Two OSU students earn prestigious Fulbright overseas assistantships
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Andrew Moore (left) & Emilee Lehenbauer
Andrew Moore of Oklahoma City has received a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to Mexico, and Emilee Lehenbauer of Stillwater was named a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant to Korea.
According to Stephen W. Hallgren, OSU Fulbright adviser and associate professor of natural resource ecology and management, the number of OSU students applying for the Fulbright Program is expected to continue increasing in the next few years. OSU has had six Fulbright Scholars in the past three years, including three last year.
“Oklahoma State University is proud to have two more of our high-caliber students selected to receive Fulbright grants this year,” said OSU President Burns Hargis. “We have made it a priority to help all of our graduates gain some type of international experience. A Fulbright provides one of the best international learning experiences possible.”
Moore will graduate from OSU in July with an Honors College Degree in Spanish and a minor in mathematics, and his Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Mexico will begin in September. He is the son of Dennis and De’Lene Moore of Oklahoma City and is a 2004 graduate of Putnam City North High School.
While at OSU he also received the prestigious Bailey Family Memorial Scholarship for an 11-month study abroad program in Madrid, Spain. He hopes to become a physician in the future and work with Mexico and U.S. citizens. He has completed challenging and rewarding medical mission trips to Mexico as well as serving Stillwater Community Health Center as a volunteer. He also is singer, guitarist and principal songwriter for the musical group “Proper Name & the Nouns.”
Lehenbauer will receive a B.A. degree in international business and Spanish and a B.S. degree in community nutrition and leadership in May. She will begin her tenure in Korea this June, where she will teach conversational English to middle and high school students. The 12 and one-half month assignment includes six weeks of intensive language and cultural training, a Korean homestay and a two-month break in January and February.
She is the daughter of Terry and Cyglenda Lehenbauer of Stillwater, and is a 2004 graduate of Stillwater High School.
Lehenbauer already has international experience teaching English in South Africa and she has attended the OSU summer Cambridge University program twice. At OSU, she has served as president and vice-president of the OSU Student Government Association. Her numerous academic awards for excellence include a Wentz Research Scholar Award.
The Fulbright Program is an international educational exchange program that is sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to “increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.” The program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, currently operates in more than 155 countries worldwide. The term “Fulbright Program” actually encompasses numerous exchange programs for individuals and institutions.
For the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, students must be U.S. citizens with a bachelor’s degree or possess equivalent training or professional experience by the start of the grant, in good health, and have sufficient language ability as required by the host country and in keeping with the Fulbright mission.
The application process is long and demanding, Hallgren said, but students can win awards as English Teaching Assistants or as visiting researchers or scholars to work on projects. The number of applicants from OSU is approximately 10 per year.