Twelve from SU Named 2023-24 Fulbright Student Semifinalists
SALISBURY, MD---In 2022, a record nine from Salisbury University were selected as Fulbright Students, enabling them to live, study, conduct research and teach in Europe, Africa and South America.
This year, 12 SU Fulbright Student semifinalists hope to follow in their footsteps. They represent more than 50% of the University’s applicants for the 2023-24 program.
“This is the most diverse group of semifinalists we have had,” said Dr. Kristen Walton, director of SU’s Nationally Competitive Fellowships Office, noting that the cohort includes Pell Grant recipients, first-generation and transfer students, as well as those from varying ethnic backgrounds and those identifying as part of the LGBTQIA+ community.
“This is a truly challenging step, and it is a great honor for these students to have been chosen,” she added. “They all worked hard and were supported by a wonderful group of faculty and others around our campus community.”
Six seniors and three recent graduates are being considered for English Teaching Assistantships: Samantha Bartell D’22, from Montgomery Village, MD, to Moldova; Nanayaa Boaten, a philosophy and conflict analysis and dispute resolution major from Laurel, MD, to the Czech Republic; Gabriel Dunn, a political science and environmental studies major from Salisbury, to Indonesia; Shayna Grossberg ’20, from Gaithersburg, MD, to Azerbaijan; Allison Latham, an international studies major from Lusby, MD, to Spain; Susannah Randall, an English secondary education major from Clarksburg, MD, to Montenegro; Hira Shahbaz ’20, from Salisbury, to Kazakhstan; Ann Thomas, a biology major from Salisbury and member of SU’s Glenda Chatham and Robert G. Clarke Honors College, to Kyrgyzstan; and Danitza Verano Roman, a political science, international studies and Spanish major from Silver Spring, MD, to Benin.
Three seniors also are up for academic study and research awards: Sarah Hancock, an art major from Ocean City, MD, to Iceland; Adebola Okusolubo, a biology major from Bowie, MD, to Kenya; and Trey Skinner, a history major from Salisbury, to Germany.
More than 100 SU students have won national and international fellowships, scholarships and awards in the past decade, including 37 Fulbright students. The U.S. Department of State and Chronicle of Higher Education have spotlighted SU as the No. 1 master’s-level producer of Fulbright Students in the U.S. for 2022-23 and one of the nation’s top producers of Fulbright Students for the past six years.
The Fulbright is America’s flagship international exchange program and is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
SU students or alumni who are interested in applying for national fellowships, may contact Walton at kpwalton@salisbury.edu for assistance. For more information, visit the SU Nationally Competitive Fellowships Office webpage.
Learn more about SU and opportunities to Make Tomorrow Yours at the SU website.