March 2026: ONCS is proud to announce that Abby Shaw, a Master of Landscape Architecture student, was selected for the 2025-26 Sigma Lambda Alpha Honor Society Graduate Scholarship. Sigma Lambda Alpha is a national organization that promotes leadership and scholarship in landscape architecture. This $2000 award honors landscape architecture students who are outstanding in scholarship and leadership achievement.
Abby says, “I am very grateful to be supported by SLA. Their recognition is a moral support boost as I keep working hard on my MLA degree and prepare for graduation in May!”
March 2026: Good news! ONCS was recently informed that Lily Haley, a chemistry major with minors in biology and American Sign Language, was offered a prestigious summer research internship through the DAAD RISE (Research Internships in Science and Engineering) program. Lily will be working in a lab this summer at the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences in Krefeld, Germany, and her travel and living expenses will be fully covered by the award.
Since she was a child wondering about why the different colors of Froot Loops taste the way they do, Lily has dreamed of a career in flavor research. She has conducted research on flavor compounds in Dr. David Bwambok’s chemistry lab on campus for three semesters, and she completed the Chemistry Research Immersion Summer Program (CRISP) last summer. She will be researching how basidiomycetes can be used to improve the sustainability of food production in the Krefeld lab.
Lily says, “Receiving this award has helped to boost my confidence as a researcher, which has been a lifelong dream of mine.”
A second student, Simon Klinger, a chemistry and pre-medical preparations major and math minor, also did well in the DAAD RISE competition. Simon is currently waitlisted for a summer lab position.
Both Lily and Simon are Honors College students.
The DAAD RISE program offers summer research internships in Germany. It aims to provide North American, British, and Irish students in the fields of biology, chemistry, computer science, physics, earth sciences, and engineering with opportunities to gain practical research experience. Students are matched with a host university or institute according to their area of interest (biology, chemistry, physics, earth sciences, engineering, or a closely related field).
February 2026: Congratulations to the following seven BSU students and alumni who’ve made it to the semifinalist round for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program! Final decisions about recipients will be made by host country committees and announced later this semester.
We have four semifinalists for the English Teaching Assistant (ETA) Program. If selected, these students and alumni would help teach English and U.S. culture to students in the host countries listed below and also carry out self-designed cultural immersion activities.
Roman Hughes (Poland) – M.A. student in English studies who also completed a bachelor’s degree at Ball State in English studies and creative writing.
Trey Mathews (Honduras) – senior Honors College student with a major in Spanish teaching and a minor in history.
Jack Vaught (Thailand) – senior English teaching major.
Kade Wereley-Bross (Germany) – May 2025 graduate with a major in theatre creation and minors in technical theatre and German. Kade was also a member of the Honors College.
We also have three semi-finalists for Study Awards. These students would enter master’s programs in the host countries listed below.
Em Allen (Ulster University, UK) – senior Honors College English literature major with minors in economics and women’s and gender studies.
Kathryn Rockwood (University of Kent, UK) – Senior Honors College interior design major and theatre minor.
Elijah Sturges (Greek State University, Greece) – senior Honors College religious studies and history major with a minor in classics.
Introduced in 1946 by Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the Fulbright Scholarship is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and was designed to aid in the mutual understanding between citizens of the United States and citizens of other countries, to promote world peace through education and understanding. Each year, the Fulbright U.S. Student Program funds are awarded in one of two categories: teaching award to fund students to teach English abroad and study/research/creative awards to fund students pursuing research or creative interests or degrees at international universities. U.S. Student Fulbrighters go abroad for 10-12 months for a variety of fully-funded experiences.
January 2026: The Office of Nationally Competitive Scholarships (ONCS) is thrilled to announce that Jack Vaught has been named a quarterfinalist for the Princeton in Asia Fellowship! The Princeton in Asia (PiA) program offers year-long, immersive work fellowships for recent graduates in various professional fields across Asia, aiming to build cultural understanding and person-to-person diplomacy through service in areas like education, public health, environmental sustainability, and economic development. It’s a competitive, non-profit program providing paid placements, stipends, and support, focusing on transformative cross-cultural experiences rather than short-term internships. Jack will be interviewed in mid-January. This initial interview will focus on Jack’s general fit for the PiA program. If selected for the next stage of the process, Jack will then interview again, this time for particular positions within the program – likely in the area of English education.
Jack credits their support system with helping them to reach this point: “Becoming a quarterfinalist for a Princeton in Asia Fellowship brings me one step closer to my goal as a future educator who fosters cross-cultural understanding, empathizes with, and empowers others navigating multicultural spaces. To me, this fellowship is also a testament to the collective faith, rigor, and care of both myself and my supportive communities, reaffirming that this journey toward something greater than myself is never one I walk alone.” Jack is the first student to work with ONCS on an application for this prestigious award.
January 2026: Six BSU undergraduates—Calvin Arancibia, Alex Carroll, Hailey Deckard, Quinn Haynes, Laney Nall, and Alee Quirk—have been awarded Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships for study abroad in the coming months!
The Gilman Scholarship helps to fill financial gaps for undergraduates who are studying abroad. Upon their return to the U.S., recipients are required to carry out a follow-on service project that helps promote international education and understanding.
Calvin Arancibia will study as an exchange student at Sapporo University in Japan from May to August in the coming summer. An English teaching and Japanese double major also pursuing a certificate in TESOL, Calvin feels that this study abroad will help him to gain proficiency in Japanese: “I am most excited to be fully immersed in Japanese culture and language. Since immersion is one of the most effective ways to learn a language, I cannot wait to take full advantage of this opportunity!” Learning the language in Japan will undoubtedly help him to reach his goal of one day teaching English in Japan.
As president of Alpha Mu Gamma, the National Foreign Language Honor Society at Ball State, Calvin plans to organize and host a Scholarship Night through this organization upon his return to campus next fall. This event will share information with interested students about the Gilman Scholarship, as well as other scholarships for study abroad that the Office of Nationally Competitive Scholarships also promotes. Calvin will also share his experiences abroad with fellow members of the Japanese Conversation Club.
Alex Carroll will travel through a Ball State University faculty-led program to Greece and Turkey in May of 2026. The program will focus on architecture and is entitled Myth and Magic in the Ancient World. Alex has a major in architecture and career interests in adaptive reuse, historic preservation, and sustainable design. She hopes to learn more about “how ancient builders responded to climate, materials, and community needs.” She feels that this experience will enhance his portfolio as well as her ability to think about architecture from a global perspective.
For her follow-on service project, Alex intends to share her experiences abroad with students in her small-town high school at an upcoming Career Day. She will talk to attendees about the transferable skills that she will have gained through study abroad to inspire them to pursue study abroad that will benefit their future careers.
Hailey Deckard will travel to Ireland through a Ball State University faculty-led program in May 2026. The program will focus on international sport business and sport careers in Ireland. Hailey has a major in exercise science and plans to attend graduate school to become a physical therapist. She explains her desire to study abroad with this program: ”Being able to observe health professionals in another country approach exercise science will help me broaden my perspective and show me strategies that I can bring back to graduate school and to my future practice.”
Hailey is a Resident Assistant on campus and plans to share her experiences in Ireland with students in her hall next year. She will table at Woodworth Complex, sharing photos, infographics, and stories with residents who stop by. She wants to show other students that study abroad is possible, even when finances are a concern.
Quinn Haynes, a media major with a minor in film screenwriting, is studying through USAC at Massey University in New Zealand during the Spring 2026 semester. He intends to take media production courses and complete an internship in his field. He will also visit with old family friends, as he spent some of his childhood in New Zealand. He says, “This award not only relieves some of the financial burden as I prepare, but also helps me focus more on my classes, excursions, and connections overseas.” She looks forward to visiting Aviva Stadium and Croke Park.
For his follow-on service project, Quinn will develop a video series providing a window into his experiences in New Zealand, as well as information about and tips for studying abroad. He will share this media with other media majors during an interactive presentation designed to encourage them to understand the transformative power of study abroad.
Laney Nall, an Honors College student, will travel with a faculty-led program to Italy during Spring Break 2026. The program will focus on art history. Laney has a major in visual arts and animation and a minor in computer science. They feel that experiencing art history in Italy will positively influence their career in animation: “While some might say that an animation major doesn’t need an art history background, the reality is that a deep understanding of any art starts with art history; in Italy, I will encounter some of its earliest roots.”
For their follow-on service project, Laney intends to give a presentation about their study abroad experiences to other animation majors. They will share their experiences abroad by designing and displaying a concept pitch, character model, and greybox based on her experiences in Italy. They hope to inspire others in their major to pursue study abroad, especially for the purpose of visiting and learning about art history.
Alee Quirk will be traveling through a Ball State University faculty-led program to Greece and Turkey in May 2026. The program will focus on architecture and is entitled Myth and Magic in the Ancient World. Alee is an Honors College student and has a major in architecture and a minor in sustainability. She feels that this program will support her career goal: “This study abroad program will help me to achieve my goal of becoming an architect capable of implementing sustainable design and addressing pressing social issues. It will allow me to learn from to tour guides, museum curators, and my professors about how Greece is approaching these issues, which will, ultimately support my aims as a future professional in architecture.”
When she returns to the US, Alee will present her experiences abroad to members of Scholarhouse, an organization that supports single parents, like Alee, who are pursuing higher education. She will share a video as well as sketches that she makes when abroad. She will also lead a hands-on sketching workshop. She wants to provide participants with a taste of the architecture she will visit in Greece and Turkey, to encourage them to pursue their own study abroad experiences.
The federally-funded Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program provides up to $5,000* to U.S. undergraduate students pursuing academic studies abroad, to better prepare them to assume significant roles in an increasingly global economy and interdependent world. (*Additional support is available to selected students who will study Critical Need Languages or conduct STEM research while abroad.)
September 2025: Congratulations to Izzy Collins, who was recently notified that she was selected for the National Weather Association Foundation Roderick A. Scofield Meteorology Scholarship. The Scofield Scholarship offers only one $1000 monetary award each year to support an exceptional student pursuing a career in meteorology. Izzy graduated with a major in meteorology and minors in mathematics and GIS in May 2024 and is currently pursuing a graduate degree at Plymouth State University.