Susan Paulson, a Miami University associate professor of anthropology and Latin American studies program director, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholar grant, however she could not celebrate in Oxford - she is already in Panama, teaching at a university.
The grant will help fund Paulson's research at City of Knowledge in Panama City, Panama and help her to continue teaching at University of Panama, where she has been since August.
The focus of Paulson's efforts in Panama City is "Culture, Gender and Women's Empowerment in Comparative Latin American Contexts." City of Knowledge, where Paulson is working, is an international complex for education, research and innovation, which was developed to promote
cooperation among universities, scientific research centers, businesses and international organizations alike.
But the university experience in Panama is a little different from that of Miami, according to Paulson.
"Conditions are very difficult," Paulson said, via e-mail. "For example, there are basically no books available and we teach with photocopies. But the students and teachers are incredibly motivated and eager to learn."
Paulson's main goal for the Fulbright grant is to research and teach in a new part of Latin America.
"After working for two decades in Andean nations and Brazil, I planned to expand my horizons to the Central America/Caribbean region by interacting with colleagues and students at the University of Panama and participating in field research in Panamanian contexts," Paulson said.
Receiving the grant was exciting for Paulson because she lived in South America with her family before moving to Oxford and was looking forward to traveling abroad. Paulson is married and has two children: Nick, 16, and Carlos, 14.
"One advantage of Fulbright in relation to other academic grants is that Fulbright provides support and visas for the recipient's family," Paulson said.
Her husband, Mark, in on leave from his job at Talawanda High School and is teaching at an international school that both Nick and Carlos attend. The family has taken well to the country and involved themselves in the culture by learning Spanish and participating in native Panamanian sports.
"Mark and I know Spanish well, but the boys were kind of rusty and are improving their fluency," Paulson said.
She feels this is important and will be beneficial for the boys in the future, given the large Hispanic population in the U.S.
The family will return to the U.S. in June 2007 when Nick and Carlos finish school. Paulson plans on returning to Miami to teach Latin American studies courses next fall.
"I look forward to bringing new issues and experiences into the classroom," Paulson said. "Numerous Miami professors do research in the Caribbean and Central America and with what I am learning this year, I will be able to support these strengths in Miami's offerings."
Paulson has developed several new courses, contributing to Miami's mission for a greater understanding of diversity. One such course is "Culture and Environment in Brazil" which is based out of Paulson's hometown of 12 years; Bahia, Brazil.
She also worked with students to design their own research projects. Three of her students received a Fulbright award as well.
Cheryl Johnson, program director of women's studies at Miami and a former recipient of a Fulbright grant, said that the experience has the potential to enrich Paulson's life as well as the Miami community.
"What she learns there … about the people, the culture, the political issues she'll bring back to the classroom and Miami community," Johnson said. "Besides the fact that it's a prestigious award, it's also what she takes with
her and brings back that shows her level of professionalism and teaching."
Johnson said that Paulson and other Fulbright scholars are representatives of Miami wherever they go with the award.
"What she's taking (with her to Panama) is a result of her teaching and research, which will represent Miami very well," Johnson said.
Any student or professor can apply for a Fulbright grant, and Paulson is currently one of about 800 U.S. faculty and professionals who received the award. The purpose of the program, which was established in 1964, is to build mutual understanding between the people of the U.S. and the rest of the world.
Paulson applied for the grant in August but did not receive word about winning until late spring. Paulson said this was a big challenge for her since classes for the fall were already scheduled and open to student registration by the time of notification.
In addition to the Fulbright grant, Paulson was also the recipient of a yearlong Research Leave Fellowship from the American Association of University Women for research on gender differences in Latin America.
Paulson was also named a College of Arts and Science Distinguished Educator for 2006-07.
