Students to receive first-time passport with new university grant

Katrina Lee, News Editor

It costs over $150 to secure a U.S. passport, according to the U.S. Department of State’s website — VCU is helping 50 students bypass that cost. 

VCU received and matched a grant from the Institute of International Education’s American Passport Project to soon award 50 first-year students their first U.S passport, according to Associate Vice Provost for Global Initiatives Jill Bowman.

The Global Education Office will identify eligible students and support them through the process of applying for their first-time passports during Passport Day, an on-campus passport application event on Oct. 28, according to the Global Education Office’s website.   

“The cost can be daunting, and so to be able to take that away by providing the support in different ways, I think can really be a game changer for students and study abroad is a transformational experience for students,” Bowman said.

The goal is to encourage students to “engage globally.” This includes looking into possible study abroad opportunities, finding an internship abroad, participating in an exchange program and other opportunities internationally, Bowman said. 

Recipients of these passports are specifically part of the university’s TRIO program. TRIO is a federally funded program that supports undergraduate students by providing guidance and resources for first-generation, low-income and students with disabilities, according to director of Global Learning Stephanie Tignor.

“We’re just happy that this passport is going to raise awareness among this particular population that tends to be underrepresented in these kinds of experiences so that we can, hopefully, engage them in multiple ways over the time that they’re with us at VCU,” Tignor said. 

VCU is one of the 40 universities selected to receive this grant, according to IIE lead Lindsay Calvert.

IIE is a global not-for-profit that designs and implements international education strategies and program services, according to the organization’s website

One of the main goals of this project is to alleviate the very first obstacle students face when thinking of studying abroad, Calvert said. 

Universities eligible for this grant must be a member of IIE and submit a grant proposal to the organization to be selected, according to Calvert. 

“Finances can be a barrier for students at any stage in their planning,” Calvert said. “We recognize that some students might not even think about the opportunity to study abroad or going overseas or going outside of their country, because of just the cost of a U.S passport.”