On January 24, the Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) announced a nationwide campaign with the Turkish American community to raise funds not less than $100,000 to help alleviate the devastation throughout the Philippines caused by Typhoon Haiyan. Every dollar contributed as part of this campaign until Friday, February 28 will be matched by TCA, doubling the impact of Turkish American support all across the country. For more information on this initiative and to contribute to our relief efforts please click here.

20 students from the Graduate School of Social Sciences and the Global MBA Program at Bahcesehir University in Istanbul, Turkey arrived to Washington, D.C. for a two week visit. On January 28, TCA hosted the group at its D.C. office and arranged for visits to Capitol Hill and Congressional offices.

The Congressional Caucus on US-Turkey Relations and Turkish Americans stands at 144 Members and represents 41 of the 50 states and all six territories. In July 2013, its membership expanded to include members of the US Senate alongside members of the US House of Representatives, making it the third largest bicameral, ethnic/national caucus in Congress. Many of its members have joined the Caucus as a result of the efforts of their Turkish American constituents and friends of Turkey. To see the full list of members, please visit the TCA website.

A new book, Ottomans and Armenians: A Study in Counterinsurgency, published Dr. Edward Erickson, Professor of Military History at the Marine Corps Command and Staff College, is now available. Published by Palgrave Macmillian, the book provides for a military history of the Ottoman army and counterinsurgency campaigns waged against Armenian rebels between 1878-1915. Professor Erickson will discuss his book on February 5 at the Institute of Turkish Studies at Georgetown University. To RSVP for this event, please click here.

In January, TCA awarded two Study Abroad scholarships for students of African American, Hispanic American and Native American heritage. The students who received TCA scholarships and will study in Turkey come from San Diego State University. The total number of TCA Study Abroad in Turkey Scholarships awarded to American minority students has now reached 321 since the program's inception in 2008.

On January 14, the American Friends of Turkey (AFOT) hosted the fourth lecture as part of its 2013-2014 Embassy Lecture Series. A discussion on "The Founding of Robert College: 150 Years of Excellence in Education" with the participation of Prof. Edward Widmer of Brown University was followed by a special exhibition. The lecture series will continue to feature leading scholars on Turkey. All lectures are held at the Turkish Embassy in Washington DC. AFOT is a multi-year recipient of TCA grants that support the organization's institutional growth and speaker program. For more information on AFOT, upcoming lecture topics and dates, please click here.