Fourteen University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign students and recent alumni were offered Fulbright grants to pursue international education, research and teaching experiences across the globe this coming year.
The goal of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program is to build international relationships to help solve global challenges. This flagship international educational exchange program of the U.S. government awards grants to students based on their academic and professional achievement as well as their demonstrated leadership potential. The Fulbright student program will fund approximately 2,100 U.S. citizens to travel abroad for the 2020-21 academic year. Some Illinois grantees declined their award due to program modifications put in place for the COVID-19 pandemic, such as delayed departure dates and shortened programs.
One of the ten U. of I. recipients who accepted their Fulbright grant is Kutasha Bryan-Silva, of Vieques, Puerto Rico, a doctoral student of Curriculum & Instruction. She holds a bachelor’s degree in women’s studies from the University of Maryland and a master’s in cello performance from the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music. Bryan-Silva was awarded a Fulbright grant to conduct nine months of dissertation research in Montevideo, Uruguay.
While in Uruguay, Bryan-Silva will study how the country’s primary school system promotes environmental education with the support of digital technologies. Her findings seek to reach beyond the classroom to illuminate the importance of recognizing children’s local knowledge in the protection of natural resources—in particular, the country’s coastal shoreline. An accomplished cellist and vocalist, Bryan-Silva said she hopes to collaborate with local musicians during her Fulbright tenure. Long term, Bryan-Silva said she aspires to work with an international development agency to develop accessible and sustainable schools for girls and indigenous children worldwide.
Please join us in congratulating Kutasha Bryan-Silva!
Read more about Illinois' cohort of 2020-21 Fulbright awardees from the UI News Bureau.
