February 10 — Today, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs named University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) a Fulbright Top Producing Institution for U.S. Scholars. This recognition is given to the U.S. colleges and universities that received the highest number of applicants selected for the 2022-23 Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program.
“UMD is proud and pleased to receive this distinctive recognition from Fulbright,” said Dr. Amy Hietapelto, interim executive vice chancellor for academic affairs at UMD. “In recent years, UMD has made Fulbright a significant part of our commitment to comprehensive internationalization. This designation is a testament to the University’s long-standing commitment to global engagement and the result of our efforts to raise awareness of these opportunities, and support our faculty, staff, and students in pursuit of their goals.”
Fulbright is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program. It is also among the largest and most diverse exchange programs in the world. Since its inception in 1946, more than 400,000 participants from all backgrounds and fields – including recent university graduates, teachers, scientists, researchers, artists, and others, from the United States and over 160 other countries – have participated in the Fulbright Program. Fulbright alumni have returned to their home countries to make an impact on their communities thanks to their expanded worldview, a deep appreciation for their host country and its people, and a larger network of colleagues and friends.
Since 1949, 53 students and 26 scholars from UMD have received a combined 84 Fulbright awards and grants. Two UMD faculty members were selected for the 2022-2023 academic year: History Professor Scott Laderman and Assistant Professor in Mathematics Igor Melnykov are Fulbright Scholars in Sweden and Kazakhstan, respectively. This is Dr. Laderman’s second Fulbright award.
The Fulbright program is supported at UMD through the work of Dr. Karl Markgraf, chief international officer and director of international programs and services. “Over the past five years, Fulbright opportunities and other international awards have been actively promoted and supported for UMD students and scholars, resulting in record numbers of applications from both sectors of campus. In addition to our faculty scholars, we’ve been especially pleased to see significant growth in our students’ engagement and success in attaining Fulbright awards,” said Dr. Markgraf.
The Fulbright Program was established over 75 years ago to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. While the primary source of funding for the Fulbright Program is an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, it benefits from additional support from foreign partner governments, non-governmental organizations, private organizations, corporate partnerships, and individual donors. Importantly, U.S. and foreign host institutions provide support as well.
“On behalf of President Biden and Secretary of State Blinken, congratulations to the colleges and universities recognized as 2022-2023 Fulbright Top Producing Institutions, and to all the applicants who were selected for the Fulbright Program this year,” said Lee Satterfield, assistant secretary of state for educational and cultural affairs.
“Thanks to the visionary leadership of these institutions, administrators, and advisors, a new generation of Fulbrighters – changemakers, as I like to say – will catalyze lasting impact on their campus, in their communities, and around the world.”
Fulbright alumni work to make a positive impact on their communities, sectors, and the world and have included 41 heads of state or government, 62 Nobel Laureates, 89 Pulitzer Prize winners, 78 MacArthur Fellows, and countless leaders and changemakers who carry forward the Fulbright mission of enhancing mutual understanding.
For more information about the Fulbright Program, visit fulbrightprogram.org