Back to School for Grameen America

“Helping the Poor” in America

Grameen America is very excited to announce the launching of its new university outreach program, ‘Grameen U’. Through Grameen U, students across the nation will have the opportunity to channel their passion for microfinance, for the Grameen model, and for poverty alleviation in the United States into concrete action. Katherine Rosenberg, in charge of the grassroots initiatives at Grameen America, says “we are excited to ally with students across the nation to further promote microfinance. Their creativity and dynamism will be extremely valuable to reach out to the communities in need.”

There are various components to the Grameen U program. Students can become Campus Representatives—that is, Grameen ambassadors on their campuses; replicate our unique lending model by forming their own group of five; engage in organizing a variety of events with local partners to spread awareness of Grameen America’s mission; and bring Grameen America Reps to their campus via Skype or in-person to talk about microfinance and the Grameen model. In addition, the Grameen Campus Representatives will have the chance to connect, network and share ideas in the social media world.

Grameen America is looking forward to seeing Grameen U flourish in the fall of 2010 in campuses across the U.S., and is thrilled about the efforts that have already been made at universities such as Barnard, Brown, Harvard, and Johns Hopkins!

For more information, check out the newly added Grameen U section to the Grameen America website: http://grameenamerica.org/grameen-u/grameen-u/about-grameen-u.html. Grameen America is accepting applications for Campus Representatives online, and is reviewing applications for the Grameen U President. For any questions about the program, don’t hesitate to email us at grameenu@grameenamerica.org.

(Stay tuned for Grameen America’s Young Professionals initiatives!)

- The Grameen U Team