Alumna named Fulbright Student English Teaching Assistant

Grand Valley alumna Kelsey Schoenborn, ‘12, of Coopersville has been awarded a Fulbright grant to pursue a U.S. student teaching assistantship in Brazil. 

Schoenborn was one of 120 students selected nationally as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant to Brazil. She will teach English from March through November 2014 as part of a comprehensive plan to increase the quality and quantity of English teaching in Brazil before the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games. The effort will assign at least two Fulbright English Teaching Assistants to the English language training center at each of the 59 federal universities throughout the country. 

Schoenborn and other English Teaching Assistants will spend about 25 hours per week developing and leading language learning activities to promote U.S. culture through cultural and social programs, with the assistance of faculty.

Schoenborn graduated with a degree in Spanish-secondary education and was a member of the Frederik Meijer Honors College. She has previously studied abroad in Peru, and plans to continue teaching Spanish following completion of her Fulbright English assistantship.

Graduating seniors and alumni who are interested in applying for the U.S. Student Fulbright Program to serve as an English Teaching Assistant or to study/conduct research should contact Amanda Cuevas, director of the Frederik Meijer Office of Fellowships at [email protected], (616) 331-2699, or by visiting room 230 of the Mary Idema Pew Library. Applications for the 2015-16 academic year open May 1. The deadline is September 26, 2014.

The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. The primary source of funding for the Fulbright Program is an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations and foundations in foreign countries and in the United States also provide direct and indirect support. Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The program operates in over 155 countries worldwide.