WKU News

(left to right: Isabel Pergande, Jack Galloway, Vivian Rivera)

In addition to the three graduating seniors offered Fulbright US Student grants this spring, Vivian Rivera (‘24 Biology), Isabel Pergande (‘22 Political Science and History), and Jack Galloway (‘24 Business Data Analytics and Environmental, Sustainability, and Geographic Studies) have been named alternates. Alternates may be upgraded if additional funding becomes available. 

The Fulbright US Student Program offers full funding for graduating seniors and recent graduates to spend an academic year abroad in English Teaching Assistantships (ETAs) or conducting research or creative projects that may or may not be part of a postgraduate degree program. 

Isabel Pergande is the daughter of Delia and Tom Pergande of Lexington. She applied for the Fulbright-Dublin City University partnership award to study Political Communication. Isabel’s proposed project grew out of her undergraduate study and postgraduate work with the Charles F. Kettering Foundation, a nonprofit research organization working to strengthen democracy, where she has been a research assistant since graduating with degrees in Political Science and History in 2022. While there, Isabel became interested in deliberative democracy, which led her to examples in Ireland. In Irish citizen assemblies, a random, representative sample of citizens are invited by the head of government to learn about, deliberate on, and make recommendations to the legislative assembly about an important legal or policy issue facing the nation.While completing a MA in Political Communication, Isabel planned to work with researchers at the Institute for Future Media, Democracy, and Society at Dublin City University to explore how media can engage the broader public on the work of similar assemblies and foster a healthier democratic culture. 

Jack Galloway is the son of Dennie and Rebecca Galloway of Louisville. He applied for a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to Spain. Jack did not pursue education as a degree, but teaching is in his bones: leading his little brother through discovery, practice, and mastery, teaching swim lessons, mentoring younger participants in the Boy Scouts, and most recently teaching English to recently-arrived adult refugees. Jack earned a Gilman Scholarship to study for a semester in Costa Rica, where he formed relationships beyond campus through community gardening. He has spent the spring semester in Spain and looks forward to cultivating the cross-cultural potential of environmental education. 

Vivian Rivera is the daughter of Dr. Jennifer and Michael Rivera of Burlington. She applied for a Fulbright Research/Study grant to Ecuador to study the antimicrobial properties of plants used by indigenous people in the Amazon who eat phytochemical-rich diets of local foods. Vivian has been working toward a goal like this since she was in high school, pursuing expertise in ethnobotany, phytochemical analysis, Spanish language, and study abroad in Ecuador. As a junior, Vivian’s research potential was recognized by the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation with the most prestigious nationally competitive scholarship for future STEM researchers. She has been accepted to the PhD program in pharmaceutical sciences at Ohio State University, which will be funded in part by a highly competitive National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. 

Melinda Grimsley, who serves as Fulbright Program Advisor for the Fulbright US Student Program at WKU, said that alternates should be considered “awards without funding.”  

“I’ve been on the inside of selection committees many times, either as a member or observer, and the distinctions that selections committees make at the end are incredibly fine,” she said. “Every alternate, every semi-finalist, and every applicant, for that matter, has every reason to be proud of themselves and the quality of what they put forward. It’s no small feat to complete this application and take a chance in national competition!” 

Students and recent alumni interested in the Fulbright US Student Program are encouraged to contact Melinda Grimsley to explore options suited to their individual circumstances and goals.  

About the Fulbright Program: The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program 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 primary source of funding for the Fulbright Program is an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Participating governments, host institutions, corporations, and foundations in foreign countries and in the United States also provide direct and indirect support. Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The Program operates in over 160 countries worldwide. 

About the Office of Scholar Development: The Office of Scholar Development mentors students applying for national scholarships to fund “academic extras” such as study abroad, research, professional experience, and more. From first drafts to final submissions with multiple revisions in between, OSD helps students make more possible. By conceptualizing and revising the stories they tell in application essays and interviews, students better understand their strengths, interests, and purpose—and explore multiple possible pathways to that work.