The Elliott Equity Fund
Developing a New Generation of Global Leaders
Alumni of the Elliott School of International Affairs make their mark on the world as trailblazers, leaders, and innovators. Yet too many future leaders lack the financial means to pursue and complete higher education. Scholarships open doors for exceptional undergraduate and graduate students, including those whose talent and ambition might exceed their financial means. By lowering financial hurdles, scholarships play a large role in ensuring a diverse student body.
Despite a lot of progress, the national security industry still struggles to achieve equitable representation from students from underrepresented backgrounds. The answer starts with improving access to education, and the Elliott Equity Fund is a tangible way for GWU donors to diversify the national security industry, one student at a time.
Brooke Pearson, MIPP '16
Lead Program Manager,
Google Chrome Trust & Safety EMEA, London
An Urgent Need for Greater Access
Alumni of the Elliott School of International Affairs make their mark on the world as trailblazers, leaders, and innovators. Yet too many aspiring future leaders face financial challenges that stand in the way of success. GW was founded to build futures and open doors—for our nation and for the next generation of leaders. The Elliott Equity Fund was established to increase access to the transformative power of a GW Elliott education.
Global Solutions Demand Diverse Voices
Innovative responses to global power shifts are developed by diverse, inclusive teams that tackle challenges from the broadest possible perspective. Also important to the study of international affairs is a nuanced understanding of how global challenges affect different cultures across the map.
GW’s Elliott School is committed to bringing the widest possible range of viewpoints and voices to the international affairs community.
The Elliott Equity Fund was established in the spirit of this commitment—and with significant guidance from the school’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The fund provides students who have the talent to change the world with the means to do so, through access to a world-class education in the heart of the nation’s capital. Opening doors for GW Elliott students today builds a better world for tomorrow.
The Elliott Equity Fund also meets a critical need in the international affairs profession. The future of our multipolar world depends on a new generation of global leaders: leaders with a foundational belief in equity, inclusiveness, and respect for multiple points of view. Developing this mindset begins in the classroom; a classroom that mirrors these ideals.
A high-caliber education is expensive, and each year, more than 42 percent of the university’s undergraduate students qualify for need-based financial aid. GW already contributes some $230 million annually to undergraduate financial support and recently launched a historic initiative to increase access to a GW education through philanthropy.
In line with GW’s commitment, the Elliott School is working hard to do more to help talented students who face the greatest financial challenges. The Elliott Equity Fund aims to open the doors of opportunity for future global leaders.
We would be honored to talk with you further about how you can increase access to promote equity at the Elliott School. For more information, please contact Joseph Strodel, Assistant Vice President of Development and Alumni Relations, at [email protected].
The Elliott Equity Fund Award allows me to focus on my academic and professional goals by easing my concerns about financial responsibilities. I can worry less about working to afford tuition and, instead, focus on being a more active member of my campus community, working toward my academic goals, and partaking in professional enrichment opportunities. This award helps open doors for me that I couldn’t open myself.
Anthony Hu, B.A. '24
How the Elliott Equity Fund Works
The Elliott Equity Fund provides undergraduate and graduate tuition and non-tuition support to outstanding students with critical financial need from historically underrepresented populations.
The fund offers awards to students with the greatest financial burden. Elliott Equity Fund awards help with the cost of tuition and related expenses, as well as on-the ground learning experiences. Awards may, for example, bridge the gap between a student’s GW financial aid award and the full cost of tuition (this gap is $3,600 on average).
The fund helps make it possible for students not only to attend the Elliott School, but also to take advantage of all that our school has to offer, both inside and outside the classroom. Beyond tuition, learning opportunities include interning with global leadership organizations at GW’s doorstep, conducting field research that amplifies classroom learning, and attending global affairs conferences, and more.
Elliott Equity Fund Awards are offered to newly-admitted students as well as to current students. Applications for Elliott Equity Fund awards are holistically reviewed by a committee of professionals from the Elliott School’s Office of Graduate Admissions and the Elliott School Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, in partnership with GW’s Office of Student Financial Assistance.
In November 2022, the Elliott School was thrilled to confer the first-ever Elliott Equity Fund Awards to eight amazing undergraduate and graduate students. The awards, as one student said, empower students to “move full steam ahead towards a fruitful career in global affairs.”
Contributions to the Elliott Equity Fund build on GW’s commitment to opening doors to higher education—and make a world of difference for students to pursue their dreams at the Elliott School.
As a recipient of the Elliott Equity Fund Award, I am grateful to the Elliott School for allowing under-represented students like me to have financial support. This fund will be integral to my learning and will allow me to build my skills and knowledge in international development, specifically in gender. I have been a member of the Council on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and highly acknowledge such scholarships that promote equity and inclusion. It is truly empowering to know that Elliott believes in my hard work and vision for a better future.
Faiqa Khan, M.A. '23
Graduate Student Representative,
GW Elliott School Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council
Founded in 2020, Young Black Professionals in International Affairs is a student organization committed to enhancing the presence of African and African diaspora perspectives at the Elliott School and across the international affairs area.
