The movement of people and how they settle in a country coupled with the intermingling of ethnically diverse groups has always fascinated me. Although my family did not immigrate to the United States, I grew up in a predominately immigrant neighborhood in Chicago with people literally from all over the world. These early childhood experiences […]
Category: Americans in the EU
Mark Nance is a 2017-2018 Fulbright-Schuman Scholar and an associate professor at the School of Public and International Affairs and North Carolina State University. Dr. Nance is also a two-time recipient of a Fulbright-Schuman grant, having first participated in the program as a graduate student. This time around, he has spent the past year in […]
As I approach the end of my Fulbright-Schuman experience and time in Brussels, I’ve been taking some time to reflect back on it. I applied for Fulbright knowing it would be a challenging and rewarding experience, but I have been surprised by what has been the hardest parts. The two main requirements of my grant […]
“Interdisciplinary” is a word that was consistently used to promote, describe, influence, and guide the doctoral program at Marywood University, Scranton, PA. Until I had completed the first few semesters toward my degree, I didn’t fully appreciate the interdisciplinary approach or the benefits of its purpose. Today, I not only understand the rationale behind the […]
My Fulbright-Schuman research project examines the labor market integration of refugees in select EU Member States. Broadly, my study looks at how private enterprise works with government agencies in facilitating refugees’ job readiness and labor market integration, whether through the direct hiring of refugees or through policy development (e.g., through influencing the development of vocational […]
Categories
One Less Stranger
Before Fulbright, I avoided long conversations with strangers. I made this choice most consciously on airplanes. After taking my seat, a slight dread often filled me that I a stranger would feel the need to share their thoughts on something like the taste difference between red and white quinoa. I would imagine this hyperbolic scenario […]
As my Fulbright comes to an end, I look back at the past nine months of my life abroad with mixed feelings of nostalgia, astonishment and pride at what I have accomplished. My photos and memories of living in Toulouse, traveling to Germany, Spain and Belgium, driving through the Lower Pyrenees, and consuming more than […]
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State of the European Union
The scene outside in the spring Tuscan sun was pure Brussels: black limousines, heavy security, expensive black suits. Inside, in the Salone dei Cinquecento of Florence’s Palazzo Vecchio, it was pure Italian Renaissance: a glorious ceiling of 39 panels painted by Giorgio Vasari, statues by Michelangelo and Bandinelli, and banks of flowers. But the message […]
In late March 2017, United Nations (UN) peacekeepers found the bodies of three UN personnel who were tragically killed in Kasai Central Province, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC): Swedish national Zaida Catalan, American Michael Sharp, and their Congolese translator, Betu Tshintela. The three were part of the UN expert panel investigating conflict and […]
Volunteering has always been and will always be a critical part of my life. Over the years, I’ve discovered that despite my best efforts, painting murals at elementary schools and cleaning dishes at soup kitchens are not my strong suits when it comes to volunteering. My real passion and dare I say strength lies in […]