The Istanbul skyline provided the perfect backdrop to a memorable evening, when American students who are living and studying in Istanbul met members of a TCA-sponsored Congressional delegation. Of the students, who are recipients of the TCA Study Abroad in Turkey Minority Scholarship program, Alaina Hanks and Shenetta Payne were invited to participate at a farewell dinner on April 2, hosted by Bahcesehir University in honor of the delegation.
Shenetta, a junior at Arkansas State University, and Alaina, a junior at South Dakota State University, are enrolled in Bahcesehir University, and are among the 44 minority students who have received the TCA scholarship since the program's inception.
Each year, TCA provides up to 100 scholarships to African American, Hispanic American and Native American students who choose Turkey as their study abroad destination. TCA's efforts to expand educational exchanges between Turkey and the US have led Bahcesehir University and Istanbul Technical University to also extend scholarship opportunities to students of African American, Hispanic American and Native American heritage. Additionally, TCA offers scholarships to American students of Armenian descent who are accepted to a study abroad program in Turkey.
