FY2021, Q1 Progress Report: Lincoln Scholarship Program

The program began on August 28, 2019, and is set to conclude on August 27, 2024, with a total award amount of $19,000,000. The program's primary objective is to provide educational opportunities to Burmese students, with a focus on conflict resolution and leadership development. The program is divided into three cohorts, with each cohort consisting of a group of students who undergo academic preparation, leadership training, and placement in universities abroad. Cohort 1, which began in 2019, has made significant progress in its first semester. The cohort has undergone English language preparation, GRE preparation, and academic placement. The program has also established a Foundations of Conflict Resolution Course, which has been well-received by the students. Additionally, the program has launched a monthly bulletin, the LSP Monthly Bulletin, to keep stakeholders informed about program activities. Cohort 2, which began in 2020, has also made progress in its pre-academic training. The cohort has undergone English language preparation, GRE preparation, and academic placement. The program has also conducted key informant interviews (KII) to assess the effectiveness of the program. Furthermore, the program has established a cohort 2 townhall and group mentoring sessions to provide support to the students. The program has also made progress in its alumni network research, with a focus on identifying and mapping contacts for outreach and recruitment. The program has also established a Lincoln Scholarship Program Facebook page to engage with stakeholders and promote the program's activities. In terms of monitoring and evaluation, the program has established a monitoring and evaluation table to track progress and identify areas for improvement. The program has also conducted USAID/Burma field visits to assess the effectiveness of the program. Additionally, the program has submitted an expenditure summary and environmental compliance reporting to USAID. The program's priorities for the next reporting period include Cohort 2 pre-academic training, placement, leadership blueprint workshop, foundations of conflict course, end of semester cohort 1 scholar town hall with IIE and USAID, preparations for and launching of Cohort 3 outreach and recruitment, implementing social media strategy, mentoring, alumni network research, and MEL activities.