Fulbright Newsletter December 2011

Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission Education in the American Way Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission NEWSLETTER Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Commission NewsGraduate and Undergraduate Table of Contents ► From Romanian FulbrightersCommission News  Testimonial from Diana Melian, Romanian TEA Grantee in 2011 Orientation for 2011-2012 U.S. Grantees to Ro-  Romanian Fulbright Alumnus Virgil-Florin Duma at mania World Science Forum Romanian Alumni Community Celebrating  Romanian Event at Georgia Tech Thanksgiving  Fulbright Fellow to be Named the First KPMG Fellow in Romania Fulbright at the 12th National RATE Conference (Timişoara 2011) - Oct. 28-30 Graduate and Undergraduate Presentations on Fulbright Senior Award - Oct. 2011  Learn How to Ace Your Undergrad Application to U.S. Seminars for Fulbright Senior Award Candidates Universities: Fresh Sessions in Jan.-Feb. 2012 – Oct. 27 and Nov. 29  Golden Rules for a Successful U.S. Graduate Admis- sions: Training Program in Feb.-March Teacher Excellence and Achievement Program—  FEAC, the Hub of International Education Week 2011 January 15, 2012 Events in Romania - Nov. 14-18  U.S. Graduate Study Prominent at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies (ASE) and FEAC► From U.S. Fulbrighters  American Corners and FEAC Spearhead U.S. Study Promotion in Romania - Constanta, Nov. 9-11 U.S. Fulbright Scholar Yudit Kornberg Green-  EducationUSA Marathon in Western Romania in De- berg Visits American Studies Programs in Iași cember and Constanța  U.S. Study Excitement Built around American Corner U.S. Fulbright Grantee Laura Evers Involved in Bacau Multicultural Event  U.S. Study in the Spotlight at RIUF Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca An American Thanksgiving by U.S. Fulbrighter  Libraries’ Night Sparks Local Interest in U.S. Study Katelyn Browher  Liberal Arts Education Makes New Friends in Bucharest  FEAC’s Online Outreach Campaign Takes Off in Fall 2011 http://www.facebook.com/ Romanian.US.Fulbright.Commission www.fulbright.ro

Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Commission NewsOrientation for 2011-2012 U.S. Grantees to RomaniaOn October 6-7, the Romanian - U.S. Fulbright Commission marked the beginning of yet another yearfor American Juniors and Seniors in Romania. The event offered the participants the opportunity to meetface to face. They were briefed on their new environment by high officials of the U.S. Embassy and metmembers of the Romanian Fulbright Board of Directors, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, American and Roma-nian Fulbright alumni, professors and researchers. The second day of the event included a trip to Sinaiaand Azuga, where the grantees had the opportunity to connect as a group in an informal environment.More pictures here.Romanian Alumni Community Celebrating ThanksgivingOn November 23, the Romanian Alumni Community met to celebrate Thanksgiving Day. The eventbrought together over 100 Romanian alumni of U.S. Government-sponsored exchange programs to theUnited States such as Fulbright, IVLP, Hubert H. Humphrey, Ron Brown, New Century Scholars, Benja-min Franklin Summer Institute, Young Leaders Dialogue with America and Study of the U.S. Institutes,but also U.S. Fulbright grantees and alumni who are currently in Romania.The event started with welcome speeches from Dr. Remus Pricopie, President of the Romanian FulbrightBoard of Directors, Ms. Patricia Guy, Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy and Ms. EdwinaSagitto, Cultural Officer at the U.S. Embassy. After welcoming the guests, U.S. Fulbright grantees Kate-lyn Arlene Browher and Nicole Kay Wells introduced us to the Thanksgiving history, customs & tradi-tions.We are grateful to all the Romanian and U.S. alumni and grantees who have joined us for the event andwe take this opportunity to thank our guest speakers. More pictures are available here. 2 www.fulbright.ro

Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Commission NewsFulbright at the 12th National RATE Conference (Timişoara 2011) - Oct. 28-30“ELT – Skill, Art and Motivation”, the 12th National RATE (RomanianAssociation of Teachers of English) Conference, took place in Timişoara onOctober 28-30. For three full days, Romanian and foreign teachers,mentors, textbook authors and editors shared their professional knowledgeand experience with their peers, in an impressive array of plenary lectures,workshops, talks and group activities. Among the participants, twoFulbright alumni took the opportunity to introduce the Fulbright programand its indisputable benefits to all those interested. Robert Manning(Quincy University, USA) and Cristina Chevereşan (University of Timişoara,Romania) used their own examples to encourage future applications, emphasizing both the academicand the personal gains of living, traveling, teaching and doing research in different, yet fascinating,environments. In an interactive presentation entitled Transatlantic Exchanges: The Fulbright Experiencefrom Both Sides, the two speakers captured the essence of the Fulbright spirit, giving the audienceinsight into a unique way of establishing lasting connections between people(s) and cultures.Presentations on Fulbright Senior Award - Oct. 2011The Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission organized a series of presentations dedi-cated to Romanian professors and researchers who intended to apply for a FulbrightSenior (Postdoctoral) Award 2012-2013 at different universities in Romania:Politehnica University of Bucharest, Petroleum-Gas University of Ploiesti and Acad-emy of Economic Studies in Bucharest. All presentations addressed several topicssuch as: application steps, funding, fields of study, selection criteria and requireddocumentation etc. The participants had the opportunity to ask more details aboutthe Fulbright competition during the Q&A section which concluded the events.Seminars for Fulbright Senior Award Candidates – Oct. 27 and Nov. 29 The Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission organized two seminars for the Fulbright Senior Award candidates: “How to make the application. Tips and guidance” on October 27 and “Fulbright Senior Award Interview: Advice, Suggestions and Techniques” on November 29. We take this opportunity to thank the guest speakers of the events for their help in guiding the Roma- nian applicants: Dr. Stephen J. Cutler, U.S. Fulbright Scholar and Visiting Professor, Dr. Mohsen Razzaghi, U.S. Fulbright Scholar, professor and head of Mathematics and Statistics Department, Mississippi State University and Dr. Mihaela Albu, Romanian Fulbright Alumna and professor at Politehnica University of Bucharest.Teacher Excellence and Achievement Program – January 15, 2012The Teacher Excellence and Achievement Program (TEA) will be announcedearly January. TEA provides Romanian teachers with unique opportunities todevelop expertise in their subject areas, enhance their teaching skills and in-crease their knowledge about the United States. TEA consists of a non-degree, non-credit customized academic program, including coursework andintensive training in teaching methodologies, lesson planning, and teachingstrategies for home classroom environments, as well as the use of computersfor Internet, word processing, and as teaching tools. All details about the pro-gram and the online application will be available on the Fulbright websitestarting with January 15, 2012. (www.fulbright.ro/news.html). 3 www.fulbright.ro

Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Commission News ► FROM U.S. FULBRIGHTERSU.S. Fulbright Scholar Yudit Kornberg Greenberg Visits American Studies Programs in Iașiand Constanța“During my tenure as a Fulbright Scholar in American Studiesand Religious studies at the University of Bucharest this fall se-mester, I not only savored the joy of teaching my second-yearM.A. students, but was also delighted to share my scholarshipon love and religion with students and colleagues in other uni-versities in Romania. In November I was invited by ProfessorOdette Blumenfeld to present a lecture for the American StudiesProgram at the University in Iasi. I was pleased with the largeturnout of over 100 students who were attentive and engaged.It was rewarding to receive thoughtful comments from studentsduring and after the lecture; a couple of undergraduate studentseven continued our dialogue through email. Now-thats beingpassionate about learning! In early December, I traveled toConstanta where I was invited to lecture on Love in the Bible byProfessor Adina Ciugureanu at Ovidius University. I enjoyed my conversations with Adina, her col-leagues and students, who incidentally were all women! As I reflect upon the rich and stimulating teach-ing and lecturing experiences in Romania, I wish to thank especially Mr. Mihai Moroiu of the FulbrightCommission as well as the faculty and students at the University of Bucharest who helped make my Ful-bright experience in Romania a most gratifying and memorable one.” Yudit Kornberg GreenbergU.S. Fulbright Grantee Laura Evers Involved in Multicultural EventOn December 4, U.S. Fulbright grantee Laura Evers was in-volved in an event entitled Global Village. Organized by AIESECSuceava (http://aiesec-suceava.ro/), Global Village took placeat Iulius Mall from 1pm - 7pm and featured the food, music,and dancing of ten different countries. Laura represented theUnited States, and with three high school team members or-ganized a presentation on American society, in addition to pre-paring traditional American food. Laura Evers: Audience reac-tions were extremely positive and everyone had an incredibletime participating in cross-cultural awareness! I met a lot ofincredible people and got to experience the fascinating culturesof nine countries while sharing my own! You can read moreabout the event here: http://www.monitorulsv.ro/Local/2011-12-05/Tineri-din-12-tari-au-adus-un-pic-din-savoarea-si-frumusetea-patriei-lor-la-Iulius-Mall-SuceavaAn American Thanksgiving by U.S. Fulbrighter Katelyn Browher On the 21st and on the 25th of November, 2011, U.S. Fulbright Grantee Katelyn Browher organized an event at American Corner Constanta entitled “An American Thanksgiving: Thanksgiving Traditions of the United States”. Katelyn discussed with the students the history of the holiday, as well as some of the lesser-know traditions, such as the presidential turkey pardon, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and Black Friday. The activity focused on the history and modern traditions of the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States. The event was advertised in the local media: Ziua de Con- stanta on the 16th and 17th of November, Telegraf on the 17th of Novem- ber, Cuget Liber on the 21st of November, and Ovidius University websiteon the 17th of November, 2011. 4 www.fulbright.ro

Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Commission News ► FROM ROMANIAN FULBRIGHTERSTestimonial from Diana Melian, Romanian TEA Grantee in 2011 “Everybody wonders about the American dream. I had the chance to live the dream, due to the Teaching Excellence and Achievement Program. In- ternational teachers had the opportunity to develop their expertise, to learn and teach. (….) Words are not enough to express my gratitude to the Fulbright Commission, United States Department of State, IREX and Clare- mont Graduate University for ones in a life time chance. The story will not end here. This is only the turning point for my professional life.” Diana Io- ana Melian-History teacher, Technical High School of Communication “N.V.Karpen”, Bacau, Romania. To read the entire testimonial please click here.Romanian Fulbright Alumnus Virgil-Florin Duma at World Sci-ence ForumFAST (Fulbright Academy of Science and Technology) has formed agroup of over 30 Fulbright Alumni from around the world to participatein a dedicated Fulbright Alumni delegation at the World Science Forum(http://www.sciforum.hu/) that has been held on Nov. 17-19, 2011 inBudapest. The Fulbright delegation has been invited by the HungarianAcademy of Science which is fully supporting its participation to thisprestigious international event, focused on latest scientific develop-ment, but also on policy issues in Research and Higher Education.Global issues are addressed at the WSF by UNESCO, AAAS, Royal So-ciety and other international organizations, while the Forum has benefited from the participation of sev-eral Nobel laureates and prestigious academia. Dr. Virgil-Florin Duma, Fulbright Alumnus at The Insti-tute of Optics of the University of Rochester, NY (2009-2010) has been selected by FAST to representRomania at the WSF as part of the Fulbright delegation.Romanian Event at Georgia Tech Ciprian Dumitrache, presently a Fulbright Student grantee in the field of Aerospace Engineering at Georgia Tech University, has informed us on his initiative dedicated to his friends and colleagues in the campus. On October 6, he organized the event “Let’s Learn about Romania” - a special opportunity for him to speak about our country and to promote its culture, traditions and history. Last but not least: Adina, Ciprian’s wife, cooked Romanian dishes for all the participants, a challenging approach which, we are sure, provided the invitees with interesting notions about Romania’s tastes, flavors and customs.Fulbright Fellow to be Named the First KPMG Fellow in Romania Dr. Catalin Albu, currently Associate Professor of Accounting at the Bucharest Acad- emy of Economic Studies (ASE), Romania, has been named the first KPMG Fellow in Romania. Catalin is Fulbright Senior Fellow 2011 at the University of Dayton, where he taught and conducted research with American colleagues. The KPMG Foundation has initiated professorships at the U.S. level since 1974 , to acknowledge the cen- tral role faculty play in the academic process. Wanting to be the first to contribute to the development of local faculty in our country, KPMG Romania has initiated KPMG Professorships for deserving local academics within the cooperation agree- ment with ASE. Considering his Fulbright experience, KPMG awarded Catalin thefirst title of KPMG Fellow, wanting to encourage excellency in teaching and research by local faculty.KPMG Romania and Catalin are committed to engage in a process of bringing ever closer the accountingacademic and business environments, in the mutual benefit, and especially, of ASEs students. 5 www.fulbright.ro

Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Graduate and UndergraduateLearn How to Ace Your Undergrad Application to U.S. Universities: Fresh Sessions in Jan.-Feb.2012A new Undergraduate Admissions Training program is set to start in January. The sessions scheduledevery Tuesday 3-5 pm will highlight U.S. application tips and strategies leading to success: admissionsand funding. Join us and learn how to select U.S. study programs and connect with American universi-ties. How to master the art of negotiating strong recommendation letters. How to develop a competitiveedge. Details at http://bit.ly/feac_events.Golden Rules for a Successful U.S. Graduate Admissions: Training Program in Feb.-MarchJoin us for a new Graduate Admissions Training program starting in February! The five weekly sessionswill present U.S. application strategies leading to admissions and financial aid, with or without excellentgrades. This free of charge program is open to everyone interested in pursuing a U.S. Master’s, PhD,MBA or any other graduate negree. Join us to get theoretical insights into best admissions practices aswell as to engage in practical activities based on case studies inspired by the successful admissions ex-periences of Romanians already studying at U.S. universities.FEAC, the Hub of International Education Week 2011 Events in Romania - Nov. 14-18To celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange during In-ternational Education Week (IEW), a yearly joint initiative of the U.S. Depart-ment of State and Department of Education, the Fulbright Educational Advis-ing Center coordinated a series of one-time events together with the U.S. Em-bassy and two U.S. universities – St. John’s and Bentley. The week-longschedule included 13 events: 9 face-to-face sessions – “Undergraduate studyin the USA” for students at 5 Bucharest high schools and a digital video con-ference with 3 American Corners hosted by the U.S. Embassy – and 4 onlineevents: 2 undergraduate and 2 graduate webinars. Thanks to the online sessions, this year’s IEW cele-bration in Romania organized by FEAC was attended by prospective applicants around the country, notjust from Bucharest. More information on IEW in Romania, plus pictures: www.bit.ly/feac_events.U.S. Graduate Study Prominent at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies (ASE) andFEACOver 100 students and faculty at ASE joined in IEW celebration by attending a 2-hour presentation onthe MBA programs in the U.S. and the comprehensive support available at FEAC. The session was of-fered by the Advising Center and the representative of McCallum Graduate Business School, BentleyUniversity, MA. The graduate outreach program continued with a session for ASE professors on “MBAInsights for Faculty” and meetings which gave the ASE faculty and our U.S. guest the chance to explorethe similarities and differences between American and Romanian business programs. American Corners and FEAC Spearhead U.S. Study Promotion in Romania - Constanta, Nov. 9-11 During Nov. 9-11, U.S. study opportunities were very prominent in Con- stanta, thanks to the outreach program organized by the Fulbright Educa- tional Advising Center and the local American Corner. The program entitled “Fulbright and beyond” included as core activities presentations in 4 high schools and to university students totaling an impressive number ofparticipants. In addition, the 1-hour press conference hosted by the Corner involved a wide range ofrepresentatives of national and local media, press, TV and radio. Discussions with the high school princi-pals in view of innovative joint educational projects rounded off the outreach program.EducationUSA Marathon in Western Romania in DecemberDuring Dec. 8-9, the Fulbright Educational Advising Center organized a presentation-packed outreachprogram in Timișoara which included 7 presentations and a number of meetings conducted over a dayand a half. The visits to 4 top high schools occasioned presentations on undergraduate studyopportunities in the USA that were attended by a large number of students. Two graduate sessions wereoffered at the universities in Timisoara (Universitatea de Vest and the Polytechnic). The presentation atUniversitatea de Vest was also joined by Jessica Miller, Fulbright English Teaching Assistant affiliatedthere who shared her own undergraduate experience and educational insights. 6 www.fulbright.ro

Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Graduate and UndergraduateU.S. Study Excitement Built around American Corner BacauThe comprehensive range of academic and scholarship opportunities availablefor international students interested in U.S. study were shared with highschool and college students in Bacau and Onesti during a 2-day intenseschedule set up by the dynamic American Corner in Bacau in conjunction withthe Fulbright Educational Advising Center. The schedule included interactivepresentations at 3 high schools, a session for graduate students and profes-sors at 2 universities, discussions for the promotion of the media channelsused by the advising center for disseminating information on U.S. study, pro-ductive conversations with the American Corner staff and the host institutionfor further joint activities, as well as an impactful press conference hosted by the Bacovia University.U.S. Study in the Spotlight at RIUF Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca. Upcoming in March 2012: Bu-charest, Timisoara, and IasiThe Fulbright - U.S. Embassy - EducationUSA synergy was at its bestduring RIUF (Romanian International University Fair) on Oct. 22-23 inBucharest and Oct. 25 in Cluj-Napoca. RIUF is most well-attended edu-cational event in Romania and Eastern Europe, according to the officialstatistics. FEAC joined forces with the Public Diplomacy section of theU.S. Embassy and the Fulbright Romanian program coordinator to or-ganize multiple events including in-depth presentations on U.S. under-graduate and graduate study, respectively, offered in both cities and analways busy booth set up in Bucharest. The booth was manned by U.S.volunteers from the U.S. Embassy and Romanian interns of the advis-ing center. The next edition will be held in spring 2012 in Bucharest (March 17-18), Timisoara (March20), and Iasi (March 22).Libraries’ Night Sparks Local Interest in U.S. Study On Oct. 1, over 250 high school and university students celebrated the first Libraries’ Night at the new Embassy Library/the Information Re- source Center (IRC). Visitors came from Bucharest and beyond and were entertained by staff of the U.S. Embassy and the Fulbright Educational Advising Center. The Public Diplomacy section and FEAC put together a comprehensive joint program for the night - from 8:00 pm to 1:00 am - which included multiple presentations and discussions on U.S. study &culture, as well as IRC resources. The U.S. Ambassador and his wife attended the event and sharedtheir vision of the U.S. cultural and academic values. More pics at http://bit.ly/libnightpics.Liberal Arts Education Makes New Friends in BucharestAna Neferu, junior, alongside Catalina Cumpanasoiu and Alexandra Badiceanu,freshmen, proudly represented University of Richmond during a 2-hour sessionon Dec. 20 at the Advising Center. After enjoying the support of the FulbrightEducational Advising Center during their applications to U.S. universities, thethriving students returned to the Center to share their U.S. educational experi-ences with local students. The stories shared by the students brought to life theacademic and extracurricular excitement of U.S. undergraduate study at a lib-eral arts university. Learn about the University of Richmond and about Ana’sapplication experience on the FEAC site at http://bit.ly/URprofile and http://bit.ly/ana_ur.FEAC’s Online Outreach Campaign Takes Off in Fall 2011In Fall 2010, EducationUSA was just rolling out its newest online service, EdUSA Connects webinars. Ayear later, on top of promoting EdUSA’s webinars, the Advising Center is making extensive use of theConnects platform to create its own online sessions targeted at Romanian applicants, teachers, and par-ents. Every month this Fall, the Center offered multiple sessions on U.S. admissions, including dedicatedseries on undergraduate and graduate applications presented by FEAC staff, as well as special sessionsfeaturing U.S. admissions experts from several U.S. universities and Romanian students currently en-rolled on U.S. programs. Details on upcoming sessions at http://bit.ly/feac_events. 7 www.fulbright.ro

Bucharest, December 21, 2011 Volume IV, Issue 4Partners Need more info? Contact us! Public hours Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission: Tue: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm Wed: 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm Thu: 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm Phone: 021 230 7719; 021 231 5500 HAPPY HOLIDAYS Public Hours Fulbright Educational Advising Center: Tue: 1:00 pm - 7:00 pm Wed: 1:00 am - 5:00 pm Thu: 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm Phone: 021 231 9015 Website: www.fulbright.ro E-mail us: Location: 2, Ing. Costinescu St., Sector 1, office@fulbright.ro Bucharest 011878, Romania Facebook http://www.facebook.com/Romanian.US.Fulbright.Commission This Newsletter is produced by the Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission in Romania. If you wish to cancel your subscription to this newsletter contact office@fulbright.ro 8 www.fulbright.ro

Fulbright Newsletter December 2011

by FulbrightRomania on Dec 21, 2011

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Fulbright Newsletter December 2011 — Document Transcript