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We often call our fellowships “gateway grants” because once a teacher applies for and receives a Fund for Teachers grant, they realize that they can — in fact — take advantage of the myriad of opportunities out there for educators. The most common next step for FFT Fellows is the Fulbright-Hayes Program through the US State Department’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs. This summer TWO FFT Fellows are participating in the Exchange Program in Morocco — Lauren Hines (Murray, KY) and Brian Ash (Waterford, CT). We caught up with Lauren to get an update:
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- Quiet afternoon at the Morocco Ministry of Education
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- The Medina in Fes
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- Cap Spartel, near Tangier
I applied for the Fulbright Hays Seminar Abroad to Morocco for 2021, but it was postponed for a year due to the pandemic. I had heard about the program previously, but when the location was announced as Morocco, I knew I had to apply. I teach Spanish and AP Human Geography, and there are so many interesting aspects of culture and history that tie into both subjects. My curriculum project will use Morocco as a lens to demonstrate concepts and terms from each of the seven units for APHG, focusing on population, culture, and agriculture. We have had lectures on history and architecture that relates to Southern Spain as well. It is an honor and privilege to travel with Fulbright Morocco and such amazing educators!
FFT was the first grant program that I applied to and it encouraged me to seek out other similar opportunities as my FFT trip was an incredible learning experience and I wanted to broaden my knowledge to other regions and areas, especially to Africa. Morocco was a great place to start and it was the Fulbright Hays country selection for 2021 and was a good fit as I took French in college and it has been very useful to communicate!
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- At the Dalai Lama’s Summer Palace of Norbulingka
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- The Monkey Temple of Kathmandu
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- A selfie with Mt. Everest & the guides that got her to base camp
While it’s important to note that our grants are NOT for travel and that the majority of grant recipients remain in North America, the Fulbright-Hayes does offer experiential learning for those wanting to pursue learning around global education. You can learn more about this opportunity here; traditionally, the deadline for applications is December of the year preceding the grant.