Twenty Notre Dame students named 2023-24 Fulbright US Student Program finalists
Twenty University of Notre Dame students — three graduate students and 17 undergraduates — have been selected as Fulbright U.S. Student Program finalists for the 2023-24 academic year, contingent upon host country approvals, medical clearance and submission of all required grant documents.
Another seven students — two graduate students and five undergraduates — have been selected as alternates for the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program.
In applying for the award, undergraduate students worked closely with the Flatley Center for Undergraduate Scholarly Engagement (CUSE) and graduate students with the Office of Grants and Fellowships in the Graduate School.
Jeff Thibert is the Paul and Maureen Stefanick director of CUSE.
“We are thrilled to have had another successful year with the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, one that should place us on the Top Producing list of U.S. institutions for the 10th consecutive year. Clearly we are doing something right!” Thibert said. “Much of the credit should go to those who prepare our students to be competitive Fulbright applicants by providing them with a truly global education, including the teams in Notre Dame International, the Keough School of Global Affairs, the Center for the Study of Languages and Cultures, and all the other globally facing units at the University. Perhaps I’m biased, but in my view the most credit should go to the outstanding Fulbright advising team we have in CUSE: Elise Rudt-Moorthy and Mathilda Nassar, who work with our English teaching assistantship applicants, and Emily Hunt, who works with our study/research grant applicants. They put in long hours between March and October recruiting applicants, helping them to discern whether Fulbright is right for them and working with them to prepare the best possible applications.
"The University’s consistently outstanding performance with the Fulbright U.S. Student Program is a result of the excellent support that Notre Dame provides to our extraordinary students.”
Thomas Fuja, interim vice president, associate provost and dean of the Graduate School, said, “To win a Fulbright award is a badge of honor that is recognized and respected everywhere in the world. We should all be proud that Notre Dame students can successfully compete in such a prestigious program — and even more proud that they are motivated to take their talents and training and go be a force for good throughout the world.”
The 20 finalists are:
Undergraduate
• Isabella Allen, class of 2023, chemical engineering, study and research grant to Jamaica.
• Michael Barrett, class of 2023, political science and history, English teaching assistantship to Germany.
• Britton Brindle, class of 2023, political science, English teaching assistantship to Serbia.
• Rachel Colligan, class of 2023, Program of Liberal Studies, study and research grant to Italy.
• Abigail Craff, class of 2023, German and economics, English teaching assistantship to Germany.
• Allison Doctor, class of 2023, honors Spanish and global affairs (supplementary), English teaching assistantship to Spain.
• Grace Ducat, class of 2023, preprofessional studies, English teaching assistantship to Vietnam.
• Joshua Gilchrist, class of 2023, Program of Liberal Studies and theology (supplementary), English teaching assistantship to South Korea.
• Mary Kate Godfrey, class of 2023, political science and global affairs (supplementary), English teaching assistantship to Morocco.
• Mireille Ibrahim, class of 2023, honors Spanish, English teaching assistantship to Andorra.
• Mitchell Johnson, class of 2023, accountancy and honors English, English teaching assistantship to Montenegro.
• Alexis Kelly, class of 2023, honors art history and psychology, English teaching assistantship to Germany.
• Claire Kloska, class of 2023, psychology and Spanish, English teaching assistantship to Spain.
• Quinn McKenna, class of 2023, Program of Liberal Studies, English teaching assistantship to Panama.
• Sofia Nakfoor, class of 2023, psychology and economics, English teaching assistantship to Spain.
• Carlondrea Petty, class of 2023, preprofessional studies and Spanish (supplementary), English teaching assistantship to Spain.
• Julia Schlueter, class of 2023, science-business and honors Spanish, English teaching assistantship to Spain.
Graduate
• Eric Budd, master’s student in education (Alliance for Catholic Education), English teaching assistantship to Bulgaria.
• Ella Baxter, master’s student in education (Alliance for Catholic Education), English teaching assistantship to Spain.
• Jacob Moniz, master’s student in creative writing, study and research grant to Portugal.
Established in 1946 and administered by the U.S. Department of State, the Fulbright U.S. Student Program supports and enables passionate and accomplished graduate and undergraduate students to pursue graduate study, conduct research or teach English abroad.
The application window for the 2024-25 Fulbright U.S. Student Program is currently open. For more information or to apply, visit cuse.nd.edu (undergraduate/ACE) or graduateschool.nd.edu/graduate-training/research-communication/the-office-of-grants-and-fellowships (graduate).
Latest ND NewsWire
- Notre Dame celebrates new pope; Father Dowd offers prayersRev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., president of the University of Notre Dame, offered his prayers for Pope Leo XIV, elected by the College of Cardinals today in Vatican City as the 267th pontiff of the Catholic Church.
- Collaboration with National Education Equity Lab to Create Pathways to Notre DameA group of campus units led by Notre Dame Learning’s Office of Digital Learning are building a pathway to the University for students who might not otherwise envision themselves as candidates to attend. It is an initiative made possible through a collaboration with the National Education Equity Lab, which partners with top universities to deliver actual college credit-bearing courses and supports to scholars in low-income high school classrooms across the nation.
- Clare Cullinan named valedictorian, Bennett Schmitt selected as salutatorian for the Class of 2025Clare Cullinan of South Bend, Indiana, has been named valedictorian and Bennett Schmitt from Jasper, Indiana, has been selected as salutatorian of the 2025 University of Notre Dame graduating class. The 180th University Commencement Ceremony will be held May 18 (Sunday) in Notre Dame Stadium for graduates and guests. During the ceremony, Cullinan will present the valedictory address, and as salutatorian, Schmitt will offer the invocation.
- Notre Dame’s Fightin’ Irish Battalion receives Department of Defense award as nation’s top Army ROTC programThe United States Department of Defense honored the University of Notre Dame’s Army ROTC Fightin’ Irish Battalion as the nation’s top Army collegiate program for the 2023-24 academic year. This will be the first time the unit has received the department’s Educational Institution Partnership Excellence Award, which recognizes the program’s achievements in recruiting, educating, training and commissioning leaders of character to be the next generation of military officers.
- In memoriam: Karl Ameriks, the McMahon-Hank Professor of Philosophy EmeritusKarl Ameriks, the McMahon-Hank Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at the University of Notre Dame, died on April 28 from pancreatic cancer. He was 77. Born in post-World War II Germany, Ameriks’ family emigrated to the United States when he was a child, and he grew up in Detroit, Michigan. He received his bachelor’s and doctoral degrees from Yale University. He came to the Department of Philosophy at Notre Dame in 1973 during a formative time for the department, which had transitioned from a predominantly Thomist focus to the more analytical American philosophy in the 1960s.
- Senior James Reintjes named 2025 Yenching ScholarUniversity of Notre Dame senior James Reintjes has been named a 2025 Yenching Scholar. He is one of 114 Yenching Scholars overall, representing 40 countries and regions around the globe. He is Notre Dame’s 12th Yenching Scholar and its 9th since 2018.