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Featured 75th Anniversary News & Events
Keep up throughout 2021 as we celebrate 75 years of the Fulbright Program’s impact, history and alumni. Browse recaps of past events, as well as other articles here.
Impact
Actions, Insights, and Opportunities
Since its inception in 1946, over 400,000 people from all backgrounds—recent graduates, teachers, scientists and researchers, artists, and more—have participated in the Fulbright Program to help them better understand and advance ideas in the world we share.
What impact will you make?
Fulbrighters undergo personal and professional growth through unique international educational programs.
Fulbright opens the door to connections in a complex and changing world.
“Fulbright helped me to see the world, and the experience…changed me as an individual.” (with guide dog Gladys)
“If I didn’t have the experience of…being a Gilman scholar [and] a Fulbright scholar…my worldview would have been a lot different.”
Fulbrighters bring home powerful learning experiences stemming from deep engagement with their host communities.
“Fulbright [began] a life-long investment that laid the strategic groundwork for a writing career and my work as an educator.”
“Melding with my host community [on Fulbright] expanded my perspective on the nature of my own work.”
History
Connecting a Complex and Changing World
In 1946, in the aftermath of World War II, President Harry S. Truman signed legislation into law to establish the Fulbright Program, an international academic exchange program with an ambitious goal—to increase mutual understanding, and support friendly and peaceful relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.
The Fulbright Program now operates in 160 countries and has provided over 400,000 students, scholars, teachers, artists, and professionals of all backgrounds and in all fields the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas, and contribute to finding solutions to complex global challenges. This timeline represents some of the significant milestones in the Fulbright Program’s history. Check back to see more entries, which will be posted throughout 2021.
John Hope Franklin Begins Fulbright Journey
Franklin, a Presidential Medal of Freedom winner, author, historian and Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board Chair, went on his first Fulbright to the U.K. in 1954.
Passage of Fulbright-Hays Act
President John F. Kennedy signed the Fulbright-Hays Act, re-authorizing the Fulbright Program. The Act also enabled foreign governments to contribute funding to Fulbright programming.
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.
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 Association Launches Prize
The Fulbright Association, the U.S. Fulbright alumni group, awarded its first Fulbright Prize for International Understanding to Nelson Mandela for his work fighting apartheid in South Africa.
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.
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.
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)
When a Fulbrighter comes back… they can share the experiences they’ve had and create a world that has more empathy and understanding for people that are different from ourselves.
U.S. to Kiribati, 2017
Alumni
Fulbright Alumni: Lasting Legacies
Each month of the 75th Anniversary year will feature notable Fulbrighters who have made an impact on the world. Read their stories here.
Kathryn S. Fuller
Former President and CEO, World Wildlife Fund U.S
Distinguished Fellow to Uganda, 1996 and U.S. Scholar to China, 2000
Fulbright…brought me to thinkers and doers from an array of disciplines and backgrounds.
Read Her Story
Lillygol "Lilly" Sedaghat
Storyteller and Speaker
Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellow, 2017
Lilly's Fulbright experience helped her realize just how critical her role as a storyteller is in the fight to create a more responsible world.
Read Her Story
Andrea Dutton
Carbonate Geochemist and Sedimentologist
U.S. Scholar to New Zealand, 2020
I’m actually not worried about the planet, it will still be here…What I’m worried about is how we are going to exist in that new world.
Read Her Story
Guðmundur Ingi Guðbrandsson
Minister for the Environment and Natural Resources, Iceland
Foreign Student from Iceland, 2005
[Fulbright] meant a lot to me personally and professionally.
Read His StoryAs cultural ambassadors and environmental stewards, Fulbrighters work to create a sustainable future through scientific research and communication, habitat and wildlife conservation, and innovative policy and technology for a sustainable future.
U.S. to Chile, 2018
In the Media
Recent News
Discover Fulbright Program news and updates.
Egyptian Fulbright Alumnus Discovers “Lost Golden City”
Egyptologist and Fulbright alumnus Dr. Zahi Hawass’ discovery “has been hailed as one of the most important archaeological finds since Tutankhamun’s tomb.”
Fulbright Association Celebrates 75th Anniversary with Participant Stories
The U.S. alumni organization of the Fulbright Program, the Fulbright Association, is sharing stories of inspirational Fulbrighters throughout 2021.
Third Fulbright Arctic Initiative Launches with Virtual Kick-Off
On March 23-24, the new cohort of Fulbright Arctic Scholars held a virtual meeting to kick off their 18-month collaborative research program.
Ex-Bristol Student Unable to Read at 13 Now Studying for PhD on Fulbright
William Carter was unable to read until the age of 13 because of his severe dyslexia and dyspraxia. He is now on a Fulbright at the University of California, Berkeley.
TCU Celebrates 75-Year Legacy with the U.S. Fulbright Program
Texas Christian University (TCU) launched a site that celebrates TCU Fulbrighters and their stories.
Fulbright Alumnus Named Editor-at-Large at Lonely Planet
Travel writer, multimedia journalist, and Fulbright alumnus Sebastian Modak was named the new Editor-at-Large for Lonely Planet.
An Advocate for the Disabled Talks About the Importance of Giving Back
Eyþór Kamban Þrastarson, a Fulbright fellow (Iceland to the U.S., 2015) and a manager of a Erasmus collaboration project that aims to empower and enable young people that are blind and visually impaired, discusses the impact Fulbright made on his life.
2020-21 Fulbright Top Producing Institutions Announced
We congratulate the 2020-21 Top Producing Institutions of Fulbright U.S. Students and Scholars, who had the most Fulbrighters in certain categories.
Rakuten Donation Enhances Fulbright Opportunities for Japanese Students
Fulbright Japan announced that Rakuten, Inc. has committed to establishing the Fulbright-Mikitani Memorial Grant to support future Japanese participants.
National Archives Signs MOU with Fulbright for Archival Science Fellowship
The National Archives and the State Department formalized a new partnership to establish the Fulbright-National Archives Heritage Science Fellowship.
Fulbright Partners with National Park Service to Strengthen Exchanges
Fulbright and the National Park Service signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), increasing environmental and cultural awareness worldwide.
Fulbright Program Celebrates 75th Anniversary in 2021
Read more about the Fulbright Program’s 75th anniversary celebration in DipNote, the U.S. Department of State’s official blog.
The Fulbright Program’s 2020 Year in Review
Take a look back at the program’s highlights and milestones in an unprecedented year.
The 2019-20 Fulbright-National Geographic Fellows Share their Stories
Now back from the field, the four 2019-20 Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellows share their research and photos.
2021 Events & Activities
Organizations around the world are celebrating Fulbright's 75th Anniversary.
Submit activities and events here, if you would like to be featured below.
Get Involved
We encourage all program alumni, partners, and friends to engage with Fulbright and their communities.
Egypt to U.S., 2019
