Thank you to everyone who has generously supported our project!  Because of you, we're closer to providing more students with the transformative experience of studying abroad. We thought you might want to hear from more of the students who have benefited from studying abroad and why they think it's something every student should do. Financial limitations should NOT stop a student from experiencing a life and career-changing trip abroad.

Thank you again for all you have done and please continue to share and promote our project within your networks.  Together, we CAN reach our ambitious goal!

We want to thank everyone who has helped us achieve 30% of our fundraising goal! This is an important milestone and we hope you'll continue to share our project within your networks so we can close in on our $20,000 goal!  We thought you should hear directly from the kinds of students you're supporting by donating to Student Travel Grants!  We'll continue to feature more students as our campaign rolls on.  Thank you again and keep spreading the word!

"Hola! I’m Paroma ( http://blogs.cornell.edu/studyabroad/files/2014/07/Paroma-1h2i7la.jpg ) and I’m incredibly excited to spend my junior year in Santander, Spain at the University of Cantabria. High above Cayuga’s waters I study environmental engineering, while staying busy as a residential adviser and being a part of an engineering project team, two co-ed fraternities, and an Indian fusion dance team. While in Spain, I will be taking a few engineering and Spanish language classes. I am excited to see engineering in a whole new context while there, but studying is only one half of study abroad. Armed with my journal and camera, I hope to find as many adventures as possible in Cantabria and share them with you."

Follow Paroma's journey at http://blogs.cornell.edu/cuapc479/

Here's a look at another incredible student with an incredible opportunity to study abroad.  By supporting our project, you will give MORE students an opportunity to have an experience like the one Caroline is currently enjoying.  Thank you again for supporting and promoting this crucial initiative. 

Caroline Smith '16 – Rab, Croatia 

http://blogs.cornell.edu/studyabroad/files/2014/08/Caroline-2d6zoqq.jpg

"Hello! My name is Caroline, I am a senior in Landscape Architecture. I’ll be studying abroad in Rab, Croatia where I will be getting messy and working with locals! My program is unique in that I’ll be escaping the usual classroom setting to be part of a team designing and building a meditation garden for, and with, the residents of a mental hospital. Since the program only lasts a couple months, I will be spending another month traveling around Europe. I hope to write about the people I meet, social justice and the attitude toward mental illness in Croatia, my attempts to learn local cuisine (food is an excellent way to really connect with a place), and pieces of design I encounter. I invite you to join me. Adventure awaits!"

Follow Caroline's transformative trip at:  http://blogs.cornell.edu/cuaces345/

By supporting our project, you support Cornell's mission to send more student abroad so they can experience transformative learning in the field.  Meet Jennifer, a junior currently studying in Japan...

Jennifer Wang '16 – Kyoto, Japan

( http://blogs.cornell.edu/studyabroad/files/2014/07/Jennifer-2cw1aym.jpg )

"Hello! My name is Jennifer, and I’m a junior majoring in Applied Economics and Management with minors in Information Sciences and East Asian Studies. From September 2014 to May 2015, I’ll be trading the Ithaca scenery for the temples of Kyoto, Japan. There, I’ll be attending the Kyoto Consortium for Japanese Studies (KCJS), where I’m looking forward to studying Japanese language and literature. My free time will likely be filled with yummy food and tastes of Japanese culture – and the more than occasional gaijin moment. Regardless of where it takes me, I hope you’ll enjoy accompanying me on my Japan journey!"

Follow Jennifer's journey at:  http://blogs.cornell.edu/cuajw775/

Your support will benefit students like this who possess a passion for building relationships with international communities.  They simultaneously advance their own education and Cornell's mission of being a land grant institution to the world.  We thank you for your donations and we hope you'll continue to share our project within your networks.

http://bit.ly/1zw7FJD

A heartfelt THANK YOU to each and every one of you for your support for our Student Travel Grant project. Your generous contributions helped us to achieve 100% of our $20,000 goal!  Better still, you made it possible for Cornell students with limited means to head off on life-transforming study abroad experiences all over the world.

During the weeks the project ran we were moved by the stories our undergraduates shared about why Student Travel Grants are so important – and by donor comments too. Here’s what Cornell Hotel School alum Jay Treadwell said about why he gave:

People sometimes ask me what I wish I could do over again about my education and I always respond, “I wish I could have learned another language, lived in another country and learned another culture”. Obviously, if that is what I think, the least I can do is to help make it possible for today’s students to be able to do it. I guess you could call it vicarious education:-)  

And last but not least, a very special thank you to Martin Tang, whose generous finale gift made it possible to cross the finish line with just hours to go.

Thanks to you, Away They Go!