Alexis Elder, a graduating senior in Elementary Education, is WKU’s third Fulbright US Student Program grantee of the 2024-25 award year. She has been awarded an English Teaching Assistantship for Spain. 

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.  

Alexis (Ali) is a native of Louisville, the daughter of Amy and Adam Elder. She is a member of the Mahurin Honors College and Kappa Delta sorority, in which she has served in multiple leadership roles. She has completed all four phases of the Dynamic Leadership Institute and served as a WKU Literacy Ambassador since 2022. A hallmark of her experience at WKU has been diversity, equity, and inclusion; she has served as the VP for Inclusion and DEI Chair in Kappa Delta, as well as presenting on inclusion in education at the Higher Edquity Symposium in 2021. 

Ali’s motivation for pursuing a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Spain comes from distinctly Kentuckian experience. As a participant in the Governor’s Scholars Program in high school, she began to see the importance of working toward creating a community based on mutual understanding as students came from all over the state and a variety of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds to connect with a common purpose. 

Ali undertook a short study abroad to Spain in high school and planned to return on a longer program as an undergraduate if not for the disruptions of COVID. She was especially drawn to Spain’s governmental structure that is in some ways similar to the United States; like American states, Spanish regions are culturally distinct and have significant autonomy to carry out education policy. Ali looks forward to seeing how Spanish schools meet the challenges of engaging students from a variety of backgrounds. 

Ali also looks forward to putting her plentiful clinical experiences and her Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) minor to work in her host school and community. Throughout her elementary education curriculum at WKU, Ali has been placed in local Bowling Green schools every semester with children of various ages and in different communities. As a refugee resettlement hub, Bowling Green and Warren County offer education students like Ali valuable opportunities to develop the adaptability and flexibility needed to help students from a variety of socioeconomic, cultural, linguistic, and national backgrounds thrive. 

After spending the 2024-25 academic year in Spain, Ali plans to pursue a teaching career in Kentucky, bringing her own cross-cultural experiences home to Kentuckian students and pursuing further study in educational leadership. 

“I could not be more excited for this opportunity and am feeling beyond grateful!” says Ali, who is completing her student teaching this semester. “Teaching is a dynamic profession, and I stay motivated by focusing on the children in front of me. Building relationships with students and celebrating their victories propels my passion for educating, and I can’t wait to do this in Spain.” 

Students and recent alumni interested in the Fulbright US Student Program are encouraged to contact Melinda Grimsley, WKU’s Fulbright Program Advisor.  

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.