Designed to provide short-term academic opportunities for U.S. faculty and professionals, the Fulbright Senior Specialists Program is one of several Fulbright initiatives administered by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES).
Not only are the grant lengths shorter - from two to six weeks, with possible serial grants - but grantees also have the opportunity to participate in a variety of new and exciting activities. The opportunities are numerous. For example, you can collaborate with counterparts in other countries on curriculum and faculty development, assist in institutional planning, deliver a series of lectures or provide other expertise, depending on a host institution's interests and needs.
Whatever your contributions, chances are you'll return home with an even broader cultural perspective in your own academic discipline or professional field. Maybe even your world.
Where Will Your Story Begin?
Not sure where a Fulbright Senior Specialists grant can take you? Just Hwa-Wei Lee, dean of libraries emeritus at Ohia University. He spent six weeks in Thailand helping to redesign Chiang Mai University's graduate program in library and information science. During his stay, Lee not only lent his expertise to revamping the existing curriculum, but also laid the groundwork for a continuing relationship between both universities.
Laila Denoya, an independent higher education consultant serving bilingual (Spanish/English) higher education institutions, used her Senior Specialists grant to address major issues facing higher education in the Dominican Republic. By conducting workshops and leading group activities for the Secretariat of Higher Education, Science and Technology (SEESCYT), a federal office created by the president of the Domenican Republic as a replacement to the National Council on Higher Education, Denoya observed that the attitude of the staff evolved from "me as an individual" to "us as a collaborative team". Denoya is also a former Fulbright Scholar to Honduras and Senior Specialist to Venezuela.
Howard Palley, professor of social policy at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County School of Social Work, journeyed to Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia State University. There he helped develop a project with a Ukrainian colleague to examine the delivery of long-term care services to the elderly in the Zaporizhzhia region.
Linda Scanlan, a retired journalism professor from Virginia, received a grant to travel to Kosovo. At the University of Pristina, she helped assess existing library resources and make acquisition recommendations."With a Fulbright grant, you return with a great sense of gratitude and renewed belief that international people-to-people programs ane the best route to global understanding," noted Scanlan.
What story will you have to tell?
Program Activities
Fulbright Senior Specialists activities are designed to provide U.S. faculty and professionals with opportunities to collaborate with overseas counterparts on a variety of projects, including:
• conducting needs assessments and surveys,
• taking part in specialized academic programs and conferences,
• consulting with administrators and instructors on faculty development,
• presenting lectures at graduate and undergraduate levels,
• participating in or leading seminars or workshops,
• developing and/or assessing academic curricula or educational materials and
• conducting faculty-training programs.
How to Apply
If you would like to apply, please contact Public Affairs Section at the U.S.Embassy. Phone number 976-11-329-095.
