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In 1980, nearly forty years after the wartime incarceration
of the West Coast Japanese, a small group of New England Nisei established
the Nisei Student Relocation Commemorative Fund (NSRCF). The Nisei
("second-generation," American-born descendants of Japanese immigrants)
created the NSRCF to pay tribute to the National Japanese American
Student Relocation Council (NJASRC), an organization of religious
groups and educators that had helped the Nisei students leave the
camps to continue their college educations during the difficult
war years. The founders of the NSRCF resolved to commemorate both
the evacuation and the generosity of people who reached across race
differences and wartime hatred to offer a helping hand.
Interest
from the NSRCF endowment is awarded to Southeast Asian students
to help cover expenses during their first year of college. Since
1983 the NSRCF has awarded more than $340,000 to 365 deserving students.
Its endowment exceeds $650,000. The board of directors is committed
to maximizing the funds available for scholarships, therefore administrative
operations and awards ceremoinies are handled by volunteers. 95
percent of all donations go directly to the endowment; approximately
5 percent are used for operating costs and expenses. |