US-Educated Azerbaijani Alumni Association

The US-Educated Azerbaijani Alumni Association (AAA) is a non-governmental, non-profit organization that unites alumni of the State Department educational exchange programs in Azerbaijan. The AAA was established in October 2003 by a group of US-educated Azerbaijani alumni with the aim of uniting all alumni of Azerbaijan under one umbrella and using their knowledge and skills to help developing Azerbaijan.

The organization is run by the board of 13 alumni, representing various State Department and USAID-funded exchange programs including FLEX, UGRAD, MUSKIE, FULLBRIGHT, PIE, TEA, Community Connections, Contemporary Issues, Humphrey, and RSEP. Up to date, dozens of projects have been implemented. They include public lectures, policy discussions, radio talk shows, publications of supplements on policy issues in Ayna and Echo newspapers, translations of books from English into Azeri, art exhibitions, movie nights, charity events and social networking events, regional seminars on the topic of "Education in the US", regional community projects, publication of the weekly newsletters for alumni.The number of alumni in Azerbaijan has surpassed 2,000 already. Also, there are some people who individually have gone to study in US Universities. They are also AAA members.

Missions and objectives of Azerbaijani Alumni Association

• Creation and maintenance of a platform for the US educated alumni in order to assist them to contribute and give back to the community;
• Support democratization of the state and the community and development of civil society;
• Engaging enlightenment of the youth from disadvantaged communities;
• Promotion of gender equality and importance of education;
• Engaging in charity projects for assisting disadvantaged youth and other vulnerable social groups;
• Contributing to economic, social and cultural development of the regions;·
• Conducting enlightenment and capacity building activities in the regions;
• Supporting development of cooperation between the governments and communities of the US and Azerbaijan;·
• Providing support to the universities and higher education institutions;
• Assisting youth in determining career and study path.