Five University of Richmond Graduates Receive Fulbright Grants to Teach English Abroad
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND — Five University of Richmond graduates have accepted Fulbright grants for the 2025-26 academic year.
The Fulbright Program is designed to increase mutual understanding between the U.S. and other countries through educational exchange. This year’s recipients all received an English Teaching Assistantship.
“English Teaching Assistantships are valuable exchange programs that pair outstanding students and recent graduates with local English teachers abroad,” said Dana Kuchem, director of the Office of Scholars and Fellowships. “These scholars will spend time teaching the English language while serving as cultural ambassadors for the U.S., enriching their personal, academic, and professional lives."
Maya Allione, Class of 2025 from Cape Coral, Florida, will complete her Fulbright in Dili, Timor-Leste.
A biology major, Allione plans to pursue a career in medicine, and hopes to volunteer in the medical field during her time in Timor-Leste, a nation in Southeast Asia.
“As someone who grew up in a household where English was not the primary language, I feel so blessed to be able to help others grow their lingual abilities and represent the United States, while I equally learn just as much about their culture,” she said.
Alex Broening, Class of 2025 from Richmond, Virginia, was awarded an ETA to teach English in Germany. Broening majored in German studies and political science, with a minor in data science and statistics. While at UR, he also frequently collaborated with theatre and dance as a lighting designer.
Cady Cummins, Class of 2025 from Cinncinati, Ohio, will teach English in South Korea.
“The Fulbright ETA award is an incredible honor that will allow me to not only gain hands-on experience with teaching English, but also to immerse myself in the Korean culture which I've been interested in since I was a kid. This award puts me one step closer to my goal of becoming an ESL professor,” said Cummins.
Cummins majored in psychology and minored in linguistics and creative writing. After her Fulbright, she plans to pursue graduate study in linguistics or Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL).
Kathryn Grage, Class of 2022 from Syracuse, New York, will teach English in Lublin, Poland.
Grage, who majored in biology and environmental studies, currently teaches high school biology. While in Poland, she hopes to create an environmental club and to equip Polish students with the English skills needed to talk about scientific concepts.
“I am ecstatic to be spending an academic year abroad in Poland to learn about educational pedagogies, to engage with the community, and to experience living abroad,” said Grage.
Sarah Schalkoff, Class of 2023 from Yamaguchi City, Japan, will teach English at a foregin language high school in Bulgaria.
“I am excited to share my love for cross-cultural learning and use my English teaching experience to help students connect English language study to their daily lives in Bulgaria,” said Schalkoff.
Schalkoff, who majored in leadership studies and minored in English, was awarded the Critical Language Scholarship twice to study Bahasa Indonesian in Indonesia, completed a summer internship at the United Nations Information Centre Tokyo, and studied abroad in Jordan. As a Jepson Scholar, she is currently completing a Master of Philosophy degree in Japanese Studies at the University of Oxford.
The University of Richmond has had 88 Fulbright U.S. Student Program recipients. Earlier this year, UR was named a Fulbright Top Producer for the seventh year in a row.
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