2nd Cornell student awarded Fulbright grant

MOUNT VERNON – Laura Erceg of Bemidji, Minn., a recent graduate of Cornell College with majors in Russian and sociology, has been awarded a Fulbright grant, the second Cornell student to receive a Fulbright this year.

Beginning in August, Erceg will spend 10 1/2 months in Russia hosted by the psychology and social sciences department at Far Eastern State University in Vladivostok. Her classmate, recent graduate Ryan Taugher, an international relations major from Madison, Wis., was awarded a Fulbright grant to spend nine months in Turkey studying and researching the international impact of controlling the region’s water resources.

“It is really quite an achievement for two students from a small college like Cornell to receive Fulbright grants in the same year. Some of the best prepared and ambitious students at the college applied for this competitive program. We were very pleased that those who received awards had taken advantage of previous opportunities to travel abroad and to learn about their host countries,” said Robert Givens, Cornell professor of history and Fulbright program faculty advisor.

Since 1956, 19 Cornell students have earned Fulbright grants. For details on the Fulbright program, go to http://exchanges.state.gov/education/fulbright/