How CIEE and the Farther Foundation Helped Octavia Tey ’17 Access the World
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When Octavia Tey received a scholarship to study abroad with CIEE in 2017, one challenge remained: covering the costs that scholarships often don't. Through support from CIEE and Chicago's Farther Foundation, she was able to study abroad in the Dominical Republic.
As CIEE approaches its 80th anniversary, Octavia's story demonstrates how the programs expand access to global education and create lasting impact for generations of students.
“You are not giving students a free trip. You are changing their perspective and showing them that things exist outside of their current circumstances.”
As a junior at a Chicago public high school, Octavia Tey was accepted to CIEE's Global Navigator High School Study Abroad program and awarded a full merit scholarship to spend five weeks in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic.
Nearly a decade later, she describes its impact in simple terms:
“You are not giving students a free trip,” Octavia said. “You are changing their perspective and showing them that things exist outside of just their current circumstances. That there is something worth changing their lives for.”
The CIEE scholarship covered tuition, but as a low-income student, Octavia needed additional support to cover the supplementary costs of studying abroad, including a passport, luggage, and required vaccinations.
That is the gap that partnerships with CIEE help to close.
Octavia applied for a scholarship designed to support low-income Chicago students pursuing study abroad opportunities. Through this program, Chicago's Farther Foundation covered the additional expenses she needed. Weeks later, Octavia boarded the first flight of her life.
The five-week experience was filled with moments she remembers vividly: watching children learn to swim in Puerto Plata, bonding with local families and CIEE staff, and studying Dominican history in a CIEE classroom.
"I will carry this with me forever," she remembers thinking.
“There’s really no dollar amount to the value of self-worth. What this experience gives is trust in yourself that you can do hard things.”
Almost a decade later, Octavia is a first-generation college graduate and senior technical consultant working in education and research software.
A frequent traveler, she has also led international programs of her own, guiding students through transformative experiences abroad. When reflecting on her path, she points directly to her CIEE experience—and the scholarships that made it possible.
CIEE and the Farther Foundation: Building Pathways Towards Peace and Understanding
In 2025, CIEE announced an approximately $2 million endowment provided by the Farther Foundation dedicated to expanding access to global education for low-income Chicago-area students.
“I’m just grateful that I had access to the Farther Foundation, and now I get to see them take this next step with CIEE on an international platform” Octavia shared.
In 2027, CIEE celebrates its 80th anniversary — 80 years of bringing the world together, building cross-cultural understanding, and proving that access to global education changes lives. CIEE’s agreement with the Farther Foundation is opening doors for students whose talent and drive deserve to reach beyond their zip code.
The passport Octavia carries today was purchased in 2017 with support from the Farther Foundation for a CIEE study abroad experience. In 2027, the same year CIEE celebrates 80 years of bringing the world together, that passport will come up for its first renewal.
The Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) has been bringing the world together since 1947. As CIEE approaches its 80th anniversary in 2027, its mission — to help people gain understanding, acquire knowledge, and develop skills for living in a globally interdependent and culturally diverse world — is more urgent than ever.
To support the Farther Foundation Scholarship Fund at CIEE or learn more about giving opportunities, please contact Jennifer Higgins Pitre, Vice President of Philanthropy and CIEE parent, at jpitre@ciee.org.