ATLANTA — Agnes Scott College is one of the top producers of U.S. Fulbright Fellows for 2009-2010 in the country. The college, with an enrollment of approximately 880 students, had four Fulbright scholars for 2009-2010. These four were selected from seven applicants, giving the college an acceptance rate of about 57 percent—the second highest percentage among the undergraduate institutions listed.
“It’s very telling that Agnes Scott produces almost as many Fulbright scholars as top universities with ten or twenty times the number of students. Our students are encouraged to explore global issues and diverse cultures and equipped with the academic and leadership skills they need to excel as Fulbright scholars all around the world,” said Elizabeth Kiss, president of Agnes Scott.
The Fulbright Program is a flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and designed “to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.” Since its establishment in 1946 the Fulbright Program has provided almost 300,000 participants—chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential—with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns.
Three of the college’s Fulbright Scholars are serving as assistant English teachers in various parts of the world. Kelley Bledsoe of Arlington, Va., class of 2009, is teaching in Taiwan; Linnette Franco of Lawrenceville, Ga., class of 2008, is teaching in Spain; and Sarah Mecholsky of Gainesville, Fla., class of 2009, is teaching in Indonesia. A fourth Fulbright scholar, Molly Roza of Roseville, Calif., class of 2009, is conducting research in modern history in Austria.
Agnes Scott’s Fulbright success runs parallel to one of the college’s core commitments—to encourage students to become responsible citizens of the world. More than half of the college’s students will study abroad before they graduate.
“It’s a chance to spend a year immersed in another culture and to not only represent your culture and country but to see it from the perspective of others. In this day of globalization and internationalization, living abroad is enlightening and rewarding in countless ways for students,” said Christine Cozzens, a Fulbright program adviser and professor of English at Agnes Scott. “At Agnes Scott, we have experienced, and we encourage, a surge in interest in international experience of all kinds.”
Under the Fulbright program this year, 1,559 American students in more than 100 different fields of study have been offered grants to study, teach English and conduct research in more than 125 countries throughout the world beginning this fall. The Fulbright Program is sponsored by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Financial support is provided by an annual appropriation from Congress to the Department of State, with significant contributions from participating governments and host institutions in the United States and abroad.
The list of top producing Fulbright colleges and universities was announced in the Oct. 19 edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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Agnes Scott College educates women to think deeply, live honorably and engage the intellectual and social challenges of their times. Students are drawn to Agnes Scott by its excellent academic reputation, exceptional faculty, and metropolitan Atlanta location – offering myriad cultural and experiential learning opportunities. A diverse and growing residential community of scholars, this highly selective liberal arts and sciences college is known for its dynamic and challenging intellectual community. Encouraging students to engage the wider world through study abroad and presenting its curriculum with international context, Agnes Scott College delivers on its promise: The World for Women.