Lorik Humanitarian Fund expands the Aznavour Saghyan Scholarship Fund

LOS ANGELES — Lorik Humanitarian Fund announced significant progress in its Aznavour Saghyan Scholarship Fund, established to support students forcibly displaced from Artsakh who face losing access to higher education due to financial and administrative barriers.

As of today, the fund has:

• Received 92 applications from displaced students seeking urgent assistance  
• Covered tuition for 28 students, enabling them to remain enrolled  
• Distributed a total of $10,936, averaging $391 per student

These students would have otherwise been unable to attend classes or sit for their exams because of immediate payment deadlines and restrictions within the government’s tuition reimbursement program.

Urgent deadlines approaching this week

The Fund is currently reviewing a new round of urgent cases:

• Seven students have a deadline on Friday, Dec. 12  
• 12 additional students face a deadline on Monday, Dec. 15

Without swift financial intervention, these students risk being blocked from continuing their studies.

“We are receiving messages daily from displaced students who are doing everything they can to stay in school,” said representatives of Lorik Humanitarian Fund. “The scholarship fund exists to ensure that no young person from Artsakh loses their education because of circumstances beyond their control.”

Why the scholarship fund is needed

Following the September 2023 displacement, hundreds of Artsakh students were suddenly uprooted and faced new financial burdens. Although the Armenian government launched a tuition reimbursement program, many students are excluded, including:

• Remote or distance-learning students  
• Students living outside Yerevan  
• Those who changed majors  
• Students transitioning from bachelor’s to master’s programs  
• Various programs excluded due to technical criteria

The result is a population of displaced youth who urgently require direct financial support to continue their studies.

About the Aznavour Saghyan Scholarship Fund

Named in honor of Aznavour Saghyan, the late mayor of Martuni and a symbol of service and sacrifice, the scholarship fund is dedicated to helping Artsakh youth continue building their futures through education.

Call to Action

Lorik Humanitarian Fund urges community members and supporters to contribute to the scholarship fund as additional deadlines approach through December and into the new year.

To support the Aznavour Saghyan Scholarship Fund, please visit: www.LorikHF.org/donate