Ringling College of Art and Design is pleased to announce that Illustration senior DeAnna Boyer has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program award enhanced with a Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship for the 2022-2023 academic year from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.
As a Fulbright participant, DeAnna will study and conduct research in Ireland for the 2022-2023 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected in an open, merit-based competition that considers leadership potential, academic and/or professional achievement, and record of service. As Fulbright alumni, their careers are enriched by joining a network of thousands of esteemed alumni, many of whom are leaders in their fields. Fulbright alumni include 61 Nobel Prize laureates, 89 Pulitzer Prize recipients, and 40 who have served as a head of state or government.
DeAnna’s Fulbright year will take place at the Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan, Ireland and the National University of Ireland Galway where she will matriculate into the joint MA program in Art and Ecology. Her Fulbright project will include the creation of an illustrated book that seeks to connect the current culture and environment of Ireland to the historical stories and legends preserved through Celtic history. The interdisciplinary study of both art and science offered through the Art and Ecology program creates a unique opportunity to explore both sociological and ecological research through the eyes of an artist. DeAnna has also been awarded a Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship, which provides an opportunity for selected Fulbright U.S. Student grantees to participate in an academic year of storytelling on a globally significant theme. DeAnna will utilize a variety of storytelling tools, including illustration, plein-air painting, sketching, and social media to tell the story of Ireland’s historical and present connection to the environment to a global audience through National Geographic’s online platforms.
“An integral part of Ringling College’s mission is to help prepare our students to be discerning visual thinkers and ethical practitioners,” says Dr. Larry Thompson, president of Ringling College of Art and Design. “We are so proud of DeAnna and support the connectivity of illustration, art history, culture, and the environment in her work. She is well-deserving of this prestigious award and we know this multicultural and global opportunity of study will serve to enhance her experiences and future impact on the world.”
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program application process is administered at Ringling College of Art and Design by Dr. Kristina Keogh, Director of Library Services and Primary Fulbright Program Advisor and Dr. Genevieve Hill-Thomas, Professor of Art History and Secondary Fulbright Program Advisor. The FPAs provide support and mentorship throughout the application process for any Ringling College students or alumni who wish to apply to the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Additional support is provided by Fulbright Campus Committee members Amy Pettengill, Director of International Student Affairs and A. Charles Kovacs, Director, Center for Career Services.
The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program and is supported by the people of the United States and partner countries around the world. The Fulbright Program is funded through an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations, and foundations around the world also provide direct and indirect support to the Program.
Since 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided more than 400,000 participants from over 160 countries the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas, and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns. The primary source of funding for the Fulbright program is an annual appropriation by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations and foundations in foreign countries and in the United States also provide direct and indirect support.
For further information about the Fulbright Program or the U.S. Department of State, please visit http://eca.state.gov/fulbright.
