CHICAGO – Two New York-based organizations planning to educate Syrian refugee children are being awarded a $100 million grant.
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation in Chicago announced Wednesday that Sesame Workshop and the International Rescue Committee will get the money over five years.
The organizations are developing a joint program to address the "toxic stress" experienced by children in Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Syria. The program will focus on home visits for early learning, child development centers and a local version of "Sesame Street."
The award stems from a MacArthur Foundation program for organizations that solve critical problems. There were roughly 1,900 proposals.
The foundation also awarded $15 million each to three finalists: Maryland-based Catholic Relief Services, Washington D.C.-based Harvest Plus and a Rice University global health institute.
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