U.S. Public Affairs Officer Robert Zimmerman, president of the Fulbright Commission of Uruguay, congratulated recipients of Fulbright scholarships during the program’s final meeting of 2007 on Dec. 18.

During the event held at Cala di Volpe Hotel in Montevideo, three U.S. Fulbright scholars presented their work, and some 80 Uruguayan teachers of English as a Second Language received diplomas for their participation in a new Fulbright program.

“I want to congratulate the Fulbright recipients and the organizers of the Fulbright programs for a successful year,” Mr. Zimmerman said. “Even in these difficult political times, we continue to create people-to-people links, and the Fulbright program demonstrates the strong relationships between the U.S. and Uruguay.”

The Uruguayan teachers, who hailed from primary schools in various departments of the country, traveled to Montevideo to receive certificates of completion for an online course funded by the Fulbright program. The course, called “Building the Fulbright Future,” equipped the teachers with skills for teaching English to rural school children. It was the first of its kind to be offered to teachers in the interior of the country.

The teachers are eligible to compete for future Fulbright scholarships to perfect their English teaching skills in a program in the United States that is supported in part by the U.S. Embassy in Montevideo.

During the Dec. 18 event, U.S. Fulbright recipient Paul Hepperly, director of the Rodale Institute’s Research Department, presented the findings of his study on organic agriculture in Rio Negro, Uruguay. He was affiliated with the Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agropecuaria for completion of the study.

Another U.S. scholar, Manuel Somoza, presented research for his Master’s of Environmental Studies work at Yale University and the Centro Latino Americano de Ecología Social on the effectiveness of Mercosur’s environmental program.

Andrew Orihuela, student at the University of Southern California and affiliated with the Universidad de la República in Montevideo, presented his project on rock music’s influence on Uruguayan perceptions of the U.S.

The Fulbright program in Uruguay was established in 1960 to facilitate understanding between the U.S. and Uruguay through educational and professional exchange programs. The Fulbright Commission Uruguay funds Uruguayan scholars’ graduate study and research, educational partnerships, teacher exchanges and other activities in Uruguay. It also supports American Fulbright scholars doing projects in Uruguay.

Visit www.fulbright.org.uy for more information on the Fulbright program in Uruguay.

 
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