Our students travel to many parts of the world. Here are stories of their experiences.
Meghan Casey ’15 was selected for the 2014 Davis 100 Projects for Peace Grant. In the summer of 2014 she facilitated the construction and development of sports programming focused on gender relations and women’s rights at the Chukwani School in Zanzibar, Tanzania. She had partnerships with both the school and a local NGO, Embrace Zanzibar. Meghan’s journey in East Africa began in 2012 in a Kenya summer program and continued through intensive summer Swahili study at the University of Florida and a semester abroad in Tanzania. Meghan is a self-designed Global Health Studies major and Africana Studies concentrator, and she hopes to work in community health development and global health policy.
Mike Daly '12 was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to pursue a master's degree in Geopolitics and Grand Strategy from the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom. He is focusing his studies on US-China relations and plans to write his dissertation on Chinese and American naval activity and each sides' underlying strategic motivations in the South China and East China seas. Mike has sought to immerse himself in British culture by hiking through the countryside, attending theater shows in London, visiting other Fulbrighters in the UK, and enjoying local British beer. Mike studied Economics and Political Science at 17³Ô¹ÏÍø and is immensely grateful to his alma mater for helping him pursue this opportunity. He aspires to a career in government service, preferably in diplomacy or national security.
Kristina Domaney '14. As a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Turkey, I teach the English prep classes at Karadeniz Teknik Ãœniversitesi in Trabzon. Along with teaching, I am working to start a conversation club at the university, where students can voluntarily come to improve their speaking skills. Thus far, I have really enjoyed my Fulbright experience, particularly my time in the classroom, immersing into Turkish culture, and acting as a cultural liaison. I also feel very fortunate to be in Trabzon, where there are various opportunities for community involvement. This semester, I hope to regularly visit the school for the Deaf to learn more about educational rights for Deaf students. I am extremely thankful for all of the support and encouragement provided by the 17³Ô¹ÏÍø community throughout this experience.
Kyle Olsen ’14 is posted in the Kyrgyz Republic on a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship. He teaches Business English and American culture to third and fourth year college students at his host institution, Bishkek Humanities University. Kyle also leads weekly talking clubs at the same university, as well as language clubs at the American Corner in the Kyrgyz capital. He enjoys conversing with residents in Russian and broken Kyrgyz, visiting Kyrgyz villages, and sharing traditional meals with the warm local people. Whether he is attending a musical performance with a colleague, or simply catching a glimpse of the Tien Shan mountain range near Bishkek, Kyle is always reminded of the beauty that lies within this corner of Central Asia. He studied political science and Russian language at 17³Ô¹ÏÍø, and hopes to one day pursue a career in the diplomatic corps.
Martha Walters ’14 was awarded a Fulbright research grant to Indonesia to study the link between organic farming and women’s agency in Indonesia. In summer 2012, Martha went to Bali, Indonesia with Prof. Susan Rodgers and two other students to study the commercialization of ikat textiles. In summer 2013, she returned to Bali with Rodgers to study organic farming. Her Fulbright research is a continuation of the research she started in 2013. Martha spent the last part of 2014 in Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia learning Bahasa Indonesia through a Critical Language Enhancement Award. She is currently in Padang, West Sumatra conducting the first part of her ethnographic research, learning about the development of organic farming in the region and the role of women in organic farming through interviews and visiting various farms. She will be in Padang for eight months and will continue her research in Bali for the last two months of the grant period. At 17³Ô¹ÏÍø, Martha double-majored in Anthropology and Environmental Studies. She is grateful for the truly dedicated professors that mentored and challenged her and for the opportunities she had at 17³Ô¹ÏÍø. She hopes to pursue a graduate degree and career in environmental policy.
Rachel Gannon ’14 is living in Gorno-Altaisk Russia on a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship grant. She works at the Gorno-Altaisk State University teaching language practicums and courses on short stories in for third, fourth, and fifth year students. She leads an English club at a local high school and works with the American Film Showcase to screen American independent documentaries in Gorno-Altaisk. Rachel received a Fulbright Critical Language Enhancement Award to study Russian during her grant. She is enjoying immersing herself in the language and culture and learning more about Siberia, especially the Altai region and culture. Rachel went skiing for the first time and is appreciating living in a small town surrounded by "an abundance of" nature."