From February 1 to March 16, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) was home to ten incredible Argentine students in the Friends of Fulbright program. The program, sponsored by the Fulbright Commission Argentina and the U.S. Embassy in Argentina, provides scholarships to upper-level Argentine university students to come to the U.S. for six weeks and study the English language and American culture, observe classes in their academic disciplines, and participate in cultural activities.
2019 marked the third year in a row that Nebraska has hosted students from the program, coordinated by the Office of Global Strategies. As with other cohorts, this year’s students came from all over Argentina and from a variety of academic backgrounds, including agricultural engineering, chemical engineering, food science and technology, chemistry, geology, and law.
“It is a unique opportunity were you not only improve the language, [but] also meet friends and a new charming place,” said Julieta Trapé, one of the Argentine students.
Expanding academic opportunities
The Argentines’ U.S. language and culture course was taught by Programs in English as a Second Language (PIESL) lecturer Tim Janda, and met four days out of the week. During the course, the Argentines improved their English language skills and discussed topics including American government, history, arts, sports and more.
“The best way to learn a language (I think) is by speaking a lot, writing and reading. All those topics were included in Tim's program,” said Gabriel Jakas.
With the cooperation of faculty in various departments, the Office of Global Strategies also arranged between two and three regular academic courses for each Argentine to observe and partake in the class curriculum. From sitting in on lectures, to visiting faculty labs and attending off-site class visits, all of the Argentines were pleased how welcoming their professors were.
“[After this experience] I feel much more comfortable speaking English and meeting new people,” added Lucía Páez Gayone.
Other academic experiences designed for the program included a panel with the Office of Graduate Studies to discuss opportunities at Nebraska for graduate degrees and provide additional information on graduate school in the U.S.
“This experience helped me to decide that I want do a master or PhD when I finish my degree,” said Bárbara Errobidart.
Cultural experiences that forged lasting friendships
In addition to the program’s academic components, the Argentines had various opportunities to fully immerse themselves in University, Nebraskan and American culture. One of the cultural highlights of the program for both the Argentine students and the Nebraska community was the Potluck and Cultural Exchange, held on February 21. Together, the Argentine students prepared traditional dishes and desserts from home for their friends, faculty, and program staff to try. Further adding to the international array of food, many UNL Fulbright Student Association members and other guests brought their favorite desserts from home as well.
“I think I can't pick one favorite memory, I have so many in my mind that I won't ever forget. [But] I could say that the Potluck day, I felt very happy with all my group cooking for other people so they can try a little of Argentina in every empanada, piece of chocotorta, torta frita. It felt very good exchanging with other cultures food, customs, music, etc.,” said Lucía Caro Langwagen.
From living in the residence halls to attending labs and lectures, the Argentines lived their six weeks on campus as any other Nebraska student would. They explored local coffee shops, took part in classes in their majors, and even experienced fraternity and sorority life. After being introduced to the Outdoor Adventure Center by another UNL student, the group quickly became interested in rock climbing, passed the exam and continued the sport during their six-week stay.
In addition to experiencing the local Nebraskan culture, the Argentine students took a trip to Denver, Colorado and Kansas City, Missouri. During the trips, the students had a chance to practice their English, see the diversity of American culture, and problem-solve as a group.
“[My favorite memory was] the trip to Denver. Even though we had some problems we were able to solve them and that showed our personalities, and how do each of cope with stressful situations. It made us stronger and closer as a group,” explained Florencia Cossio.
Many of the Argentines said their introduction to local and American culture was facilitated with the help of the UNL Global Ambassadors. Each Argentine was paired with a current UNL student who met with them each week to discuss classes, explore local restaurants, and attend social events together.
“It was a great experience getting to know other UNL students. I met my ambassador quite a lot and he organized cool activities to do together,” said Juliana Pazos.
This year, Global Strategies selected ten competitive applicants for the Ambassadors program, and added two Global Ambassador Leaders to help guide the program and organize large-group events. Among the two leaders was Agustín Olivo, a 2016 alum of the Nebraska Friends of Fulbright cohort and current master’s student in mechanized systems management. When speaking at the farewell reception on March 14, Olivo reflected on the power of the program to open doors for students and build relationships for the university.
“This program is an opportunities generator. First of all, I feel it’s an extremely good opportunity for the students. For me, this program two years ago was a life-changing experience and I wanted to really contribute to that sense. Secondly, this is also an opportunity generator for the university. I thought ‘How powerful is this relationship, how powerful can it become’—and I thought it’s really strong,” said Olivo.
Leaving with Nebraska and the world on their minds
Being a part of the Friends of Fulbright at UNL, the Argentines said, has allowed them to see a mix of culture and ideas, and make new friends from all over the world.
“This experience give me the chance to broaden my vision of the world since I met people not only from America, but also from a lot of different countries,” said Sol Sassatelli.
This was the best experience that I ever had. [I]t was really important for personal growth and for meeting people from all around the world,” Victoria García Lagos agreed.
Although their time at Nebraska is over (for now), the Office of Global Strategies is pleased by the variety of academic and cultural activities the students experienced during their short six weeks. From discovering themselves to seeing research first-hand at UNL, from improving their English skills to making friends with Nebraskans from around the world, the Argentines had countless learning opportunities during the Friends of Fulbright program.
As Ezequiel Barnade, one of the Argentine students nominated to give parting words at the farewell reception, summarized: “We learned a lot. We learned about friendship. We learned about our own country because we’re from different parts of our country. We learned about this country. We learned about different cultures in the world because we not only met people from the U.S., but we met people from Kenya, China—I cannot even start to say all because there’s a lot of countries here, and that’s something we really appreciate… We learned a lot of things, but I think the most important thing we learned is that there’s no place better than Nebraska and we’ll try to come back.”
The Friends of Fulbright program was created in 2015 by the United States Embassy in Argentina with private sector contributions. The program is administered by the Fulbright Commission in Argentina, and seeks to join efforts to cover the costs involved with undergraduate education and, in the long term, increase the total number of Argentine students who can access training at U.S. universities. In 2016, Argentina’s Ministry of Education joined the initiative making a threefold increase possible in the number of participants. The scholarships cover the costs of tuition, travel, lodging and meals, and were open to third and fourth-year students of a range of academic majors.
To learn more about the program, please contact the Office of Global Strategies at globalstrategies@unl.edu.