Innovators.
Trailblazers.
Fulbrighters.

The Fulbright Program Is Established

To promote international goodwill and mutual understanding, President Harry S. Truman signed the Fulbright Act into law on August 1, 1946, launching the framework for the Fulbright Program.

John Hope Franklin Begins Fulbright Journey

Franklin, a Presidential Medal of Freedom winner, author, historian and Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board Chair, was a Fulbright Scholar to the UK in 1954 and later to Australia, Venezuela, Zimbabwe, and Brazil.

Year of 7 Fulbright Nobel Prize Laureates

Future Fulbrighter Linus Pauling (pictured) won the 1954 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, the same year that six future Nobel Laureates received Fulbright awards: Milton Friedman, Philip Anderson, William Fowler, Niels Jerne, Roy Glauber & Hannes Alfven.

First Fulbrighter on Record with a Disability

Jeff Davis Duty, Jr. began his Fulbright in the United Kingdom at the London School of Economics. Later in his legal career, he successfully argued to allow guide dogs in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Future Nobel Laureate Starts Fulbright

Muhammad Yunus arrived in the U.S. from Bangladesh to study economics. The professor, social entrepreneur, and founder of Grameen Bank won the Nobel Peace Prize (2006) for microlending to reduce poverty.

Fulbrighter Walks on the Moon

Apollo 17 astronaut and 1958 Fulbrighter to Norway Harrison “Jack” Schmitt is the only scientist and the most recent person still living to have walked on the Moon. He was a NASA administrator, professor, and U.S. Senator (NM).

Fulbright 40th Anniversary

Distinguished Lecturer Grants Program created to celebrate Fulbright’s anniversary. Recipients include luminaries such as poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist Maya Angelou, who traveled on her Fulbright to Ghana in 1986.

Fulbright Expands Following Cold War

Fulbright began in Eastern Europe in the 1940s, continued during the Cold War, and after its end, new Fulbright Commissions opened In Hungary (1992), Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Czech Republic, and Slovakia.

Fulbright Alumni Serve in Congress

Fulbright alumni have long served in the U.S. Congress. The 110th U.S. Congress convened on January 4, 2007, with four Fulbright alumni serving in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Fulbright-Fogarty Fellowships Established

Many Fulbrighters have engaged in public health projects. With the U.S. National Institutes of Health, Fulbright-Fogarty Fellowships launched to promote clinical research in resource-limited settings.

National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship

Fulbright partners with the National Geographic Society to select and train Fulbrighters to spark broader conversations around globally significant themes.

Classroom Diplomacy

Teacher Exchanges expand program offerings for primary and secondary teachers in the U.S. and 70 countries; nearly 11,000 teacher alumni have brought global perspectives to classrooms around the world.

Fulbright Refreshes Narrative & Brand Identity

The refreshed brand underscores Fulbright is for talented students, scholars, artists, teachers, and professionals from all backgrounds who seek to share knowledge and build diverse and dynamic networks.

6 Fulbright Alumni Lead Their Countries

Served or were elected: Colville Norbert Young (Belize), Ashraf Ghani (Afghanistan), Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic (Croatia), David Granger (Guyana), Alexander de Croo (Belgium), Francisco Sagasti (Peru)

75^th Anniversary of the Fulbright Program

Over the last 75 years, more than 400,000 alumni have participated in the Fulbright Program, creating meaningful global impact with a focus on action, community, and connections.