On May 11, 2017, the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board (FFSB) held its 275th Quarterly Board Meeting at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. The FFSB heard from Fulbright Program Advisors from Georgetown University, Howard University, and the United States Naval Academy who shared their experiences and strategies to promote the Fulbright U.S. Student Program and provide guidance on the application process to interested students. The Board also heard from two Fulbright Foreign Students and a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence from the United Kingdom, the Philippines, and Indonesia, who discussed the Fulbright Program's impact in helping them to achieve their career goals and make a positive impact in their respective fields: medicine, education, and national security law.
The Board Members also approved two changes to the policies governing the Fulbright Program.
1. Fulbright Specialist Program
The Board determined that the two-year waiting period between grants does not apply to recipients of the Fulbright Specialist Program grant, adding the following language to FFSB policy section 624.2:
Recipients of a Fulbright Specialist Program grant are not required to adhere to the two-year waiting period before applying for a Fulbright Scholar grant. Likewise, recipients of a Fulbright Scholar grant are not required to adhere to the two-year waiting period before applying for a Fulbright Specialist Program grant.
2. Terminology Change for Fulbright Alumni
The Board also approved a proposal to substitute the word “alumni” for all references in the FFSB policies to “former grantees,” “former Fulbright grantees,” and “former American grantees.” The change reflects a decision to cease using “former grantee” or “former Fulbrighter” in practice and in the outreach activities of the Board and the program.
(Note: See changes in Sections 132.4, 144, 361.4 and 660 of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board Policies.)
Appointed by the President of the United States, the 12-member Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board oversees, sets policies, and approves the applications for the Fulbright Program as authorized by the Fulbright-Hays Act of 1961.
