Aspen Institute Establishes Albright Scholarship Fund for Veterans

Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright Presented with 2011 Henry Crown Leadership Award

WASHINGTON, Nov. 10, 2011  /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Aspen Institute announced the establishment of the Albright Scholarship Fund for Veterans, a new program meant to enable US veterans to attend and/or participate in a variety of Institute programs and events, from the Aspen Seminar and Aspen Ideas Festival to a range of other forums and events. Madeleine Albright, a former US Secretary of State and current Aspen Institute trustee, was the recipient of the Henry Crown Leadership Award at the Institute's annual awards dinner on November 3, 2011. In her acceptance speech, she pledged to donate the $25,000 proceeds from the award to help establish the scholarship.

"Today we live in a sort of security limbo — where our armed forces still have battles to fight but the rest of society remains only partly engaged — and where peace is always a relative term. This scholarship fund will help to ensure that when the Aspen Institute meets to discuss war, peace, and other issues of social concern, the voice of our nation's veterans will be heard," said Secretary Albright at the Institute's November 3 awards dinner, held at The Plaza Hotel in New York City.

"When Secretary Albright came to me with the idea for this scholarship fund, I immediately agreed. The Institute is committed to bringing diverse minds together for civil discourse on today's complex issues, a goal that cannot be reached without the presence of our nation's veterans," said Aspen Institute President and CEO Walter Isaacson. "I'm delighted that Madeleine has wisely asked us to establish this program for veterans and that we can honor them in this way on the eve of Veterans Day."  

The Albright Scholarship Fund for Veterans is part of a growing initiative, called Scholars & Scholarships, in which the Aspen Institute aims to build a pool of scholarship funds and program resources that can be used to advance values-based leadership through a wide range of programs and partnerships. This cross-programmatic support will advance the Institute's work with leadership initiatives around the globe, and around key issues such as the arts, education, the environment, health, world affairs and national security, poverty, social enterprise, and women and children. The impact of any Institute endeavor is linked to the people it engages, and scholarships help bring some of the best and brightest voices to the table.

More information about the Institute's Scholars & Scholarships initiative and how to donate is available here: http://www.aspeninstitute.org/support/scholars-scholarships.

For more information about the Henry Crown Leadership Award, please visit: http://www.aspeninstitute.org/leadership-programs/henry-crown-fellowship-program/henry-crown-leadership-award.

The Aspen Institute mission is twofold: to foster values-based leadership, encouraging individuals to reflect on the ideals and ideas that define a good society, and to provide a neutral and balanced venue for discussing and acting on critical issues. The Aspen Institute does this primarily in four ways: seminars, young-leader fellowships around the globe, policy programs, and public conferences and events. The Institute is based in Washington, DC; Aspen, Colorado; and on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. It also has offices in New York City and an international network of partners. For more information, please visit www.aspeninstitute.org.

SOURCE The Aspen Institute