Olivia Pellegrini

Eleven Clark University graduate and undergraduate students received funding from The Fulbright U.S. Student Program as well as other competitive programs for teaching assistantships, research and study abroad.

“The fact that 11 of our students have received such highly competitive and prestigious awards in nine different countries on four continents speaks to the global reach and reputation that Clark enjoys. I couldn’t be happier for them,” said Michael Butler, an associate professor of political science who serves as Clark’s Fulbright program adviser. “We at Clark are proud to have such a large and outstanding cohort of Fulbright and other award winners this year. The scope of their research projects, teaching assignments and country placements is a testament to the quality of these terrific students and graduates,” said Butler, a former Fulbright Scholar in 2014-15.

Three recent graduates received Fulbright grants to fund their teaching abroad for the 2017-18 school year. Aviv Hilbig-Bokaer received a grant from Fulbright Austria to teach English to high school students in Vienna, focusing on art and human rights. Hilbig-Bokaer recently received a bachelor of arts, majoring in comparative literature and international development.

Madeline Phillips and Maia Moore received U.S. Fulbright Teaching Assistantships to teach English in Argentina and Germany. Moore, who majored in Spanish and psychology, also plans to volunteer with children to promote mental health in Argentina, having recently received her master of arts in teaching this May. Phillips will teach English at Friedrich Ludwig John Gymnasium in Greifswald, Germany. The recent graduate majored in English along with German studies.

Clark doctoral students and candidates William Collier, Samantha Lakin, David Lukens, and Scott Odell also received Fulbright research awards. Collier, who successfully pursued geography, will conduct research in Kenya for his doctoral dissertation. Serving as visiting researcher and lecturer in the Faculty of Environment and Resources Development at Egerton University in Nakuru, Kenya, the scholar will collaborate with faculty and local NGOs to better establish and understand the intersections of forest governance and agricultural production. Collier completes his degree in 2018.

Samantha Larkin, Ph.D. candidate at the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, will travel to Rwanda to do research for her dissertation. Essentially she will conduct interviews with local genocide survivors, former perpetrators, and ordinary citizens to understand their perspectives on memorial sites, commemorations, and justice in the aftermath of genocide. Larkin also received a Boren Fellowship to continue her study of the Kinyardwanda language in Rwanda while also doing her Fulbright research. She expects to complete her degree in 2019.

Ph.D. candidate David Lukens will research geographial pursuits in Seoul, South Korea with a dissertation titled “Emerging Forms of Urban Renewal: Private Actors and Social Impacts.” Lukens expects to complete his degree this year.

Scott Odell, also studying geography, received an Inter-American Foundation Fellowship to fund his fieldwork on Chilean mining and hydrosocial issues. Odell plans to complete his degree this year.
Graduates Cassidy To, Keane Gately and Sam Spinner were accepted into the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program, a competitive employment opportunity allowing young professionals to live and work in cities, towns and villages throughout Japan.

Thomas Hutto recently received an award from the U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) to study Chinese at the National Cheng Kung University in Tainian, Taiwan, this summer. The economics major has studied incrementally for the last two years, aided by a Gilman Scholarship and a Boren Scholarship. Hutto expects to finish his degree in August.

Since 1887, Clark University has addressed social and human imperatives on a global scale. LEEP, or Liberation and Effective Practice, represents an aim to work across boundaries and develop global solutions, during and beyond education. For additional information, visit www.clark.edu.