Grand Valley ranked as top producer for Fulbright recipients

Grand Valley was ranked second nationally for the number of faculty members who are Fulbright Scholars and within the top 15 for number of U.S. Fulbright students.

The Chronicle of Higher Education released a list February 12 of colleges and universities that produce the most Fulbright Scholars.

Grand Valley was tied for second among master’s degree institutions for faculty Fulbright Scholars.

During the 2014-2015 year, three faculty members earned awards to teach and conduct research abroad.

They are Charles Baker-Clark, associate professor of hospitality and tourism management, Montenegro; Russ Rhoads, associate professor of anthropology, Sierra Leone; and Jerry Scripps, assistant professor of computing and information systems, Austria.

Grand Valley tied for 12th place among master’s institutions for student Fulbright Scholars, with four student recipients. They are Lydia Benkert, research grant, Ghana; Anne Gioncondini, English Teaching Assistantship, Ukraine; Erin Lutenski, English Teaching Assistantship, Germany; Hayley Pangle, English Teaching Assistantship, Azerbaijan.

It’s the first time Grand Valley has been ranked on the U.S. Fulbright student list.

Mark Schaub, chief international officer for Grand Valley, said being ranked among the top universities for Fulbright opportunities shows the university’s commitment to global learning.

“Furthermore, it is evidence of the high quality of Grand Valley faculty,” Schaub said. “They compete nationally for these prestigious awards, with regular success. Each award represents three levels of peer review.”

The Fulbright program is a prestigious and competitive program, and is the flagship of the U.S. government’s programs in international educational exchange. The program offers a variety of individual and institutional grants which are awarded on the basis of merit and allow individuals to study, teach, lecture, and conduct research in other countries. Grand Valley Faculty Fulbright Scholars are administered through the Padnos International Center.

The U.S. Student Fulbright Scholarship competition is administered at Grand Valley through the Frederik Meijer Office of Fellowships. For more information on the award and other competitive academic awards, visit gvsu.edu/fellowships.