The International Rescue Committee has been so fortunate to have had a longstanding relationship with Princeton in Africa since our very first Fellows landed in Rwanda in 1999. Whether it was Emily or Renee in 1999 or the 110 Fellows across 14 IRC countries over the years, we have been blessed by the relationship, the quality of the Fellows and the impact on what IRC does on the ground every single day.
Frank C. Strasburger
Frank C. Strasburger is the former Episcopal chaplain at Princeton University and founding president of Princeton in Africa. Frank first became involved with the Africa continent through a refugee program he headed while Canon of the American Cathedral in Paris in the 1980s. In 1993, during a 3-month sabbatical from the Episcopal Church at Princeton, he and his family spent 2 months living and working in South Africa, an experience which led in 1997 to his leaving Princeton to become president of Medical Education for South African Blacks. In 1999, as he returned to full-time ministry, he became the first board president of the newly founded Princeton in Africa and led the organization for its first five years. Now an emeritus board member, Frank remains active with PiAf, having attended every orientation and most of our retreats. Retiring from active ministry in 2007, he became more heavily involved in volunteer efforts, teaching writing to struggling high school seniors; founding and facilitating Healthy Masculinity, group of male Bowdoin College students who meet weekly to talk about what it means to be a man; participating on the Maine Steering Committee of both Obama presidential campaigns and serving on several local boards. In 2014, he became a founding board member of Zambia-based Healthy Learners, a PiAf partner organization, stepping down as board chair in 2019. Much of the spirit of his 50 years focused on young people can be found in his book, Growing Up: Limiting Adolescence in a World Desperate for Adults. Over those same 50 years, Frank has been involved in countless nonprofits, a number of which he helped found, in the educational, medical, political, and religious realms, learning along the way (sometimes painfully) some of the systemic issues endemic to such organizations. He and his wife Carrie, who live on the coast of Maine, have three grown children and four grandchildren.
Our History
In 1999, a group of Princeton alumni, faculty, and staff launched Princeton in Africa as an independent affiliate of Princeton University inspired by the University’s informal motto, “Princeton in the Nation’s Service and in the Service of All Nations.” In 2010, the program opened up to include graduates of any US accredited university in order to meet the growing demand from host organizations and allow more young professionals access to the unique opportunities afforded by PiAf. During the past 20 years, we have placed over 600 Fellows with more than 100 organizations in 36 countries, while developing more strategic partnerships across Africa and creating more opportunities for our alumni community to engage with the continent and with one another.