The month of March is a time to recognize NC State’s long standing relationship with the Fulbright Program, which is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year.
In addition to being named a top Fulbright-producing institution in 2024 and 2025, NC State faculty are consistently selected as Fulbright Scholars. The four NC State faculty members who were selected as 2025-26 U.S. Fulbright Scholars are:
- Sankarasubramanian Arumugam, professor, Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering
- Hudson Ashrafi, associate professor, Department of Horticultural Science, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
- Adolfo Escobedo, associate professor, Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, College of Engineering
- Timothy Horn, associate professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, College of Engineering
In addition, faculty have several opportunities to prepare for the recently announced upcoming cycle of award opportunities, with a due date in September.
To help empower faculty as they navigate the Fulbright application process, the Office for Faculty Excellence (OFE) offers the Fulbright Pathfinder Program. These one-time grants enhance the applications of faculty applying for an award by supporting an initial visit to the proposed host institution in advance of submitting the application.
The goal is to strengthen the application by providing more concrete goals and information regarding the host institution, including securing local letters of invitation. Interested faculty can learn more about the Fulbright Pathfinder Program and apply here by March 20.
Later this month, the university will celebrate Fulbright Week, with several units on campus coming together to advance Fulbright involvement. The University Fellowships Office assists students in their Fulbright applications, while OFE works with faculty scholars.
In honor of the Fulbright Program’s 80th anniversary, the Office of Global Engagement, along with OFE and the University Fellowships Office, have collaborated to make the Fulbright Program part of the campus culture. Fulbright Week is an annual event to help bring awareness of the program to both students and faculty.
This year, Fulbright Week will be March 30 through April 3. Here are a few key events:
- Friday, March 27 – Fulbright Booth at the International Festival
- Tuesday, March 31 – Faculty Panel
- Wednesday, April 1 – U.S. Student Fulbright Information Sessions
- Thursday, April 2 – Students, Faculty and Fulbright Alumni Networking Event
For questions about the Fulbright U.S. Scholars Program, contact campus liaison Kyle Miskell at kpmiskel@ncsu.edu. For questions about the Fulbright Student Program, contact the University Fellows Office.
