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Building a Fulbright Partnership: Promoting Diversity in STEM Fields

June 15, 2016

The 2016 cohort of Mount Sinai’s International Exchange Program for Minority Students visiting the Institute of International Education (from left to right, back row): Grant Quiller, Andrew Fisher, Hanna Amanuel, Lanaiar Lett, Waru Gichane, Liz Alvarez, Rayven Plaza, Taylor Jamerson, Mayra Orozco-Llamas; (front row, left to right): Ala Mansour and Natalie Fernandez.

Ten years ago, Athena Fulay, Senior Manager for Institutional Engagement at the Council for International Exchange of Scholars and my longtime outreach colleague from the Fulbright Scholar Program, forwarded a request she’d received to host a pre-departure orientation focusing on Fulbright opportunities for a group of minority graduate students pursuing degrees in the health sciences. Since none of the students held PhDs, and therefore wouldn’t be eligible for Fulbright Scholar opportunities, Athena felt it made more sense for me to handle the request and investigate further. I proceeded to respond to the request and asked the Mount Sinai contact about the composition of the group, the program they represented, and how we could best provide whatever information they needed.

In my subsequent email exchanges, I learned quite a bit: Founded in 2005 by Dr. Luz Claudio, Chief of the Division of International Health at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, the group was called the International Exchange Program for Minority Students. Since its inception, the International Exchange Program for Minority Students has been receiving funding from the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and in 2010 and in 2015, it was re-evaluated and deemed to be an “outstanding” program at the highest NIH score level.

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Culture and Contrast in Fortaleza

April 11, 2016

Missy Reif, 2013-2015, Fulbright English Teaching Assistant to Brazil (center), performing with members of Oré Anacã

During my time as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) in Fortaleza, Brazil, it was apparent that my students at the Federal University of Ceará (UFC) had widespread access to American culture. They watched American TV shows and movies, listened to American music. Yet, despite living in the fifth largest city in the country, most of my students had never met an American before I arrived on campus. While this idea made me a little nervous at first, it was an amazing opportunity to show my students that life in the United States is more than American Pie.

ETAs in Brazil fill a number of roles on their university campuses. At UFC, my time was split between giving guest lectures and running my own extracurricular activities on campus. In two years, I led many conversation clubs where we played games and practiced English without the pressure of grades or assignments, and organized weekly cultural seminars on topics including religious and cultural diversity, sports, and American holidays and traditions. All of these activities provided students with opportunities to improve their English, and their confidence, in a fun and laid-back setting. While our activities sometimes focused on aspects of the language—workshops on slang and phrasal verbs were always a hit—I found that the students were most interested in in-depth discussions focusing on distinctions between the United States and Brazil.

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2016 Philadelphia Foreign Fulbright Enrichment Seminar

March 10, 2016

From March 3-6, 2016, Fulbrighters took to the “City of Brotherly Love,” Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to participate in the 2016 Enrichment Seminar, “Democracy in Action: U.S. Politics and Elections.” Joining the more than 130 students over the course of local cultural site visits, community service activities, and a presidential election simulation workshop included accomplished political commentators, strategists, and academics.

Held at the Independence Visitor’s Center, the opening dinner welcomed CNN’s Michael A. Smerconish to deliver a phenomenal keynote address, “Stuck in the Middle with You: How Did We Get Where We Are (Politically) and What Will It Take to Get Out.” Smerconish, who is the author of two New York Times’ best sellers, analyzed the current fraught U.S. political climate heading into the 2016 general election in November, and even offered an apt comparison between the U.S. two-party system, voter preferences, and citizens’ proclivity to shop at specific grocery stores based on location.

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Fulbright: The Grant That Keeps on Giving

March 9, 2016

Sarah Sanderson Doyle, 2012-2014, Fulbright English Teaching Assistant to Brazil, with her husband in Rio de Janeiro

In 2011, my husband and I were ecstatic to find out that I was selected as one of thirty Fulbright English Teaching Assistants (ETAs) to Brazil for the 2012-2013 academic year. We spent an incredible ten months in Ilhéus, Bahía, teaching English, giving cultural presentations and volunteering in the community. I was even more excited to learn that I was chosen to be one of ten Fulbrighters asked to return to Brazil the following year to serve as mentors as the Brazilian Fulbright ETA program expanded from thirty to one hundred and twenty grantees. We were relocated to the north of the country and spent another challenging and fascinating ten months in Belém, Pará, right at the edge of the Amazon.

Though I have plenty of stories and experiences to share about my time as a Fulbright ETA, what I would like to highlight are the amazing opportunities that I’ve had because of my Fulbright experience, along with how valuable it is to stay connected to the U.S. Department of State’s and the Institute of International Education’s (IIE) alumni communities after the grant period ends. Some of the many advantages include having stories to share in interviews and applications, increased chances for professional development and volunteering, networking and internships.

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Meet the 2016 Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors!

December 14, 2015

2016 Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors (from left to right, back row): Hanna Miller, Jonathan Rabb, Katelyn Leader, Alex Counts, Chane Corp, David Morales, Ryan Stock, Jilisa Milton, Mathieu Davis, Daniel Koehler; (left to right, front row) Mary Ogunrinde, Hannah Jones, Claire Manneh, Emmanuel Johnson, Christina Galardi, Evy Vourlides, Lauren Pitts, Alex Anderson, David Fleming, Rafael Camacho, Jr., and Emily Yedinak at the U.S. Department of State

On Thursday, December 10, 2015, 20 newly selected Fulbright U.S. Student Program Alumni Ambassadors met in Washington, DC to receive training on how to promote and recruit for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Staff members from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and the Institute of International Education (IIE), along with previous Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors, shared tips on effectively presenting the impact, innovativeness, and inclusiveness of Fulbright Program opportunities. The orientation workshop emphasized the unique and important role that Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors play in inspiring a diverse range of students, artists, and early career professionals – as well as the Fulbright Program Advisers and college administrators who support them – to learn more about the Fulbright Program and the power of educational and cultural exchange.

This year’s group was joined by notable Fulbright U.S. Student Program alumnus, Alex Counts (1988-1989, Bangladesh), Founder and past President and CEO of the Grameen Foundation, who shared how his Fulbright experiences continue to have an impact on his professional and non-professional life. Alex encouraged the 2016 Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors to share their Fulbright story and utilize the skills and cultural competencies they acquired as Fulbrighters with everyone they meet as representatives of the Program and beyond.

The Fulbright U.S. Student Alumni Ambassador Program was established in 2008 to identify, train and engage a select group of approximately 15-20 Fulbright U.S. Student Program alumni to serve as representatives, recruiters and spokespersons for the Fulbright Program. They are selected annually through recommendations from Fulbright Commissions, U.S. Embassy staff, area managers, and the Fulbright Student Program Outreach Division, and approved by the Fulbright Program’s sponsor, ECA. Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors come from an array of different ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, states, fields of study, and institutions and have participated in the Fulbright U.S. Student Program in all world areas.

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Ni de Aquí Ni de Allá (“Not From Here or There”)

December 10, 2015

Carmen Román, 2015-2016, Peru, sitting in front of the chapel at Hacienda Arona in Cañete

Friday night I was invited to the U.S. Embassy in Lima for a live viewing of the soccer match between the United States and Peru. I was expecting a small gathering but as I walked up to the Embassy, I noticed a long line outside. I asked the guy at the end of the line what the line was for, and he responded: “To view the soccer match!” I lined up behind him. He turned around and said, “You need an invitation.” I assured that him I had one.

Apparently, 180 people had been invited, including the national press and local students learning English. As I passed through security, I could hear the vibrant sounds of the Batucada playing in the background and of course, I did a little samba–– an upbeat dance of Brazilian origin performed during Carnival parades.

As I walked in, I felt like a queen. This was the place were my parents had come more than twenty-five years ago to ask for a Visa to purse their American dream. I remember hearing about bank statements and other paperwork they had to bring; I imagined my dad sitting, nervously awaiting his turn. And now, here I am more than two decades later, walking the same grounds as an American, invited to this private event.

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