Marisa Vattana of Irondequoit Receives Prestigious Fulbright Award

2013 Jul 2

Nazareth College is proud to announce that the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board has selected Marisa Vattana of Irondequoit, N.Y. as a recipient of a U.S. Junior Fulbright award. Vattana was notified in late June making for a total of four recipients from Nazareth College for 2013-2014. In the last six years, there have been 21 Fulbrights awarded to Nazareth College students.

Vattana '13, a Spanish major with inclusive adolescent education certification and a minor in Italian, will teach English at the university level in Brazil. She hopes to use her assistantship as an opportunity to break negative stereotypes regarding the U.S. that are prominent among South American countries. Upon her return, Vattana plans to teach Spanish and pursue her master's in TESOL.

Vattana will now join 2013-2014 Fulbright recipients Joshua Hurd of Livonia, N.Y., Leslie Johnson of Watertown, N.Y., and Ashley Yerdon '13 of Mexico, N.Y.

Established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the Fulbright Program's objective is to build mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the rest of the world. Sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the Fulbright Program is America's flagship international education exchange. Approximately 279,500 "Fulbrights," 105,400 from the United States and 174,100 from other countries, have participated in the Program since its inception over fifty years ago.

Founded in 1924, Nazareth College is located on a close-knit, suburban campus in the dynamic, metropolitan region of Rochester, N.Y. The College offers challenging academic programs in the liberal arts and sciences and professional programs in health and human services, education, and management. Nazareth's strong cultures of service and community prepare students to be successful professionals and engaged citizens. The College enrolls approximately 2,000 undergraduate students and 1,000 graduate students.