The University of New Mexico

NEWS RELEASE

 


Contact: Carolyn Gonzales 277-5920
cgonzal@unm.edu

June 21, 2006

UNM Sends Five Fulbright Scholars Out In The World

An unprecedented five University of New Mexico students – Christine Chin, Marcus Bellamy, Jay Gutierrez, Matthew Ingram and Julia Gilroy – received Fulbright grants this year. They demonstrate a strong interest in international understanding and harmony by traveling abroad to explore a range of topics from alternate energy techniques to public policy.

Tom Bogenschild, director, Office of International Programs and Studies, said each of the students follows distinct but parallel paths and a similar ambition: cultural awareness coupled with an international education.

“The students are diverse in all senses,” Bogenschild said. “What they have in common is a real interest and inquiry about international issues. They are different in the way they approach those issues.”

Christine Chin, who studied alternate energy generating techniques, will present her ideas to academic specialists in China artistically. Her aim is to inspire unconventional scientific thought creatively, she said.

Marcus Bellamy, who will be traveling to Spain, will teach English in an elementary school while putting his athletic talents on the field by volunteering as a sports coach.

Jay Gutierrez will put his newly acquired degree in Communication and Spanish to work in Uruguay where he will teach and study public policy and the social welfare system. He has previous international experience in Uganda and Greece.

Matthew Ingram will complete the research for his doctoral dissertation on state-level judicial institutions in Brazil .

Julia Gilroy will participate in the U.S.-Mexico Bi-National Business Program. While taking classes at the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de Mexico, she will also work full-time with a business in Mexico City.

“I really value the idea that you can't understand a country's economy without understanding its particular culture and history, or visa versa,” Gilroy said. She added that faculty in economics, Spanish and the Honors Program prepared her by providing her with a comprehensive education.

The group of culturally diverse students will go off in five directions on the globe to exchange ideas, knowledge and skills. The Fulbright experience will produce lasting effects for each student, UNM and New Mexico, said Bogenschild. “It will ripple beyond state and even national borders,” he said. He added that UNM invests in its students by helping them put together their proposals. The student then becomes a link to the campus internationally.

Established in 1946 by the U.S. Congress, the Fulbright program aims to promote the exchange of persons and their ideas in order to “enable the government of the United States to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries."

Bogenschild encouraged all students and faculty interested in participating in the Fulbright program to contact Ken Carpenter, International Programs and Studies, at carpenk@unm.edu .

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The University of New Mexico is the state's largest university, serving more than 32,000 students. UNM is home to the state's only schools of law, medicine, pharmacy and architecture and operates New Mexico's only academic health center. UNM is noted for comprehensive undergraduate programs and research that benefits the state and the nation.

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