Two U of A Students, One Recent Graduate Receive Fulbright Scholarships

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l-r: Ian Wicks, Mikaela Rhodes, Catriona Whiteside.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Ian Wicks of Fayetteville and Mikaela Rhodes of McKinney, Texas, both seniors at the University of Arkansas, and Catriona Whiteside of West Lafayette, Indiana, who graduated in 2014, have been awarded Fulbright Scholarships.

“We are excited three University of Arkansas students have received this national recognition and award and are thrilled to see our students and graduates leaving the University of Arkansas fully prepared to take on new challenges around the globe,” said Kim Needy, dean of the Graduate School and International Education. “We take pride in their accomplishments – past, present and future.”

The internationally prestigious award is designed to increase mutual understanding between people of the United States and other countries through education.

“The legacy of Senator Fulbright is visible all over the world, but nowhere is it more meaningful than on this campus and certainly in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences,” said Todd Shields, dean of Fulbright College. “He would have joined us all in being very proud of these three Scholars, and I am sure he would be pleased that his legacy through the Fulbright Scholarship Program is being felt by very accomplished students from his alma mater.”

IAN WICKS

Ian Wicks

Ian Wicks is a senior honors student majoring in international studies, Latin American and Latino studies, psychology and Spanish in Fulbright College. He will be teaching English as a foreign language in Madrid, Spain, during the 2016-17 academic year. Wicks said he is “incredibly honored” to have the opportunity to represent both the United States and the University of Arkansas abroad. He is eager to fully immerse himself in Spain’s culture, people, language, art, architecture and cuisine. He hopes to achieve full fluency in Spanish during his time abroad and to study 20th century Spanish history, particularly Spain’s transition from a dictatorship to a democracy in the 1970s. While in Madrid, Wicks hopes to volunteer at an international development non-governmental organization. After his fellowship, Wicks plans to pursue a career in international affairs.

MIKAELA RHODES

Mikaela Rhodes

Mikaela Rhodes is senior honors international relations and German double major in Fulbright College and will be teaching English as a foreign language in Germany in the fall of 2016. She decided to pursue the Fulbright Scholarship as an opportunity to study abroad for a year and as a way to “leave an impact not only on me but on others as well” through teaching. She also hopes to improve her German during her time abroad and to work closely with her students. Rhodes is excited about the opportunity to explore her community and search out ways to volunteer and engage with her community. She plans to work hard on improving her German in the hopes of passing the Goethe Institute Exam at a high level. 

CATRIONA WHITESIDE

Catriona Whiteside

Catriona Whiteside graduated cum laude from the U of A in 2014, with a degree in art history and Japanese from Fulbright College. She was active in the Society for Art Historians, where she served as president from 2013 to 2014. Whiteside also earned two first-place finishes in the university’s Japanese Speech Contest between 2011 and 2013. She currently works at Lis Art Conservation and Restorations Services in Novi, Michigan. Whiteside will pursue a master’s degree in fine art conservation at Northumbria University at Newcastle upon Tyne in England. She hopes to continue working toward her goal of joining The Institute for Conservation as an art historian. She is particularly interested in Japanese art and hopes to work in the Smithsonian or the Victoria and Albert Museum as the head of the Asian art conservation department.   

University of Arkansas students who are interested in applying for competitive scholarships like the Fulbright Scholarship should contact the Office of Study Abroad or the Office of Nationally Competitive Awards at awards@uark.edu.

About the Fulbright Program: The Fulbright Program, founded in 1946 by University Alum and Arkansas Senator J. William Fulbright, is a program of competitive, merit-based scholarships for international educational exchange. The Fulbright Program provides 8,000 awards annually to undertake graduate study, advanced research, university lecturing and classroom teaching. The program operates in more than 160 countries around the world.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.