Rotarians and one Rotarian leader, engaged in different businesses and professions. Each of two paired districts sends and receives a team for a four- to six-week study program. Pairings are usually determined by The Rotary Foundation's trustees to ensure wide geographical distribution, but exchanges can also be arranged by the participating districts.

While visiting abroad, GSE team members follow a carefully planned itinerary, including visits to government and cultural institutions, schools, religious and historic sites and other points of interest. In addition, each member spends at least five days studying and observing the practice of his or her profession in the host district.

The Foundation grant funds round-trip air transportation for each team member. Rotarians provide lodging in their homes, meals, and group travel, allowing the opportunity for participants to become acquainted with the customs and culture of the people in their host district.

ELIGIBILITY
Applicants must be employed full-time, with a minimum of two-years experience, in a recognized business or profession. In addition, candidates should have some proficiency in the language of the country to which they intend to travel, must be exemplary in their business or professional conduct, enthusiastic about their vocations, and capable of deriving maximum educational value from the program. After their study abroad, participants are expected to speak about their experiences at Rotary meetings and other civic functions.

Rotary Grants for University Teachers
"I open my apartment twice a month and invite all my students to visit, talk, and have a picnic on the floor. They come and are so pleased that a professor is interested enough to open his apartment and want to know what they think... They have requested that we have class on those occasions, can you believe that, class on Sunday?...This is teaching heaven!"
--Dr. Mel Weissman, 1998-99 Grant for University Teachers recipient, on teaching in Russia

Grants for University Teachers provides funds to higher education faculty to travel abroad to teach at colleges or universities in developing countries. The program is intended to build international understanding and foster development, while strengthening higher education in these regions. The subjects taught must be relevant to the needs of the local population and contribute to the areas' socio-economic development. A total of 40 grants have been awarded to university teachers for service in 24 countries in 1998-99.

Developing countries are currently defined as countries with a per capita GNP of US$6,375 or less. The list of those designated as low-income countries is fairly extensive.

Types of grants
Districts may elect to award a grant of US$10,000 for three to five months of service or a grant of US$20,000 for six to ten months of service. Funding may be used for living expenses, round-trip transportation and for other expenses related to teaching and research in the host country.

Eligibility

  • Applicants must hold (or if retired, have held) a full-time college or university appointment at any rank for three or more years
  • The subject(s) taught must have practical use to the host country.
  • The proposed host institution must be located in a low-income country.
  • The applicant’s home and host countries must contain at least one Rotary club. (Currently, there are Rotary clubs in more than 155 countries.)
  • Application must be made through a local Rotary club in the applicant’s legal or permanent residence, or place of full-time employment.
  • Applicants must be proficient in the language of their prospective host country.
  • Applicants may be either Rotarians or non-Rotarians.
How to apply
The availability and types of University Teacher grants are determined by each Rotary district and vary from year to year. Applicants should contact their local Rotary club or district to determine the availability of grants for the current year and to request an application. The deadline to apply for 1999-2000 grants has already passed; the deadlines for 2000-2001 awards will be set by the individual clubs between March and August 1999. Not all districts will offer University Teacher Grants. If you are informed that the district is not offering Grants for University Teacher, you may wish to inquire again next year.

For answers to specific questions about the Grants for University Teachers program, you may contact our Educational Programs staff.

1998-99 Rotary Low Income Countries and Geographical Areas*
(as of October 1998)

Albania Grenada Pakistan
Algeria Guadeloupe Palau
Angola Guatemala Panama
Armenia Guinea Papua New Guinea
Bahrain Guinea-Bissau Paraguay
Bangladesh Guyana Peru
Barbados Haiti Philippines
Belarus Honduras Poland
Belize Hungary Romania
Benin India Russian Federation
Bolivia Indonesia Rwanda
Botswana Isle of Man St. Kitts & Nevis
Brazil Jamaica St. Lucia
Bulgaria Jordan St. Vincent/ Grenadines
Burkina Faso Kazakhstan São Tomé & Principe
Burundi Kenya Samoa
Cambodia Latvia Senegal
Cameroon Lebanon Serbia
Cape Verde Lesotho Sierra Leone
Central African Rep. Lithuania Slovak Rep.
Chad Macedonia, FYR Solomon Islands
Chile Madagascar South Africa
Colombia Malawi Sri Lanka
Comoros Malaysia Sudan
Congo, Rep Mali Suriname
Congo, Dem. Rep Malta Swaziland
Costa Rica Mauritania Tanzania
Côte d'Ivoire Mauritius Thailand
Croatia Mayotte Togo
Czech Republic Mexico Tonga
Djibouti Micronesia, Fed. Sts. Trinidad & Tobago
Dominica Moldova Tunisia
Dominican Republic Mongolia Turkey
Ecuador Morocco Uganda
Egypt Mozambique Ukraine
El Salvador Namibia Uruguay
Eritrea Nepal Vanuatu
Estonia Nicaragua Venezuela
Ethiopia Niger Zambia
Fiji Nigeria Zimbabwe
Gabon    
Gambia    
Georgia    
Ghana    
Gibraltar    

*per World Bank Atlas, GNP per capita is estimated from $3116 to $9635

Return to Grants for University Teachers

* per World Bank Atlas, GNP per capita is estimated from $3116 to $9635 1998-99 Rotary Low Income Countries and Geographical Areas 22 June 1998

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