The work of Vassar Refugee Solidarity has led to the creation of a Consortium of like-minded Liberal Arts Colleges (Vassar, Bard/Annandale, Bard/Berlin, Bennington, and Sarah Lawrence Colleges) to utilize our respective institutional strengths.
- In December 2016, the Consortium received a $135,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to develop a robust course sequence, as well as a set of interventional practices, to educate students and allow them to be engaged actors in this unprecedented global challenge.
- In July 2018, the Consortium submitted a proposal to the Andrew W. Mellon foundation for a four year Implementation Grant. We are awaiting a decision by September 2018.
- For this purpose, Vassar College and Vassar Refugee Solidarity have also received a $20,000 grant from the Alliance for the Advancement of the Liberal Arts
Statement
The Consortium on Forced Migration, Displacement and Education, currently comprised of Vassar, Bard (Annandale and Berlin), Bennington, and Sarah Lawrence colleges is committed to social justice, the dignity of all people, and the education of global, engaged leaders. In December 2016, the Andrew M. Mellon Foundation awarded our consortium a one-year planning grant to develop an innovative curriculum in light of this worldwide “crisis,” to involve students in civic engagement both abroad and in our own communities in the U.S., and to explore how we can use the digital humanities as agents of change. Since receiving the grant, faculty members, administrators, and students from our colleges have met at four workshops to discuss the theory of forced migration and humanitarian aid, the role of institutions of higher education in confronting such a challenge, and how we can best implement our commitments to our liberal arts values. We have also partnered with the Council for European Studies which will feature the Consortium’s work on it digital platform EuropeNow. As we explore further collaborative opportunities, the Consortium will build on its robust national and international networks as well as its extensive alumnae/i base, and will expand to engage other like-minded institutions.
Members of the consortium can access the consortium’s worksite here.
