Washington, DC, December 16, 2015 –(PR.com)— The White House, U.S. Department of State, Partners of the Americas, and NAFSA: Association of International Educators announced eight new 100,000 Strong in the Americas Innovation Fund grants sponsored by Campus Puerto Rico to support university partnerships and new study abroad programs at an event with Vice President Joe Biden.

“We have to invest in the greatest natural resource we all have – in our people…this investment in our young minds is critically important,” Vice President Biden stated at the event. “It rests on exposure… exposure to culture, language, and politics of other countries. That’s how we’re going to build the closest ties that will cement the economic growth and stability of this hemisphere.”

The goal of 100,000 Strong in the Americas, President Obama’s signature education initiative in the Western Hemisphere, is to increase the number of U.S. students studying in the Western Hemisphere to 100,000, and the number of Western Hemisphere students studying in the United States to 100,000 by the year 2020. The initiative is aimed at enhancing hemispheric competitiveness, increasing prosperity, and preparing a more globally competent workforce.

The objective of the current competition, generously supported by the Department of State of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as part of the Campus Puerto Rico initiative, is to increase bi-directional collaboration in the Western Hemisphere and to increase study abroad opportunities involving Puerto Rico. The competition was open to higher education institutions (HEIs) in Puerto Rico, Latin America, Canada and the Caribbean. The University of Costa Rica was one of the institutions.

The Innovation Fund awards promote transnational institutional partnerships rather than direct scholarships. The announced awards are up to $25,000 each and will leverage commitments from the selected universities to increase student mobility, address institutional barriers that prevent students from studying abroad, and promote study between Puerto Rico and the Americas. It is expected that more than 85 students will study abroad between Puerto Rico and nine countries in Latin America and the Caribbean as a direct result of the eight grants.

An Innovation Fund grant was awarded to:

Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, Metro Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Partner: Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica
Project Title: “Partnership Model for Bridging Research in Biodiversity and Bio Prospecting between Puerto Rico and Costa Rica”

The program proposed will provide research experience for undergraduate and graduate students from Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, Metro Campus, and Universidad de Costa Rica to share knowledge and skills in specific fields and laboratory techniques in STEM subjects. Travel to the partnering country for field courses will introduce students to the different field methodologies in both countries and enable them to gain hands-on and research experience. The innovation of this program lies in the involvement of students and faculty in the exploration of the ecological potential of Puerto Rico and Costa Rica’s biodiversity through high-level scientific research based on bio prospection-guided research.

“Puerto Rico is aggressively seizing the economic benefits of growing study abroad,” said Steve Vetter, President and CEO of Partners of the Americas. “Campus Puerto Rico is an extraordinary public-private partnership bringing together government, all higher education institutions on the island and the private sector under one banner for a common purpose. With such a rich academic tradition, centrally located in the hemisphere, with a growing bilingual society, Puerto Rico can offer what few others can to students from Latin America who want to learn English and to North American students who want to learn Spanish in a university setting. The 100,000 Strong in the Americas Innovation Fund is proud to be their partner.”