October Update 2020
October 2020 Message from Dr. Hilary E. Kahn
Dear Friends of OIA,
These are challenging times. We are in the midst of an extremely high-stake election. We are fully immersed in a global pandemic that has altered every aspect of our personal lives, our professional identities and practices, and our plans for the future. Every week it seems we encounter new restrictions on the free movement of people and ideas across borders. On top of all this, we are reckoning with legacies of social injustice, pronounced inequities around economic and food security, and debilitating fear and frustration about the uncertainties and instabilities that have become the norm for many.
The Office of International Affairs is committed to supporting staff, students, partners, and faculty during these uncharted times. We are particularly cognizant of the current needs of our international students, many of whom are experiencing this turbulence thousands of miles away from home. It is hard enough looking to the horizon for those of us who are lucky to be near family, but it is exponentially more difficult for international students who may be far from home, uncertain about when they will next see their families and friends, and without access to various resources and financial support. International students, like many others, have severe financial needs during this time, due to reduced access to employment in the U.S. and economic instability at home.
Fortunately, the campus allocates funds to support IU Indianapolis’s international students through periods of unexpected financial hardship, but funds are being depleted at an unprecedented rate. If you are able to support these efforts, your contributions to the IU Indianapolis International Student Scholarship Fund will help make IU Indianapolis a more supportive, welcoming, and assuredly global institution for all.
We thank for your support to our work, and we send you our warmest wishes to you and yours as we get through these countless challenges together.
Global. Local. Better Together.
All best,
Hilary E. Kahn
Associate Vice Chancellor for International Affairs, IU Indianapolis
Associate Vice President for International Affairs, Indiana University
