The John and Ann Gearen Endowed Scholarship

John and Ann Gearen live in Oak Park, Illinois. They have successfully encouraged all three of their children to study internationally. John served on the Board of Directors of IES Abroad from 1981-2016, as Chair of the Board from 1999-2004, and has served on the Emeritus Board since 2017. John had been awarded a Rhodes Scholarship in 1965 and in response to his own life-changing experience at Oxford in the years 1965-1967, and his years of serving on the Board of IES Abroad as it flourished over the years, he and Ann established this Scholarship.

Ann earned a PhD in English and a Masters in Social Work at the University of Chicago, and worked at a shelter for abused women and in a private therapy practice until her recent retirement. After Oxford, John graduated from Yale Law School, clerked for a year on the US Court of Appeals in DC, and returned to Mayer Brown LLP in Chicago, where he has had a commercial real estate practice, and until recently led the Firm’s international real estate group.

John and Ann believe that a study abroad experience is a transformational experience, and are delighted to provide this Scholarship to provide that opportunity for college students.

To be eligible for this scholarship, you must: 

• Enroll in a semester or full year IES Abroad program. 
• Identify as an underrepresented student. 
• Attend a U.S. college or university. 
• Have an expected family contribution (EFC) of $30,000 or less.