News & Events

News and Events

January 26, 2024

In memoriam: IIE-SRF / Cara scholar Wiesam Essa

With great sadness, Cara (the Council for At-Risk Academics) and IIE’s Scholar Rescue Fund (IIE-SRF) recently learned that Cara / IIE-SRF fellow Dr. Wiesam Essa was killed in Gaza. Wiesam was an extraordinary academic who was committed to improving conditions in the Gaza Strip, a dedicated father and spouse, and a kind man. From 2019-2021, he completed fellowships at the University of Manchester, achieving great success in his research that utilized urbanization mapping to address environmental challenges in Gaza. He subsequently returned home and to his position at Al-Aqsa University. Cara and IIE-SRF were in the process of securing him a further placement in the UK when the tragic news arrived. His wife, though injured, survived the bombing, as did their four children. We send our deepest condolences to Wiesam’s family and to the academic community in Gaza.

January 26, 2024

Stanford presented with IIE Centennial Medal for supporting endangered scholars

Stanford University
By Stefanie Pietkiewicz
Three people stand holding a medal and certificate

IIE presented Stanford University with its Centennial Medal, which honors institutions and individuals who have made unique and powerful contributions to international education. Stanford’s contributions include collaborating with IIE and the IIE Scholar Rescue Fund to provide a safe academic for scholars since the WWII era through today, hosting scholars from Afghanistan, China, Turkey, Ukraine, and Venezuela in recent years.

November 29, 2023

Cornell profiles IIE-SRF alumnus’ journey from Turkey to Cornell to Florida State

Cornell Chronicle
By Fatima Faizi

The Cornell Chronicle presents an article and short video about IIE-SRF alumnus Azat Gündoğan, who undertook his fellowship at Cornell and now works as an assistant teaching professor at Florida State University.

November 8, 2023

Cornell receives IIE Centennial Medal for hosting threatened scholars

Cornell University

IIE CEO Allan Goodman presented the IIE Centennial Medal, which honors individuals and institutions that have made important contributions to international education, to Cornell University on October 20, 2023. The award honors Cornell’s robust and long-standing tradition of hosting displaced and threatened scholars in partnership with IIE-SRF, as well as the university’s involvement with Fulbright, Gilman and other IIIE-administered State Department Programs.

October 18, 2023

IIE-SRF Alumni Impact: Updates to the 2021 Alumni Impact Study

By IIE-SRF staff

In 2020, IIE’s evaluation team conducted an online survey of IIE-SRF alumni to learn about their post-fellowship experiences, achievements, and impact. The results were published in 2021 in a report titled To Rescue Scholars Is to Rescue the Future. In early 2023, IIE conducted a follow-up survey of 574 IIE-SRF alumni who completed the fellowship between 2003 and 2021. This update report contains the key findings of the follow-up survey.  

October 3, 2023

The Royal Society of Canada awards membership to alumnus Kifah Gharzeddin of Syria

Carleton University

Dr. Kifah Ghazeddin, who undertook his IIE-SRF fellowship in 2020-22, is a biologist at Carleton University in Canada. Noted for his contributions to research on enhancing food production in the face of poverty, he has been welcomed as one of the 2023 new members of the Royal Society of Canada, the country’s highest academic honor.

August 14, 2023

Fellow Nasiruddin Nezaami Reflects on Afghanistan Two Years After Taliban Takeover

Stanford Lawyer
By Monica Schreiber

Nezaami was interviewed by his host Stanford University Law School about leaving Afghanistan to come to Stanford on an IIE-SRF fellowship and his worries for and efforts to give back to those still left behind.

August 13, 2023

The PIE News looks at IIE-SRF as one way the international education sector can assist Yemen

The PIE News
By Viggo Stacey

IIE-SRF Director James R. King spoke with the outlet about the program’s efforts to support Yemeni scholars since the outbreak of war in 2014.

July 14, 2023

IIE-SRF host partner in Germany shares about their work hosting threatened scholars

Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law

The Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law profiles three displaced researchers who have found the opportunity to continue their work in safety on campus and highlights the Institute’s partnership with IIE-SRF.

June 30, 2023

IIE-SRF alumna receives L’Oréal-UNESCO medal of honor for women scientists

UNESCO

Dr. Marycelin Baba of Nigeria received the L’Oréal-UNESCO medal of honor for women scientists. This medal recognizes her scientific achievements despite facing conditions that forced her to temporarily leave her home country. Dr. Baba undertook IIE-SRF fellowships in South Africa and Kenya but has since returned to Nigeria, where her work has contributed to nearly eradicating polio in the country.