This document summarizes Sarah Sanderson's presentation about her journey to becoming a Rotary Peace Fellow. It outlines her educational and professional background working in languages and cultural exchange in countries like Brazil, China, New Zealand, and Chile. It then describes the Rotary Peace Fellowship program which provides fully funded master's degrees in peace and conflict resolution. Sanderson shares that she will be attending the International Christian University in Tokyo to obtain her M.A. in Peace Studies, with a focus on language education and international exchange for peacebuilding.

1. Rotary District 6290 Club Visits
East Jordan, Elk Rapids, Petoskey,
Traverse City, Charlevoix, Holland
Sarah Sanderson
2015 Rotary Peace Scholar

2. Bom Dia! / Greetings!
• Pronounced “Bone Gee-ah” in Brazilian Portuguese
• Thank you for this opportunity and for your generosity in
giving to the Rotary Foundation

3. “Life in the Middle”
Finding Linguistic and Cultural Competency in a Global Age
Sarah Sanderson
Rotary International Peace Fellow

4. Goals for Today
• Outline of presentation:
– My journey in becoming a Peace Fellow
– Involvement with Rotary
– The Peace Fellowship program
– Questions

5. Personal Introduction
• Born and raised in
Holland, Michigan
• Holland High School
• Hope College (B.S. Biology
and B.A. Spanish)
– Vienna Summer School,
May Terms to
Kenya/Tanzania and
Amazon/Galápagos Islands
• Mission Year /
AmeriCorps
– Southwest Inner-city
Philadelphia public schools
• San Diego, California
Humane Society
– Weekend visits to Mexico
to stay with families

6. Personal Introduction
• Semester Study Abroad in
Santiago, Chile
• M.A. Spanish Linguistics,
The Ohio State University
– Taught Spanish 101, 102,
103 and 104
– Summers in Montana
working with Mexican J1D
Visa program
• Resident Director for OSU
Study Abroad Program in
Quito, Ecuador

7. Personal Introduction
• Professor at Jiangsu
University in
Changzhou, China (2
years)
• National Outdoor
Leadership School
(NOLS)
• English/Spanish
Instructor in
Queenstown, New
Zealand (1 year)

8. Fulbright – Brazil 2013
• English Instructor at
Universidade Estadual
de Santa Cruz in Ilhéus,
Bahia
• U.S. Cultural
Presentations
• Community Side Project
• Rotary / Rotaract /
Interact Involvement
• Portuguese Language

9. Focus on “LEA” Degree Program
• Linguas Estrangeiras
Aplicadas ás
Negociações
Internacionais (Applied
Foreign Languages in
International
Negotiations)
• Elite group of 30
Brazilian
undergraduates
• Spanish, French and
English

10. Rotary Involvement
• Rotary Presentation in
Ilhéus
• Rotaract Meetings
• Language Week
– Connecting Rotary study
abroad students
• Community Events
– Library Fundraising
– Ride for Breast Cancer
– Casa de David (David’s
House)

11. “Language Week”

12. Brazil 2014 Fulbright Extension
• “Science Without
Borders” – Brazilian
Scientific Mobility
Program
• English support for the
TOEFL Exam
• Preparation to study
abroad
• Amazon Regional
Coordinator / Teaching
Mentor

13. Activities in Michigan 2015
• District 6290 Club Visits
• Fulbright Enrichment
Seminar in D.C.
• Global Ties / Colleagues
International “Diplomacy
Begins Here” Conference
• Rotary 6290 District
Conference
• Local high school and
university presentations
“Opportunity Knocks . . .
From Abroad”

14. The Rotary Peace Fellowship
• Candidates for the Peace Fellowship seek to make
a significant impact on the world by promoting
tolerance and cooperation.
• Rotary selects 100 dedicated and passionate
professionals each year to receive fully funded
fellowships to study at the Rotary Peace Centers.
• In just over a decade, the Rotary Peace Centers
have trained more than 900 fellows for careers in
peace building.
• Many alumni go on to serve as leaders in national
governments, NGOs, the military, law
enforcement, and international organizations like
the United Nations and World Bank.

15. The M.A. Program in Peace and
Conflict Resolution
• Master’s degree fellowships
are offered at premier
universities in fields related
to peace and conflict
prevention and resolution.
• Programs last 15 to 24
months and require a
practical internship of two
to three months during the
academic break.
• Each year, up to 50 master’s
degree fellowships are
awarded at five different
institutions.

16. Professional Development Certificate
• For experienced professionals working in
peace-related fields who want to enhance
their professional skills, a three-month
program in peace and conflict prevention and
resolution is offered at Chulalongkorn
University in Thailand.
• This program incorporates two to three weeks
of field study.
• 50 certificates are awarded each year.

17. My Peace Fellowship
• International Christian
University, Tokyo, Japan
• M.A. Peace Studies, Dept. of
Public Policy and Social
Research
• Focus: International exchange
and foreign language
education as a means for
peace building and conflict
prevention
• Applied Field Experience
(AFE) Internship during the
summer break
• Japanese language courses
year round
• Begins this year in early
August

18. Have a future Peace Fellow in mind?
• Applications for the 2016-17 Rotary Peace
Fellowships program are now being accepted.
• The deadline for candidates to submit
applications to their district is 31 May.
• Districts must submit endorsed applications to
The Rotary Foundation by 1 July.
• My email: sanderson.58@osu.edu

19. Thank you!
Questions?
Please keep in touch: 616-335-0419 / Sanderson.58@osu.edu
http://sarahsandersonwanderlust.blogspot.com