UW-Eau Claire is a top producer of Fulbright recipients

UW-Eau Claire is among the top Fulbright producers for the seventh time in 12 years. Three Blugold graduates are taking part in the 2024-25 international academic exchange program abroad as English teaching assistants.

“This national recognition speaks to the excellence of our faculty, our students and our commitment to offering Blugolds the chance to make the world a better place,” says Chancellor James Schmidt. "Our commitment to offering students best-in-class study abroad and immersion opportunities is one of the reasons UW-Eau Claire is a top Fulbright producer, and our students benefit from those life-changing experiences." 

UW-Eau Claire has a long history of Fulbright recipients with the first two Blugolds receiving grants in 1964. Among Universities of Wisconsin schools, only UW-Madison has had more student Fulbrights than UW-Eau Claire’s 54 awards. It is rare for a regional public comprehensive university the size of UW-Eau Claire to be competitive with flagship universities when it comes to Fulbright production.

The Fulbright program’s intent is to increase mutual understanding and support friendly and peaceful relations between the people of the U.S. and other countries.

“The program is special as it contributes to the vision and creation of a more peaceful world,” says Colleen Marchwick, director of UW-Eau Claire’s Center for International Education. “It was born out of the post-World War II era with the goal of growing mutual understanding between individuals and countries. I embrace Fulbright origins and see the continued need today of continuing to grow mutual understanding in pursuit of a more peaceful world.”

The 2024-25 grant recipients all pursued curricular and co-curricular activities that allowed them to develop the knowledge and skills to be a competitive Fulbright applicant, Marchwick says. They took advantage of “everything UWEC has to offer” as they studied world languages and cultures, traveled abroad for academic study and engaged in undergraduate research, Marchwick says.

Marchwick encourages current students to get involved because the experiences will carry Blugolds to their next journey whether it be a Fulbright award, graduate school or a job.

Fulbright recipient Madalyn McCabe of New Berlin, who graduated in May 2023 with a degree in social studies education, says teaching at two multilingual schools in Luxembourg has been one of the most gratifying experiences of her life. She wants to continue her passion for social studies education when she returns to the U.S.

“Now, more than ever, I want to bring a variety of histories and experiences into my classroom, and participating in the Fulbright program has given me innumerable tools to do so,” McCabe says. “It is my hope to bring a multiculturalist perspective to my students and provide them with the means to engage thoughtfully and curiously with the world around them.”

Zachary May of Lake Geneva, who graduated in December 2023 with a double major in Spanish liberal arts and Latin American and Latinx studies, feels extremely supported by his school community during his Fulbright experience in Santiago del Estero, Argentina. His students have offered to show him around the city and tell him about the best places to eat and visit.

“The biggest takeaway for me is using language learning as a way to build community and relationships,” May says. “Students become more invested in the language when classes are centered around topics they are interested in, and they love to compare and contrast Argentinian culture and U.S. culture. This will help me think about how the similarities unite each of us to each other, and how the differences help us better meet others where they're at.”

Anna Wendorff of Stillwater, Minnesota, says her Fulbright experience in Goesan-eup, South Korea, has changed her as a person and transformed her world outlook. Wendorff, who graduated in May 2023 with a double major in English-rhetorics of science, technology, and culture emphasis, and organizational communication, is teaching middle school and high school students.

“From the grant year, I'll leave with countless new experiences, connections to the Fulbright community, improved Korean skills, perspective on living in another country, understanding of the Korean education system and so much more,” Wendorff says. “Post-Fulbright, I hope to apply everything that I've learned to my local region in the U.S. and future career. It will mean sharing with others, helping them on their individual learning journeys and reflecting on this experience.”

Elizabeth Zahn, an economics and Spanish major from Outagamie, is a semifinalist for the 2025-26 Fulbright award cycle. She will learn in April whether she has been selected as an English teaching assistant in Spain.

Since 1946, the Fulbright program has provided over 400,000 students, scholars, teachers, artists and professionals of all backgrounds with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research abroad. Fulbright recipients exchange ideas, build people-to-people connections and work to address complex global challenges.

Fulbright alumni include 44 heads of state, 62 Nobel laureates, 90 Pulitzer Prize winners and 82 MacArthur Fellows.