Patterson Ekeocha
Fulbright Visiting Scholar, Fordham University
"The Fulbright program provided a great opportunity for me to enhance my professional career as a lecturer and researcher, and as well helped me push back the boundaries of ignorance. The Fulbright experience made me appreciate in a more intense dimension, the saying that the world is a global village, which indeed it is.
I am very very grateful to the United States Department of State for giving me this life long opportunity which is not only self beneficial, but will also benefit my University-the University of Nigeria and my country because of the capacity building. My gratitude shall never be impugned."
Dr. Anne Tanyi-tang
Fulbright Scholar
"By bringing people from different parts of the world who meet and talk about themselves, their respective disciplines, their various countries, establish long term relationships and learn about America and Americans, the Fulbright Scholar Program is in effect encouraging international understanding and peace. Furthermore, people who listened to my talks, presentations and lectures learnt about Cameroon and African Theatre, and were eager to learn more, which I found very encouraging. Moreover, the equipped libraries in USA are giving me the opportunity to carryout intensive research and to keep abreast with current developments in my discipline. I am quite certain that my students and my country will benefit enormously from the knowledge I will take back".
John Rapagli
Alumnus of the U.S. Student Program, who did research on the impact of submarine water dischard in the Venice Lagoon in Italy.
"Fulbright afforded me the opportunity to spend a year in Venice, Italy; a year which would forever open my eyes and change my life. Though the time I spent acquiring data for my future dissertation was well worth it in itself, the most rewarding experience was talking to people and learning about cultures other than the one I am familiar with. I will forever be indebted to the Fulbright Program."
"Everyday our world gets smaller (as things like the internet and telecommunications improve) therefore, now, more than ever, global education should be a priority. The more we know about the peoples who inhabit this planet, the better prepared for the future we will be. We are one species but we have many different cultures, we need to strive to understand and respect each of these cultures in order to achieve a better tomorrow. The Fulbright Program understands this philosophy and therefore is the leader from which other programs must follow."
Frances L. Sinanu
Visiting Language Teaching Assistant from Indonesia, who is teaching Indonesian at Columbia University in New York City.
"My Fulbright experience has been more than I expected it would be. I knew that I would be somehow changed by this experience, both professionally as a language teacher as well as an individual. However, I did not expect to learn this much in such a short period of time especially in appreciating my own culture. I knew that one will understand one's culture better when one is looking from the outside but I never really had the chance to experience that before. Now, through the Fulbright FLTA program, I am able to gain a better understanding of my own culture & country as I am teaching it to my students here in America. On top of that, Fulbright has also given me the privilege of understanding my culture not only from the American perspective, but also from the perspective of the many beautiful individuals from countries that I never even heard before, who are now part of my Fulbright family. For me, Fulbright is not only about me learning about America and for Americans to learn more about my country, but its more about enabling each individual engaged in the program to understand better about their own culture in respect to others'. I believe that by knowing the difference between these cultures people will eventually create a better understanding among all cultures in the world. I know that I understand the difference now and I know that I have helped others gain the same understanding and I thank Fulbright for that."
