PRESS RELEASES 2007United States Gives $2.9 Million for Students Scholarships to American University of Beirut (AUB) and Lebanese American University (LAU)
May 31, 2007
 At a lunch in honor of a United States Congress delegation led by Senator Patrick Leahy, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Jeffrey D. Feltman presented checks totaling $2.9 million to American University Beirut and Lebanese American University. To American University Beirut Provost Peter Heath, Ambassador Feltman presented a check for $2,016,457.24. To Lebanese American University President Joseph Jabbra, Ambassador Feltman presented a check for $907,202. Both universities will use the funds for scholarship assistance. These funds are a gift from the American people, appropriated by the U.S. Congress, and administered through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID); Mission Director Raouf Youssef participated in the check presentation at the U.S. Ambassador’s residence in Awkar on May 31, 2007. Members of the Congressional Delegation included Senator Patrick Leahy (Democrat, Vermont); Senator Thad Cochran (Republican, Mississippi); Senator Chuck Hagel (Republican, Nebraska); Senator Ken Salazar (Democrat, Colorado); Senator Benjamin Cardin (Democrat, Maryland) and Congressman Peter Welch (Democrat, Vermont). In remarks at the luncheon, Ambassador Feltman noted that the United States had in the past ten years provided more than $64 million dollars to four American educational institutions in Lebanon: Lebanese American University, American University of Beirut, International College and the American Community School. He said: “These outstanding educational institutions, established by Americans more than a century ago, represent the enduring and long-term commitment of the United States to Lebanon and embody our belief in equal opportunity for all. Our support to American educational institutions also underscores the importance the United States accords to education and its role in promoting a democratic and economically prosperous Lebanon.”
The American University of Beirut (AUB) received $3 million this year to provide scholarship assistance to close to a thousand students enrolled at the university. The Lebanese American University (LAU) received $2.4 million this year to provide scholarship assistance to 265 undergraduate students. Without this assistance from the United States, Lebanese students with financial difficulties would not have been able to attend AUB or LAU to have access to American style education. The scholarship assistance is a gift from the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and is a component of the annual level of funding that USAID provides to American educational institutions in Lebanon. USAID’s assistance promotes the value of American education and teaching methods through its support to four educational institutions in Lebanon: the American University of Beirut (AUB), the Lebanese American University (LAU), the International College (IC) and the American Community School (ACS). The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has worked in Lebanon since 1951, funding development projects to benefit Lebanese citizens. USAID’s program promotes economic opportunities, job creation, good governance and environmental policies and practices in rural Lebanon. USAID provides $40 million assistance a year and works in partnership with U.S. and Lebanese organizations throughout the country. USAID strengthens the relationship between the people of Lebanon and the people of the United States, and promotes a shared vision of democracy and socio-economic development. For more information about USAID’s projects in Lebanon, visit USAID’s website www.usaidlebanon.org.lb.
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