A graduate student from Texas Tech's Department of Natural Resources Management has been selected to receive a scholarship from the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. Jennifer Zavaleta, a master's student from Irving, was accepted to go to Chile to perform a "Program Evaluation of Chile's Long-Term Socio-Ecological Research Network."

"I'll go to Chile under my Fulbright scholarship in March and stay through November," Zavaleta said. "I'm really excited. While I'm down there, I'll work on two projects."

The first is with the Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity in Santiago as part of the Long-Term Socio-Ecological Research Network. Zavaleta will do a program evaluation to see how people are collaborating and what the obstacles are. In the second project she will be working on a watershed management project in Valdivia. Zavaleta will be working with experts from the Universidad Austral de Chile.

Zavaleta is one of some 1,700 U.S. citizens who'll travel abroad for the 2012-2013 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. The program offers fellowships for U.S. graduating college seniors, graduate students, young professionals and artists to study abroad for one academic year and operates in more than 155 countries worldwide.

Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. Tanja Karp, Fulbright program advisor and associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, said she was proud of this year's recipients from Texas Tech. They include Zavaleta, Kendra Phelps from biology, and Lindsay Huffhines from Community, Family and Addiction Services.

"Obtaining three Fulbright U.S. Student Grants out of 10 applications from Texas Tech demonstrates the high quality of our students' project proposals," Karp said. "It shows that obtaining this prestigious scholarship is feasible, and it's my hope that this year's success encourages more students to apply to the Fulbright program in the coming years."

Written by Norman Martin

CONTACT: Mark Wallace, Chairman, Department of Natural Resources Management, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-2841, mark.wallace@ttu.edu

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Editor's Note: More information can be found at www.us.fulbrightonline.org