Photo credit: Mark DiOrio
Fourteen members of Colgate University’s Class of 2026 and recent alumni have been awarded Fulbright U.S. Student Program scholarships for the 2026–27 academic year, setting a new record as Colgate’s largest Fulbright cohort and building on the institution’s longstanding success with the program.
“The success of this year’s cohort reflects the intellectual curiosity, dedication, and global engagement of our students,” said Steve Wright, associate dean for fellowship advising. “We are especially proud to see a record number of students pursuing opportunities that will allow them to learn from and contribute to communities around the world.”
This year’s recipients, some of whom are profiled below, will conduct research, pursue graduate study, and teach English in Albania, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Jordan, Mexico, Romania, and Tunisia. In addition, recipients will serve as cultural ambassadors while building connections across borders.
Felicity Breedlove ’24
Breedlove will spend her Fulbright award year teaching English at the Athens College-Hellenic American Educational Foundation in Greece.
During her time at Colgate, Breedlove majored in anthropology with a minor in computer science. She followed this with a master’s in education studies at the University of Pennsylvania, where she studied education, culture, and society. Breedlove is planning to complete a PhD involving education and equity within policy change.
Abby Call ’26
Call was awarded a Fulbright ETA in Cyprus. She will serve as an English teaching assistant in South Cyprus, and hopes to spend free time volunteering at a local peacebuilding NGO.
A peace and conflict studies major and philosophy minor, Call hopes to pursue a career in international law, focused on peacebuilding and cultural heritage protection.
On campus, Call was a Benton and Lampert scholar. She worked as a peer writing consultant and a Global Kids World Language Program tutor in Arabic at Hamilton Central School. She was also a member of the Model Arab League and served as senior prose editor for Colgate’s literary magazine, Portfolio.
Onil Carrion ’26
Carrion will travel to Mexico for his Fulbright to take part in the binational business program, pursuing graduate-level courses and an internship at a company that facilitates business partnerships between Mexico and the United States.
A double major in computer science and anthropology, Carrion was involved in Brothers as treasurer and vice president, was a member of Outdoor Education, and was a Wilderness Adventure leader. Additionally, he was a member of Clay Club and Latin American dance.
Carrion credits his Colgate off-campus study experiences with helping him in the Fulbright application process. He held an internship in Amsterdam during the summer of his sophomore year and studied abroad in Egypt.
Emily Corson ’24, MAT ’25
Corson majored in history and minored in education studies at Colgate, then completed her master’s in teaching with a focus on secondary social studies education. She is now finishing her first year of teaching at the NYC iSchool in Manhattan. At Colgate, she was president of the Model Arab League, a Yes Means Yes facilitator, and an intern in the Office of Admission.
Corson is excited to return to the region to further develop her Arabic language skills, learn from the local community, engage with its history and culture, and strengthen her teaching practice in the classroom.
Lucrezia Di Vincenzo ’25
Di Vincenzo, an international relations major and English minor, will work as an English teaching assistant in Albania during her Fulbright year, with a long-term career interest in international law.
During her time on campus, Di Vincenzo served as an SAT prep tutor and intern with the Max A. Shacknai Center for Outreach, Volunteerism, and Education (COVE). She spent two semesters abroad through Colgate, the first in Manchester and the second in Geneva, where she interned at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Amanda Krowitz ’26
Krowitz received a Fulbright study award to France, where she will be pursuing an M2 master’s degree in French and English language, literature, and culture at ENS Paris-Saclay.
At Colgate, Krowitz was an English major with an emphasis in creative writing and a double minor in French and political science. She worked as a writing consultant at the Writing and Speaking Center and a copy editor at the Colgate Maroon-News. She was also a member of Colgate’s Geneva Study Group in the spring of her junior year.
She plans to build scholarly research experience at the graduate level and hone her interests to pursue a PhD in English literature or comparative literature.
Bill Luo ’26
Luo received a Fulbright research award in Germany, where he will research the integration of quantum optical fiber networks into existing classical channels.
On campus, Luo completed a double major in physics and applied mathematics. He has spent four years conducting research in Professor Enrique Galvez’s optics lab. During this time, Luo also founded Cha’Gate LLC through a Thought Into Action program and served as a member of the Campus Venture Initiative Committee.
After his Fulbright year, Luo will pursue a PhD in optics at the University of Rochester.
Kathryn Selfe ’24
Selfe will research the impact of educational initiatives on youth migration aspirations in Tunisia during her Fulbright.
Selfe graduated from Colgate with a double major in anthropology and Middle Eastern and Islamic studies. She was a peer tutor in Arabic, worked at the Writing and Speaking Center, interned at the Office of the Dean of the College, and studied off campus in Morocco and Australia. Selfe was also a member of the Model Arab League and Arabic coordinator for the Foreign Language Program at Hamilton Elementary School.
After graduating, Selfe studied Arabic in Meknes, Morocco with a Boren Fellowship. She is now a James C. Gaither Junior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where she assists in research for its Middle East program.
Emilia Spina ’26
Spina will travel to Sokolov, Czech Republic, for her Fulbright ETA award to teach English at a vocational high school that offers a diverse range of programs, from cosmetology to carpentry.
At Colgate, Spina majored in geography with a minor in religion. She worked as a media and marketing intern and an outreach intern for the COVE. She additionally served as a team leader for Roots and Wings, an SAT prep tutor, a member of the Colgate Hunger Outreach Program, and a leader for public health initiatives.
Spina plans to build upon her nonprofit experience by volunteering to support her host country’s social service system. In the long term, Spina wants to become a lawyer focused on human rights and civil advocacy.
Four additional Colgate students earned Fulbright awards but elected to pursue other opportunities. Endre Cattouse ’26 received an ETA position in Taiwan and will stay at Colgate to earn a master’s in teaching. Ean Hill ’26 received an ETA position in Germany and instead accepted a U.S. teaching assistant position in Austria. Elizabeth Joffrey ’25 received a research award in Germany and will continue her position at the National Institutes of Health with the post-bac intramural research program. Thomas Nemec ’26 received an ETA position in the Czech Republic and is pursuing a master’s in classical language and literature at the University of Oxford.
Established in 1946, the Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s premier international academic exchange program, providing opportunities for exceptional Americans and participants from 160 countries and locations to study, teach, and conduct research abroad.
Students and alumni interested in applying for Fulbright are encouraged to reach out to Meghan Niedt, associate director of the Office of National Fellowships and Scholarships, at mniedt@colgate.edu, to schedule an appointment.