Rollins Named Top Producer of Fulbright Students

Rollins has once again been named a top producer of Fulbright Students by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs for the 2024-25 year. This marks the 12th time that the College has achieved this notable distinction—one of just over 100 colleges and universities in the nation to earn the distinction—continuing a legacy of lifelong leadership and international service among graduates.

“This achievement is a testament to your institution’s deep commitment to international exchange and to building lasting connections between the people of the United States and the people of other countries,” says Scott Weinhold, principal deputy assistant secretary for educational and cultural affairs.

For more than 75 years, the Fulbright Program, which was created under the Truman administration in the wake of World War II, has stood as the U.S. government’s flagship educational exchange program, with more than 400,000 participants who have served in 160 countries across the globe. The prestigious program provides students, scholars, and professionals from all backgrounds the opportunity to study, teach, conduct research, exchange ideas, and contribute to finding solutions to complex global challenges. Past scholars have gone on to become Nobel Prize winners, heads of state, authors, artists, and business leaders. Top-producing institutions are named annually in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Rollins received its first Fulbright in 1951—just five years after the program’s inception. Since then, the College has produced nearly 100 Fulbright Students, with nearly 70 of those named since 2006. In the past 20 years, Rollins has also produced 19 Fulbright Scholars, with a total of 32 awards since the 1960s. These numbers are a testament to Rollins’ emphasis on global citizenship as a tenet of its signature brand of liberal arts education.

The latest group of Tars to join Rollins’ storied history of Fulbright Students includes Peyton Connor ’24, Adam Lahlou ’24, and Eve Wasil ’24. Lahlou is conducting research on Tamazight language education programs and socioeconomic reforms in Morocco, while Connor and Wasil are teaching English in Spain and Taiwan, respectively.

“Rollins’ success with the Fulbright Program is a tribute to the strength of our core liberal arts curriculum and the close mentoring relationships our students have with faculty through research collaborations, service projects, and travel abroad,” shares Kim Dennis, art history professor and director of the Office of External Fellowships & Scholarships. “I am honored to work with these amazing students and the faculty who have nurtured them throughout their time at Rollins.”

The Fulbright Program is funded through an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the Department of State. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations, and foundations in foreign countries and in the U.S. also provide direct and indirect support. To learn more about the Fulbright Program, visit us.fulbrightonline.org.