Juana Monsalve, a native of Colombia and a doctoral student in music performance, wants to build a strong voice program in her homeland.

Now she'll get to do that -- and finish her doctorate -- thanks to the $12,500 P.E.O., or Philanthropic Educational Organization, International Peace Scholarship, which provides scholarships to women from other countries for graduate studies in the U.S. or Canada.

Monsalve is a classically trained singer who also performs traditional Colombian music.

"I want to be part of a cultural transformation that is already happening there," she says. "My country needs young, well-prepared professionals who are committed to social and cultural transformation to help their own people."