Eleven recent graduates from the College of the Holy Cross have been awarded Fulbright grants to work and teach abroad during the 2012-13 academic year. This marks a record high number of Fulbrights awarded in a single year for the College. Since 2003, Holy Cross has received a total of 54 Fulbrights, and has consistently been among the nation’s top producers of Fulbright students at the undergraduate level.
The Fulbright Program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, is widely recognized as the most prestigious international exchange program in the world. The highly competitive grants are awarded on the basis of academic merit and professional promise.
This year’s recipients are headed to Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Korea, Luxembourg, Poland, Spain, Sri Lanka, United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom.
“I am very excited not only with the places and the numbers but also with overall participation,” said Anthony Cashman, director of Distinguished Fellowships and Graduate Studies at the College. “We have record numbers in total number of applicants, 55, and finalists, 28. I have already met with many in the class of 2013, and I look forward to working with this year’s candidates.
“In the end, the most important aspect of our Fulbright accomplishment is that the individuals who participate in this process learn a lot about themselves and their futures. And for the students who win, the Fulbright is a life-changing experience. Fulbrighters are not tourists. They become bona fide members of the communities in which they live, study, and work, and they gain every bit as much as they contribute.”
Each year approximately 1,000 college students are awarded grants through the Fulbright Program. Fulbright grants are made to U.S. citizens and nationals of other countries for a variety of educational activities, primarily university lecturing, advanced research, graduate study and teaching in elementary and secondary schools. Since the program’s inception in 1946, more than 300,000 participants have had the opportunity to observe each other’s political, economic and cultural institutions.
This year’s recipients are:
