About the Program

I. General Information

The Polish-American Freedom Foundation (PAFF) in cooperation with the U.S. Embassy in Poland had launched in 2010 a program supporting talented young people from small towns and rural areas. It has assumed a form of the Polish-American Internship Initiative program, which is technically run by the Educational Enterprise Foundation (EEF) together with companies offering internships.

The main objective of the Program is sending Polish students - mainly those participating in PAFFs programs (scholarship holders of the Bridge Scholarship Program and volunteer students - the participants of the "PROJECTOR - students' volunteer work"), as well as selected from other cooperating organizations and universities - to a summer internship at renowned American corporations.

The Program presents an opportunity to apply for a paid 2 - 3 month internship (during holidays) in American companies, traveling expenses subsidy and assistance with obtaining a visa. The internship is available for full-time students of the second year and above at Polish universities, with fluent command of English, achieving the highest academic results and socially involved.

The Program was mentioned in a Joint Statement by President Komorowski and President Obama as an aspect of cooperation between Poland and the U.S.
(see: White House Statement Dec 08.2010)

II. Partners

1. Polish-American Freedom Foundation (PAFF)

(http://www.pafw.pl/strona.php?setlanguage=2)

The Polish-American Freedom Foundation, was established in 1999 by the Polish-American Enterprise Fund, which has transferred more than $250 million to the Foundation's endowment. PAFF focuses on three areas of activity: improving equal educational opportunities and quality of education, encouraging and developing local communities, and sharing Poland's experiences in transformation - thus reflecting the dual mission with which it began its activities. On the one hand, it lent support to the changes launched in Poland in 1989 - strengthening civil society, democracy and the market economy. On the other, it helped share with other countries of Central and Eastern Europe the experience gained during the course of the Polish transformation.

The Foundation implements more than 20 large long-term programs, whose management it entrusts to selected and experienced non-governmental organizations. So far the Foundation has earmarked almost USD 100 million for the implementation of its programmatic activities.

PAFF Initiatives for University Students

One of the Foundation's key initiatives is the Bridge Scholarships Program, launched in 2002 in response to a serious social problem - the clear disparity of access to higher education of urban and rural youth. The Program makes it easier for talented young people from small towns and the countryside, especially former state-owned farm areas, to decide to begin university studies by offering them first-year scholarships. In successive years of study, scholarship aid is offered to high-achieving young people (including doctoral scholarships for the best students).

The Bridge Scholarships Program is a joint undertaking between PAFF, the National Bank of Poland, and groups of foundations established by leading Polish banks and corporations such as the BRE Bank Foundation, Orange Foundation or PZU Foundation and a coalition of 91 local non-governmental organizations. The Polish-American Freedom Foundation finances about 60% of the scholarships and covers the Program's organizational costs. The Bridge Scholarships Program is managed by the Educational Enterprise Foundation.
Since the Program's inception, more than 13,000 scholarships have been awarded. 30% obtained a grade point average above 4.0 (B) in their freshman year. The majority of the scholarship holders say that they would not have been able to undertake studies had it not been for the PAFF's financial assistance.

Another noteworthy undertaking of the Foundation is the "Student Volunteers" Program. It is aimed at equalizing educational opportunities for children and youth living in rural areas and small towns. Within the Program, groups of university student volunteers implement educational projects they have prepared to develop knowledge, skills and interests of children and youth. Since 2003, 12,000 educational projects have been conducted in more than 1,000 schools all over Poland in which more than 7,500 university student volunteers took part.

2. Educational Enterprise Foundation (EEF)

(http://www.fep.lodz.pl)

Educational Enterprise Foundation was established in 1991 by the Polish-American Enterprise Fund and the Treasury. The mission of the Foundation is to support the development of intellectual asset for the market economy. EEF accomplishes its mission by undertaking the endeavors to contribute to equalizing educational opportunities for young Poles both nationally and internationally. These actions are targeted at increasing the availability of studies for young people coming from rural areas and small towns and providing a comparable level of education, so that Polish graduates could be effectively competitive on the international job market. The Foundation has 20 years of experience in the implementation of scholarship programs, academic and social, in which students were awarded over 37,000 scholarships.

Since 2000, EEF has closely co-operated with the Polish-American Freedom Foundation. The Foundation has been the administrator of the Bridge Scholarship Program from the very beginning i.e. since 2002. In addition to the implementation of scholarship programs the Foundation, in the course of 20 years, has managed to organize 26 editions of various competitions for pupils and students, 26 conferences devoted to improving the quality of education at colleges and universities, publish 126 books on economics and management, mainly translations of foreign literature.

3. The U.S. Embassy

Polish Student Internships in the United States

The U.S. Embassy in Warsaw enthusiastically supports the educational activities of the non-governmental organization, the Polish-American Freedom Foundation (PAFF). One of the foundation's initiatives was the establishment of the "Bridge Scholarship" Program to address disparity of access to higher education for talented school students living in rural areas of Poland. Another important PAFF's educational activity is its "Student Volunteers" Program. Within the Program, groups of university student volunteers implement educational projects they have prepared to develop knowledge, skills and interests of children and youth from rural areas and small towns.

PAFF would now like to offer short internships in the United States for participants in both the "Bridge Scholarships" and "Student Volunteers" Program, involving in future also student participants of other educational undertakings. Host U.S. companies take one or more interns for a period of one to three months during the June, July and August period. Polish participants have just finished their second, third or fourth year of university study. The PAFF and its Polish educational partners recruit and pre-select intern candidates. The final choice rest with the host of sponsoring U.S. company.

The PAFF covers the costs of program administration, travel to the host company's U.S. location, insurance, visa fees, and assists in the J1-visa application process. The U.S. host company provides a stipend adequate to at least cover the cost of room and board during the internship. Additionally, the participating U.S. companies commit to provide a worthwhile educational experience for Polish students. They also provide interns with mentors for professional development during the internship. The participating U.S. companies are contributing to the success of an important U.S.-Polish initiative. They provide a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for students who have already demonstrated outstanding abilities and commitment. Polish media are likely to be interested in covering such internship placements.

III. Program Achievements

The preliminary stage of the Program included the initiative "Summer Internship Abroad" which had been launched in 2006. PAFF together with Educational Enterprise Foundation and in cooperation with the American Chamber of Commerce in Warsaw provided three Polish Students with internships at American Companies. Polish Students had been hosted by AIG Lincoln Polska LTD and the Lincoln property Company Dallas in Texas (USA), Mayday Manufacturing Co Inc in Denton in Texas (USA) and CEVA Logistics in (Germany).

Thanks to the Summer Internship Abroad, the organization managing the Program has developed a set of enrolment procedures and acquired important know-how on logistics of foreign internships (including, among other things, visa application procedures and transportation) that helped to prepare and launch the Polish-American Internship Initiative.

2011 edition (first edition of the Polish-American Internship Initiative)

In summer of 2011 - 22 Polish students left for internships at 4 American companies. The following companies participated in the program:

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy- an American-Japanese energy concern. It is a world's leading supplier of advanced reactor technologies and services for nuclear energy - accepted 14 students.

WESTINGHOUSE - Westinghouse Electric Company is a group company of Toshiba Corporation. Our commitment to safe, clean nuclear energy is second to none. As we recognize the 125^th anniversary of Westinghouse Electric Company, we celebrate our rich heritage of technical innovation and commitment to ensuring our global customers’ success. Westinghouse Electric Company provides nuclear fuel, nuclear services, technology, plant design, and equipment to utility and industrial customers in the worldwide commercial nuclear electric power industry - accepted 6 students.

PITTSBURGH GLASS WORKS LLC- an American company and a leading producer and supplier of automotive glass for world's leading automotive companies. The company also provides services within this scope - hosts 1 student.

SIKORSKY AIRCRAFT Corporation - an American company which designs and constructs the world's most advanced helicopters used for trade, industry and military goals - hosts 1 student.