U.S. gives loans to RI students

U.S. gives loans to RI students

JAKARTA (JP): A zero-interest loan program has been launched
in the United States to help students from Indonesia and three
other Asian countries affected by the economic crisis.

The Institute of International Education has received $7.75
million from the Freeman Foundation for the Asian Students in
American-Higher Education Loan Program (ASIA-HELP).

"We think it is important to assist those Asian students who
are being particularly affected by the Asian financial crisis,"
Houghton Freeman, chairman of the Stowe, Vermont-based
foundation, said at the launch of the program Tuesday which was
also attended by Indonesian Ambassador to the United States
Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti.

These loans, to be made available for the coming academic
year, will be between $2,000 and $5,000 to cover some of the
students' financial needs. They will be for one year only, but
students can reapply for a second year.

They will be offered through colleges that have a sizable
number of students from the four Asian countries: South Korea,
Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. Students already enrolled for
bachelors or masters degrees, with a minimum of a 3.0 grade point
average, will qualify.

The governments of these four countries can also nominate 50
students per year to receive funding, according to a statement by
the U.S. Embassy's Information Service in Jakarta.