A $1 million gift from Harris Teeter and the Dickson Foundation will bring the University one step closer to its goal of providing an international study experience for every student. In 2003, 32 percent of Carolina's undergraduates studied abroad, ranking Carolina first among public universities in that area.

The Harris Teeter Study Abroad Scholarship Program is funded with gifts of $500,000 each from the company and the Dickson Foundation. Harris Teeter, the Charlotte-based supermarket chain, is owned by the Ruddick Corporation, whose chairman is Alan Dickson of Charlotte. Dickson is also chair of UNC's Morehead Foundation. His wife, Mary Anne Dickson, is a member of the Carolina First Steering Committee and serves as a co-chair of the Carolina Women's Leadership Council.

The first scholarships will be awarded when the endowment generates sufficient income, most likely in fall 2009. Eventually, 25 students will receive the scholarships each year. Any student from North Carolina will be eligible, with preference to Harris Teeter associates or their children.