TCA matching fund raising campaign to benefit the Turkish earthquake victims and their families has concluded. TCA is grateful for the contributions to this effort and thanks every one of the many individual contributors.
TCA has decided to utilize the $120K collected through the campaign by supporting the Turkish Educational Foundation, www.tef-usa.org. Founded in 1969 in Berkeley, CA, the Turkish Educational Foundation is a 501 (c) (3) Public Charity organization dedicated to providing financial assistance and educational support to students in-need in Turkey.
After the devastating February 6th earthquake that hit southeast Turkey, TEF also launched a fundraising campaign to aid impacted students. Initial funds raised during this campaign were used for emergency aid for 130 scholars who were affected by the earthquake. After evaluating the requests from our partner organizations, TEF awarded an additional 100 scholarships to students from the earthquake region, bringing the total number of supported students to 230. The rest of the funds raised in this campaign will be allocated to our partner organizations based on their requests and students will be supported over the years until they graduate. TCA funds will enable TEF to double their efforts for this purpose.
The earthquake affected a vast area and millions of people. Many students lost their family members, homes, and all their belongings. TEF will prioritize its 2023-24 scholarships to the students most affected by the earthquake. Providing financial and psychological support as well as educational materials for students who were impacted by this tragedy is crucial to get them back to normalcy, help them heal, and become resilient and productive individuals. 100% of donations go towards TEF scholarships and educational support based on need and merit. With the GuideStar seal of transparency, TEF shares financial statements, scholarships, and progress reports with its members.
TEF dispenses its scholarship funds in collaboration and partnership with widely trusted and meticulously selected non-governmental organizations (NGO) in Turkey with long track records that are dedicated to education and betterment of the society, while tenaciously upholding and defending universally accepted contemporary values, human rights, freedoms, and ideals. Our success is a result of TEF donors' strong belief in the value of universal education and our decades-long partnership with local organizations.
TEF scholarships go directly to students, individually selected by the help of these NGOs based on family status, financial need, and merit from across Turkey. In addition to financial assistance, TEF partner organizations work closely with our students to identify their educational needs, support them academically through tutoring and team projects, and socially through field trips and activities. They also keep track of the students’ progress all the way through graduation, and even beyond. It is particularly rewarding to observe the difference TEF scholarships have made in bettering the lives and prospects of these students, many of whom went on to pursue higher education in universities and beyond. Some of our scholars come back as volunteers and mentor younger scholars. In the 2022-23 school year, TEF awarded more than 2200 scholarships.
