American University in Kosovo Receives $400,000 Grant

The American University in Kosovo Foundation has received a grant that will change the landscape of its campus.

The United States Agency for International Development’s American Schools and Hospitals Abroad Program awarded $400,000 to the foundation to begin construction of a state-of-the-art library and a 230-student residence hall on the University’s Germia Campus, located in Pristina, Kosovo.

“Both the modern library and the dormitory will allow our students to become immersed in the American collegiate experience,” says Robert Curtis, dean of American University in Kosovo. “American University in Kosovo will become a home for students throughout the region and greatly enhance their classroom activities.”

In addition to traditional features, the library will also develop extensive online resources.

“The new facilities will create a space where students from across the globe can live and learn from each other,” says James Myers, director of the RIT Center for Multidisciplinary Studies. “It will be a safe, multicultural environment that will enrich both social and academic life at American University in Kosovo.”

The facilities will provide affordable housing for students and additional student-employment opportunities. They will also create jobs and training opportunities for Kosovo professionals.

American University in Kosovo, a partner university of Rochester Institute of Technology, is in its third-year of existence and currently offers degrees in entrepreneurship and business development and management and policy. It will soon offer an information and media technology degree.

The American Schools and Hospitals Abroad program funds institutes that promote civil society development and foster interchange, mutual understanding and favorable relations with the United States.

Louis Sell, executive director of the American University in Kosovo Foundation and William Walker, the foundation’s chairman of the board, are proud that the university was able to obtain this exclusive grant.

“We’re honored,” Sell says. “We’re one of just 40 universities and hospitals to receive this award out of 86 applicants.”