Senior Awarded Fulbright to Germany

Senior Kinesiology and German double major Jessica Gross, who is also senior resident of the Language House German Cluster and the vice president of the German Club, was recently awarded the Fulbright scholarship for the English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) Program. The program is sponsored and managed by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) at the U.S. Department of State and the Institute of International Education (IIE).
 

Gross will depart this September to spend the next academic year abroad in Germany working as a teaching assistant in a middle or high school. While the exact location of her stay is still undisclosed, she will likely be assigned to a community outside of the capital or other major urban area. The goal of the ETA program is to provide students in smaller towns with an opportunity to interact with and learn from a native English speaker.
 

Gross is one of approximately 700 students who receive the Fulbright every year. Participants in the program are required to work a minimum of 13 hours at a local school. The program pays for travel expenses and provides an 800 euro per month stipend.
 

During their stay abroad, students are encouraged to give back to the community through different services. Gross plans to start a sports club at the school to which she is assigned. As an avid lacrosse player, she hopes to catch the interest of the German students with her club.
 

The decision to apply for this program arose after Gross spent her entire junior year abroad in Tübingen, Germany. There, she worked with an organization called Rent an American, which sends native English-speaking student assistants to foreign middle and high schools.
 

“I loved working in the classrooms and I feel like I am going to love this program,” says Jessica. “The application process was long and intense, but it was absolutely worth the effort and I am excited for this upcoming year.”

Gross plans to pursue her masters degree in sports medicine while abroad.