Georgia Southern Students Awarded U.S. State Department Scholarships

July 8, 2009

Georgia Southern University students Rashidat Bakar, Kenneth Tabor and Alonza Turner have each been awarded the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship. Bakar and Turner will use their awards for study at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies in Japan and Tabor for study at Huazhong Normal University in China.

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and administered by the Institute of International Education. It offers grants for undergraduate students of limited financial means to pursue academic studies abroad. Such international study is intended to better prepare U.S. students to assume significant roles in an increasingly global economy and interdependent world.

Ayear abroad will also allow the scholarship recipients to gain a deeper understanding of Japanese or Chinese language, culture and history.
Bakar is an education major from Savannah, Georgia and plans to incorporate multiculturalism into her lessons. ‘As an education major, I want to share my love for other cultures and help spread global tolerance and awareness,” said Bakar.

The students worked with the staff of the University Honors Program during the Gilman application process. The University Honors Program serves as the campus clearinghouse for nationally competitive scholarships and fellowships and is committed to helping prepare all Georgia Southern University students for these awards.

‘These students embody Georgia Southern University’s mission of preparing students to serve as world citizens. They are to be commended for receiving this great honor,” said Steve Engel, Ph.D., director of the University Honors Program at Georgia Southern University.

The University Honors Program at Georgia Southern University provides a small college atmosphere in the context of a large comprehensive university. The program is designed to foster the development of a critical sense of inquiry, a spirit of creativity, a global perspective and an ethic of civic responsibility.

Georgia Southern University, a Carnegie Doctoral/Research University, offers 115 degree programs serving nearly 18,000 students. Through eight colleges, the University offers bachelors, masters and doctoral degree programs built on more than a century of academic achievement. The University, one of Georgia’s largest, is a top choice of Georgia’s HOPE scholars and is recognized for its student-centered approach to education. Visit: www.georgiasouthern.edu.