News from The Mahurin Honors College

Priscilla Riggs is a young woman ready to embrace the myriad opportunities that come with exploring new and different spaces around the world. As we chatted about her study abroad scholarships, she was just five days away from flying to South Korea to participate in a month-long summer program hosted by Hanyang International Summer School. For Priscilla, studying abroad is a stepping stone to her ultimate goal of living abroad permanently, and she has devised many plans to make her dreams a reality.  

A first-generation college student from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, Priscilla came to WKU to pursue a major in English. Since her start as an honors Hilltopper in Fall 2023, she’s added a few other fields because of her expanding interests. At the time of our conversation, she was a double major in business strategic marketing and English professional writing with a minor in teaching English to speakers of other languages. 

“I’ve always been good at writing; it was my strongest subject in school, and I really enjoyed it. I can write for hours,” Priscilla shared. “I was initially an elementary education major, having grown up in that atmosphere, but my desire to teach English to speakers of other languages made me choose English education instead of elementary education. The TESOL minor in the English department steered me toward professional writing. I like technical writing because it’s fun for me, and I want to teach English either in US school systems or abroad.” 

Priscilla’s mother, employed by Hardin County Schools, played a crucial role in helping her explore career options. Through her mother’s network, Priscilla heard about a co-worker’s daughter who had been teaching English in South Korea for the past nine years. To Priscilla, that life seemed like “the coolest thing ever,” combining travel and teaching – her two passions. 

WKU was among Priscilla's top choices because of her positive experiences with WKU's regional campus in Elizabethtown, where she was among the first cohort of students in a dual-credit teacher education pathway, stating that "because of Honors and OSD – I heard a lot of people come here and receive many opportunities. [WKU] is not as big of a university as some of the others, so it's more personal here." She was also drawn to WKU because of her past teachers, who are alumni, and frequent trips to Bowling Green with her family.  

Feeling confident in her decision to attend WKU and to pursue her goal of teaching English abroad, Priscilla sought out the Office of Scholar Development after attending a session they facilitated, and she decided to meet with Will Randolph, formerly of OSD. Her collaboration with Will and OSD resulted in three competitive scholarship awards that will fund two separate education experiences in South Korea: Freeman-Asia and the Benjamin A. Gilman Scholarship, which will fund her Spring 2025 attendance at Yonsei University, and the Fund for Education Abroad currently supporting her Summer 2024 experience at Hanyang International Summer School.  

Applying for multiple awards meant long nights in the library or the Honors College & International Center building. However, for Priscilla, she believes that this chapter of her life holds many once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. "There are so many opportunities that are only available to college-attending young adults; resultingly, this is the only time in my life where I can pursue all these extraordinary opportunities, and that mentality keeps me going." She is supported by her professors, close friends, who share her passion for international experiences, and her mother and her sister, whom she describes as "my number one supporters." 

Although graduation is planned for May 2026, Priscilla is adjusting the timeline based on her phase two applications she intends to pursue with OSD – Critical Language Scholarship to fund a summer 2025 abroad experience in South Korea and then a Fulbright application to teach English for post-graduate experience, also in South Korea in 2027. Her interest in South Korea is not entirely motivated by the so-called BTS effect but also by South Korean faculty at WKU and other students’ reports of amazing experiences and opportunities. 

"My main goal is to teach English in South Korea to satisfy my inner teacher, but I'm unsure if that will be long-term. New opportunities open up everywhere you go, and you meet new people," she said. "With my business degree, if I'm there for a while, I would like to work as a marketing professional for a South Korean company or even in public relations."

She has already begun acquiring school-based experience in the US by substitute teaching on Fridays, when she doesn't have class, for elementary schools in Hardin County. Apart from her personal passion for international experiences, Priscilla is also very passionate about advocating for changes in how non-English speakers are taught English when enrolled in US schools.

In Fall 2024, alongside Dr. Jessi Thomsen of the English department, she will participate in the Naylor Workshop for Undergraduate Research and Writing Studies for its 10^th gathering in York, Pennsylvania. This workshop partners students with faculty mentors to help refine their proposals and ultimately carry out their research. Her accepted proposal is focused on ways to combat the production of semi-lingual language speakers resulting from current English as a Second Language (ESL) programs.

"Kids in the US that are nonnative English speakers often don't receive support in their L1 [primary language], and have a learner's proficiency in English [L2 language] as they learn it in school – which means they are semi-lingual in both languages, and they don't speak either language fluently." ESL programs are predominantly interested in helping learners acquire English language skills as fast as possible, sometimes to the detriment of their primary language. 

Reflecting on her WKU journey so far, especially as she was only five days away from taking her flight to begin her Hanyang summer program, Priscilla shared, "WKU is a pool of knowledge. I've been referred to many people, meaning I've already met so many different people, and I've learned from each of them: email people, and even if it's the wrong person, it's okay because they will direct you to the right person. The more you learn from other people, the more opportunities open up, even some that you didn't even know were possible. This sort of knowledge gathering of opportunities puts healthy goals in your mind… even if they aren't something you will pursue right now. Just knowing about them makes them a possibility for later." 

Priscilla Riggs’ journey is a testament to the power of ambition, hard work, and the willingness to explore the world. As she prepares to embark on her international adventures, her story serves as an inspiration to all who dream of making a global impact.