Albanian-American Development Foundation (AADF), in coordination with the Institute of International Education (IIE), has established the Albanian Diaspora Fellowship Program called Research Expertise from the Academic Diaspora (READ) Program. READ is a 7-year project that will connect Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Albania with the Albanian scientific diaspora and their respective academic institutions. The program is built on AADF’s strategic priorities in education, especially in the higher education system. As diaspora engagement initiatives have been sporadic, AADF will play a leading role in establishing a well-structured path for channeling contributions of the scientific diaspora in ways beneficial to the Albanian HEIs. The READ Fellowship Program will benefit from the existing networks of AADF and other initiatives in higher education such as CleanScore, Center for School Leadership, and Junior Achievement of Albania. 

This program offers a unique opportunity to address the untapped potential of the Albanian intellectual diaspora in ways that would enhance capacities and bring about structural changes in the Albanian higher education system. The READ Fellowship Program will address this gap by setting up a catalytic model for Fellows and Albanian HEI alike to benefit from creative collaborations. On the one hand, READ will allow diaspora scholars to make a meaningful contribution to Albania. On the other hand, the program will strengthen the capacities of Albanian HEIs by making full use of the valuable skills and experiences of the diaspora. 

READ provides support for Albanian Resident Scholars to request the visit of an Albanian Diaspora Scholar to pursue capacity-building collaborative research projects at eligible Albanian HEIs. READ supports this collaboration through four main activities: 

- Collaborative Research,

- Joint supervision of PhDs,

- Curricula and course development, and/or

- Co-teaching.