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91³Ô¹ÏÍø is celebrating a record number of Fulbright Scholarships this spring, as five graduating seniors and three recent alumni have received the prestigious award to research, teach, and study abroad.

The 2019 Fulbright winners are undergraduate students Maggie Gillen, ’19, Lena Haaf, ’19, Justin Montague, ’19, Nicole Schneider, ’19, Allie Weis, ’19, and alumni Carla Blackwell, M.Ed. ’16, Keenan Gibbons, ’18, and Marco Orsimarsi, ’15.

"As a university, we are so proud of the high-achieving, innovative students and graduates who have earned these prestigious Fulbright Scholarships," said Amanda M. Thomas, Ph.D., provost and vice president for academic affairs. "Our faculty are exceptional teachers and scholars who are invested in mentoring our students and supporting them in securing this transformative experience that enhances not only their career options but their lives as a whole."

The Fulbright U.S. Student Program facilitates cultural exchange provided in more than 140 countries around the world through opportunities to engage in research in a foreign country or teach English for students of various age groups. Through engagement in the community, grantees interact with their hosts on a one-to-one basis in an atmosphere of openness, academic integrity, and intellectual freedom, thereby promoting mutual understanding. The program is sponsored by the U.S. Senate and various organizations in the host countries.

Blackwell, who earned her master’s in education from Loyola in 2016, will use her Fulbright Scholarship to teach English in South Africa.

Gibbons was a history major and political science minor at Loyola and she will conduct history research in Germany.

Gillen is a psychology major with a sociology minor who has previously studied abroad in Cork, Ireland. She will use her Fulbright Scholarship to teach English in the Netherlands.

Haaf, who will be teaching English in Argentina, is a Global Studies major with a minor in Spanish and peace and justice studies.

Montague, who is a biochemistry major, will use his scholarship to conduct public health research in Chile.

Orsimarsi studied economics and political science at Loyola and will teach English in Galicia, Spain.

Schneider will do machine learning research in Cagliari, Italy, and is a computer science and applied math double major at Loyola.

Weis studied abroad in Leuven, Belgium, last spring. The psychology major with a minor in philosophy will use her Fulbright Scholarship to return to Belgium to teach English.