Newswise — Irvine, Calif., Oct. 30, 2023 — The University of California, Irvine has been named a Fulbright HSI Leader for 2023. Each year, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs recognizes the strong engagement of select Hispanic-serving institutions with the Fulbright Program, the U.S. government’s flagship international academic exchange program.
UCI is one of 46 HSIs to receive the distinction this year. Fulbright HSI Leaders demonstrate noteworthy support for Fulbright exchange participants and promote program opportunities on campus. Fulbright encourages administrators, faculty and students at HSIs to engage with the program and highlights HSIs as destinations for international students and scholars. This is the third consecutive year that UCI has been recognized as a Fulbright HSI Leader – a designation created in 2021.
UCI became a Hispanic-serving institution in 2017 and is a founding member of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. Chancellor Howard Gillman is on the governing board of HACU, which represents more than 500 schools of higher education in the United States, Latin America and Spain. It’s the only national group for existing and emerging HSIs.
“We are proud of our status as a Hispanic-serving institution and of the support we offer all of our students,” Gillman said. “Receiving this important federal recognition for the third year in a row is a reflection of the commitment of our faculty and staff and the talent and dedication of our students.”
For 30 years, UCI has been a leading producer of students who earn Fulbright awards – 78 undergraduates and 129 graduate students since 1992.
Lee Satterfield, assistant secretary of state for educational and cultural affairs, commended the schools designated as Fulbright HSI Leaders this year. “Representation matters, and pairing the world-class educational opportunities that Hispanic-serving institutions provide with the power of Fulbright further enriches the experience and educational opportunities for students and scholars both at home and abroad,” she said.
The Fulbright international academic exchange program has a longstanding commitment to diversity and seeks to ensure that participants reflect the United States and societies abroad. The program works closely with the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities to promote international exchange opportunities to staff, students and faculty at HSIs. Fulbright also collaborates with historically black colleges and universities, the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange, the American Association of Community Colleges, Diversity Abroad and many more organizations.
Since 1946, the Fulbright Program has given more than 400,000 students, scholars, artists and teachers from all types of institutions the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research abroad. Fulbright participants build relationships, gain experience, exchange ideas and address global challenges.
“Fulbright is one of those programs that makes a huge impact for individuals and institutions. Perhaps as valuable as the financial support are the connections Fulbright provides in locations around the world,” said Victoria Jones, UCI’s chief global affairs officer. “Our students and scholars do not travel alone; they join a Fulbright family that offers invaluable partners and future lifelong friends. Fulbright returnees link the UCI community in a global network of people of goodwill.”
About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities and is ranked among the nation’s top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. The campus has produced five Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 37,000 students and offers 224 degree programs. It’s located in one of the world’s safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County’s second-largest employer, contributing $7 billion annually to the local economy and $8 billion statewide. For more on UCI, visit www.uci.edu.
Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UCI faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UCI news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at https://news.uci.edu/media-resources.
NOTE TO EDITORS: PHOTO AVAILABLE AT
https://news.uci.edu/2023/10/30/uc-irvine-named-fulbright-hsi-leader-by-us-state-department-for-third-year/
RSS