Samantha Smith Scholarship Fund Established

The Samantha Smith Scholarship Fund has just been established in the University of Maine Foundation with a gift from the Samantha Smith Foundation, established in honor of the late Samantha Smith from Manchester, Maine, America's youngest ambassador for peace.  Samantha wrote a letter in 1982 to Soviet President Yuri Andropov to ask if he was going to wage nuclear war against the United States.  At this invitation she toured the Soviet Union in July of 1983.  Her visit helped create a less hostile atmosphere in the relations between the superpowers.  She died in the crash of a small plane in Maine in 1985.  Pictured to the right is the Samantha Smith Statue that is located at the Maine State Library in Augusta, Maine.

The income from the fund shall be used to provide scholarships to support University of Maine students who study abroad.  A preference will be given to those students who select Russia or any of the Commonwealth of Independent States - - - or any country formerly under Soviet rule as a study abroad location.

Karen Boucias, the Director of the Office of International Programs and National Student Exchange at the University of Maine, offered the following about the establishment of the fund:

With our current emphasis on internationalization, Samantha Smith's legacy provides critical support for students who study abroad.  Studying abroad is an important vehicle for mutual understanding of countries and cultures, and for language acquisition.  Today's students are tomorrow's leaders, and support from Maine's youngest ambassador is a fitting addition to our continued efforts to make an international academic experience available to UMaine students.

If you would like to learn more about this fund, give to this fund or are contemplating the establishment of your own fund, please contact our office.