The launch event of the 100,000 Strong in the Americas Innovation Fund with Secretary Kerry and Vice President Joe Biden will be live-streamed on Friday, starting at 2:45 pm (EST) on state.gov.

The government funding seeks to strengthen the capacity of universities in the Americas to send and receive study abroad students.

“Our goal is to provide “wholesale” institutional support for innovative ideas”, explains the Americas-focused foundation, which was set up in 2011 after the success of the original 100,000K platform focusing on China.

Business donors are also being sought for the Innovation Fund, which will award grants to universities

Business donors are also being sought for the Innovation Fund, which will award grants to universities who can make a strong case for how they will use the funds to make systemic changes to embed study abroad into the curriculum, for example.

The launch event will also recognise the recipients of the initial Innovation Fund grant competition, as well as the fund’s initial donors, including Founding Circle members ExxonMobil and Santander Universities and Contributing Partners The Coca-Cola Foundation, The Freeport-McMoRan Cooper & Gold Foundation and the Ford Foundation.

The latest investment complements a range international of educational initiatives supported by the US government to promote overseas study in the United States and outbound mobility for US students. These include the Fulbright Program, the flagship international educational exchange programme which aims to increase mutual understanding between the US and other countries. 

Both 100,000 Strong initiatives were launched by US President Obama and are supported by the US Department of State.

The Department of State has also established a public-private partnership with NAFSA, the world’s largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education, and Partners of the Americas, a leading voluntary and development agency, to support the “vision first expressed by President Obama” to promote international education exchange.