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Contact: Kate Dixon, Wisconsin Alumni Association, (608) 265-8769, news@uwalumni.com; Masarah Van Eyck, Director of Communications, Division of International Studies, 608-262-5590, mvaneyck@international.wisc.edu
MADISON, Wis. – More students will be able to live and learn in other countries during their University of Wisconsin-Madison studies, thanks to a generous bequest from a Chicago-area alumnus.
The Chicago chapter of the Wisconsin Alumni Association (WAA) has created a $50,000 endowed scholarship for study-abroad experiences in honor of Robert “Bob” L. Rothschild, a 1932 UW-Madison graduate who spent his career in the publishing industry.
The Rothschild scholarship will encourage UW students from the Chicago area to participate in international experiences and gain an appreciation of other peoples and cultural differences, said Jon Graan, a member of the WAA’s Chicago chapter and a past chair of the national WAA Board of Directors.
“It truly has become a small world,” Graan said.
Graan said creating the study-abroad scholarship pays tribute to the many years Rothschild spent as an active member of the Chicago chapter’s scholarship committee.
Gilles Bousquet, dean of the Department of International Studies, said more than 1,600 UW students participate in 140 study abroad programs in 55 countries each year. Bousquet has said he hopes to annually increase participation by 10 percent over the next several years.
“Students who study abroad are much better prepared to work in a multicultural environment in the United States,” he said. “They also contribute to solving world issues – a responsibility for a global university.”
Bousquet added that students who have international experiences are also better prepared to serve the needs of their local communities and the state of Wisconsin.
“Financial assistance is important for more students to have international experiences,” Bousquet said. “This is good news.”
Participation and membership in the Wisconsin Alumni Association and its chapters are open to all alumni, students and friends of UW-Madison. More information about WAA’s chapters and student scholarships is available at uwalumni.com/chapters.
To learn more about UW-Madison’s Department of International Studies, visit http://www.international.wisc.edu/.
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