​We appreciate the initial grant we received from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support planning activities for the study of African Americans living abroad.  The $52,135 grant allowed us to develop some initial materials, hold a Planning Meeting of the WeGlobal Advisory Committee, work more intentionally with libraries and museums, and develop a domestic and international strategy to accomplish the study, which will be launched February 2019 during Black History Month.

 ​We also appreciate the support from Esri (Environmental Systems Research Institute).  They approved 500 additional named-user licenses for us to use in conjunction with their Survey123 app.  Various staff involved with Survery123 and Story Maps have been extremely helpful.

​The support from the School for International Training (SIT) was instrumental in launching this initiative.  Dean Kenneth Williams and President Sophia Howlett provided encouragement and time for Deborah Robinson to work on this initiative even before we received the Mellon grant.  We also appreciate the support from the parent organization, World Learning, as the grant was actually awarded to that entity.