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Kosovo Transformational Leadership Program–Scholarships & Partnerships
Program Description
The five-year Transformational Leadership Program-Scholarships and Partnerships trained a new generation of Kosovar leaders to drive significant change in economic, political, and social priority areas.
Under TLP-SP, nearly 300 Kosovars received master’s degrees and professional certificates from U.S. universities. Alumni returned to Kosovo to work in key institutions, especially in the public sector, where they utilized their new knowledge and skills to create positive change.
Along with the scholarship component, World Learning, and its partners worked with the University of Prishtina (UP)–the largest and most influential university in Kosovo–to transform the institution’s capacity to prepare graduates to meet the needs of the growing economy and developing state. This multi-pronged effort focused on:
- Student-centered teaching through the Center for Teaching Excellence;
- Student engagement on entrepreneurship, innovation, and other workforce-related topics through VentureUP, an on-campus incubator that engaged more than 1,000 UP students;
- Revitalizing the UP career center to build strong links between students and local employers; and
- Improving the design and functionality of key UP systems and administrative offices to better support student learning and satisfaction.
Program Goals
The overarching program goal was to develop a cadre of leaders to drive significant change in Kosovo's priority economic, political, and social areas. In addition, the project aimed to develop the capacity of Kosovars to bring about transformational change through opportunities for advanced education, leadership development, and technical assistance. To accomplish these important goals, TLP-SP focused on the following activities:
- Created an Advisory Committee to oversee the entire Transformational Leadership Program and institutionalized change at UP.
- Placed and monitored 185 scholarship participants in U.S. master’s degree programs and more than 100 participants in professional certificate programs.
- Established university partnerships and exchanges that supported collaboration between U.S. universities and UP, as well as other higher education institutions in Kosovo.
World Learning and USAID implemented the program in partnership with the Government of Kosovo, the University of Prishtina, as well as Arizona State University, Indiana University, the University of Minnesota, and Dartmouth College in the U.S. For additional information, visit the TLP-SP website.
