Alumni

"I brought back enduring connections with colleagues and friends and a resolve to return to reconnect and continue to explore the hidden corners of Romania and maybe find my own special spot in a secluded 'sat.'"

"I did not get to give Columbia a proper farewell last Spring, but I will do it now as a new year begins, and as I continue to unpack lessons from my time here. I arrived at Columbia full of curiosity and academic naiveté. Now I’m leaving with a collection of lessons yet to be fully revealed and distilled."

“My time in Romania is a stained-glass window of images–the rush of the Bucharest metro, […] afternoons building furniture with a German expat named Brunhilde, the Moldovan ballerina and Ukrainian didgeridoo player who couchsurfed with me on their way through Sibiu, the attic windows staring like eyes over the squares and alleyways of Sibiu, and frosty evenings in the Piata Mare as Christmas music mingled with the scent of vin fiert—and I’m grateful for all of it.”

"My Fulbright visit at Rutgers has offered amazing opportunities not only to present my work in the area of Human-Animal Interactions to some of the faculties of Rutgers University and SSW students, but also to establish valuable connections for future collaborations."

"My time as a Fulbrighter was about so much more than the research I was honored to work on. It was about building lasting relationships, learning about Romanian culture, and sharing my experiences with friends."

"Being able to learn from such experienced people about how they started their entrepreneurial initiatives, how they’ve grown, what worked for them and what didn’t was a huge opportunity for me and my colleagues."

"My memories of my Fulbright semester are a whirlwind of colors and sensations: the whimsical architecture of Bucharest streets—familiar, yet also very much changed—the smell of coffee in Old Town, the bustle of the Gara de Nord railway station and its trains—in which I somehow spent an inordinate amount of time—the outlines of the mountains in Brasov, the arches of greenery of Rose Park in Timisoara, and the salty bitter taste of the Black Sea on a scorching hot weekend in June."

"In all, I feel fulfilled despite a truncated Fulbright experience. Thankfully, I got a taste of all my goals, in some fashion, before the pandemic. And it’s only a matter of time before I come back to fully explore Romania and Europe, hand-in-hand with my fellow colleagues and friends."

"The idea of experiencing one of the best education systems in the world (if not the best) could be quite overwhelming. But soon I realized that this is going to be a unique opportunity to learn as much as possible, to work like never before in my academic life. And I did just that."

"Although my Fulbright cohort underwent an experience that is (hopefully) unlike any other, I loved my time in Romania and learned so much. I am so grateful to the Fulbright Program and the Romanian Commission for this incredible opportunity that I will remember for the rest of my life."

"I know that being an educator has never been easy, all the more now, during the peculiar times we all live. Yet, I have always believed in the power of the word connection, and by it, I mean cascading knowledge, learning from each other, sharing, and coming up with the best solutions. I firmly believe that the future of this world is in the hands of educators, no matter where they live and work."