June 2011 - Fulbright Awards valued at €285,000 ($420,000) were officially announced at an event hosted by the Deputy Chief of Mission from the US Embassy in Ireland Mr. John Hennessey-Niland. The awards are jointly funded by the Irish and US governments under the Ireland-United States Commission for Educational Exchange.
The successful recipients have been accepted at leading institutions including Harvard, Berkeley, Cornell, Rice, Columbia and NYU. Out of the 25 scholarship awards, 8 are for research and study in the areas of science, technology, environment and health. This year 6 Irish awardees will spend time teaching the language and lecturing in Irish culture as Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistants. The remaining 10 recipients will conduct study and research in the areas of law, music, writing, politics and other humanities and social science disciplines.
The U.S. recipients of Fulbright scholarships to Ireland were also announced.
This year, Ireland stands out as one of the most successful countries internationally in the very prestigious Fulbright International Science and Technology Award Category with two successful candidates being awarded fully funded PhDs in the US worth $300,000 each. Ms Elizabeth O’Sullivan will undertake her PhD in Nutrition at Cornell University and Ms Ellen Roche will undertake her PhD in Biomedical Engineering at Harvard Medical School.
Commenting on the awards, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Eamon Gilmore, T.D., congratulated the recipients and said: “The Ireland-United States Commission for Educational Exchange represents not just a commitment to the best educational standards for the successful recipients but also a joint investment by both governments to ever closer ties between our two countries, supporting, as President Obama put it recently in Dublin, the people who make the future happen.”
Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. John Hennessey-Niland of the US Embassy in Ireland said: “The Fulbright Awards are one of the most important collaborative initiatives between our two countries. I wish this year’s 25 Irish recipients every success during their term in the U.S. In addition to the important academic and professional experience you are about to embark on, I trust you will make friendships that will remain long after you return to Ireland.”
Una Halligan, Chairperson of the Fulbright Commission of Ireland concluded: “Each of these 25 successful candidates was chosen not only on the basis of their individual merits but also because they displayed exceptional leadership ability which is inherent to Fulbright. Great ideas are borne out of people’s ability to think creatively, to collaborate well with others and to follow through in order to make things happen. These recipients are some of the finest in their disciplines; I have no doubt they will be outstanding representatives for this country and will thrive and make the most of every opportunity that comes their way.”
The Fulbright Awards are presented on an annual basis to Irish students, scholars and professionals to undertake postgraduate study and research at higher education, cultural and related institutions in the United States. Applications are encouraged in all disciplines including the visual and performing arts.
The next Fulbright Awards Competition 2012-2013 will open to applicants on Monday 5th September. For more information visit www.fulbright.ie.
ENDS
For further information please contact:
Pippa Halley – Communications and Information Officer
01- 660 7670
Pippa.halley@fulbright.ie
Notes to Editor:
Fulbright Recipients 2011-2012
1. Dr. Elizabeth Campbell is currently a lecturer in the School of Law at the University of Aberdeen. Dr Campbell will undertake research at the University of Maryland in the area of legal reactions to organised crime in Ireland and the United Kingdom.
2. Dr. Maeve Cooke is Professor and Chair in the School of Philosophy at University College Dublin and a member of the Royal Irish Academy. She will undertake research on the question of Truth in Social and Political Theory at Yale University and in University of California, Berkeley.
3. Professor Eugene Coyle is head of the School of Electrical Engineering Systems at the Dublin Institute of Technology. Prof. Coyle will undertake a comparative study of energy policy in Ireland and the US with evaluation to engineering education and research in sustainable energy.
4. Pádraic Déiseach is completing his MA in Irish and Communications at University College Dublin. Pádraic will be a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at Elms College Massachusetts.
5. Ronan Doherty is a PhD candidate in Nua-Ghaeilge at the National Universityof Ireland, Maynooth. Ronan will be a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana.
6. Myles Dungan is currently a PhD candidate and tutor in History at Trinity College, an award-winning author and broadcaster with RTÉ. Myles was a Fulbright Scholar in 2007. He will be returning to the University of California – Berkeley’s History Department as a Fulbright Distinguished Visiting Senior Scholar to present a one-semester inter-disciplinary course entitled Aspects Of Ireland Since the Union.
7. Oisín Dunne is completing his degree in Irish and Business at Dublin City University. Oisín will be a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at University of St. Thomas, St. Paul Minnesota.
8. Ciara Glasheen is currently completing a Graduate Diploma in Music Education at the University of Limerick. Ciara will undertake a Master’s in Music at the University of Colorado specialising in oboe performance and pedagogy.
9. Oisín Fergal Lyons is the Fulbright – Glen Dimplex Awardee in Renewables. Oisín is a PhD Scholar in Mechanical Engineering at Trinity College Dublin. Oisín will undertake research in the area of heat transfer and fluid dynamics at Purdue University, Indiana.
10. Catarina Marvao is the recipient of a Fulbright – Schuman Award which promotes research and teaching in EU – US studies. Catarina is a Ph.D. candidate at Trinity College Dublin. She will be based in the Department of Economics of Johns Hopkins University for 6 months where she will undertake research in the area of Regulation of Cartels in the EU and US.
11. Eoin McGuirk is currently a PhD candidate in Economics at Trinity College Dublin. Eoin will undertake research in development economics at University of California, Berkeley.
12. Dr. Gary Murphy is Associate Professor of Politics in the School of Law and Government at Dublin City University. Prof. Murphy will evaluate Lobbying Regulation in the United States of America: Lessons for Ireland at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill.
13. Dr. Fiona Newell is an Associate Professor at the School of Psychology and Institute of Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin. Dr. Newell will undertake research at Florida Atlantic University in the area of Perceptual processes across the lifespan: the development of efficient cross-modal object and face perception during infancy.
14. Mairead NíChoine is the Fulbright – CRH Awardee in Business Studies, based at Trinity College Dublin undertaking a PhD in Structural Engineering. Mairead will carry out research on the risk based optimization of seismic retrofit strategies for deteriorating infrastructure at Rice University, Texas.
15. Máire NíChuaig, a native Irish speaker graduated with a BA in Irish and Translation at NUI Galway. She plans on returning to College to complete a Higher Diploma in Education in 2012. Máire will be a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at the University of Montana.
16. Madeleine NíGhallchobhair is currently undertaking a Masters on full scholarship in Irish and Communications and tutoring Irish in University College Dublin, having recently graduated with a First Class Honours B.A. She will be a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at Lehman College, New York.
17. Dr. Noam Lubell is a Lecturer at the Irish Centre for Human Rights, School of Law, National University of Ireland, Galway. Dr Lubell will undertake his research into the area of future challenges in the law of armed conflict at New York University.
18. Cuán ÓFlatharta is currently a primary school teacher based at Scoil Lorcain in Monkstown, Dublin. Cuán will be a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at the University of Connecticut.
19. Marie-Claire O’Kane recently completed the Bachelor of Civil Law degree at the University of Oxford and will undertake an LL.M program at Harvard Law School.
20. Elizabeth O’Sullivan is one of two recipients of the Fulbright International Science and Technology PhD award for 2011. Elizabeth will undertake her PhD specialising in Nutrition at Cornell University.
21. Nell Regan is a freelance writer and educator. As a recipient of a Fulbright Scholar Award she will be attending the International Writing Programme at The University of Iowa and UC Berkeley to complete a new body of poetry.
22. Daniel Regan is a PhD candidate in Psychology at the National University of Ireland, Galway. Daniel will pursue his research at the University of California, Berkeley specialising in the area of health psychology with a specific focus on alcohol research.
23. Ellen Roche is one of two Irish recipients of the Fulbright International Science and Technology PhD Award in 2011. Ellen will undertake her PhD in Biomedical Engineering at Harvard Medical School in August 2011.
24. Dr Ruchika Sharma has recently completed her PhD at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Trinity College Dublin. Dr. Sharma will undertake research at Columbia University investigating the structure and function of a bile acid transporter, results of which will aid in discovery of novel treatments for hypercholesterolemia.
25. Lorcan Walsh is a Ph.D. candidate in biomedical engineering based at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. Lorcan will pursue his research in the US at the Division of Sleep Medicine, Harvard Medical School specialising in the development of novel non-contact technologies to investigate the sleep and sleeping patterns of older adults.
