Idia Irele has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program grant to Andorra from the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.
Irele, who graduated from Smith College in Northampton in May with a degree in International Relations and Spanish, will be teaching English and American culture to Andorran high school students in order to foster a mutual understanding between Andorra and the United States. She also plans to intern at Andorra’s Ministry of Education and carry out an after school leadership class for students in the community.
Irele was selected as one of only five American scholars to teach in Andorra, and is one of over 1,900 U.S. citizens who will teach, conduct research, and provide expertise abroad for the 2016-2017 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.
Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement as well as record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields. Irele, a Nigerian-American who speaks four languages, has worked with Boston Mobilization in Cambridge’s Harvard Square and helped to start a coalition called Youth of Massachusetts Organizing for a Reformed Economy. She took on several leadership roles at Smith and studied in Spain for the entire academic year and summer in 2014 and 2015. This summer she taught English to English Language Learners at Holyoke High School and was a Smith College Coordinator for the Global Partners Institute’s (GPI) Empowerment, a summer program for Japanese exchange students who want to explore American culture while developing leadership skills. She believes that these engagements contributed to her selection for Fulbright.
The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to build relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries that are needed to solve global challenges. The Fulbright Program is funded through an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations and foundations around the world also provide direct and indirect support to the Program, which operates in over 160 countries worldwide.
Fulbrighters address critical global challenges — from sustainable energy and climate change to public health and food security — in all areas, while building relationships, knowledge and leadership in support of the long-term interests of the United States and the world. Fulbright alumni have achieved distinction in many fields, including 54 who have been awarded the Nobel Prize, 82 who have received Pulitzer Prizes, and 33 who have served as a head of state or government.
Irele is excited to explore Andorra, a small European nation nestled in the Pyrenees Mountains between Spain and France. She hopes that her experience in Andorra will help bolster a career in International Education Policy and Human Rights.
The following local students graduated from the university in Kingston, Rhode Island.
Natasha Andrea Bedoya-Ross of South Hadley, received a bachelor’s degree in health studies.
Janelle L Gorman of Southampton, received a bachelor’s degree in nursing. magna cum laude.
Mitch Scott Hatzipetro of Southampton, received a bachelor’s degree in aquaculture and fishery technology, marine affairs.
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