By Staff Reports
(Honolulu) — Hawai‘i Pacific University student Selah Chung was recently awarded the prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to support her study abroad experience. Chung was selected for the scholarship, sponsored by the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Chung received $4,500 that was applied toward her study abroad experience and it has made the difference for her to be able to study abroad. She is among 800 American undergraduates who were recently selected from 355 colleges and universities across the U.S.
Chung, a local student from Ewa Beach and Presidential Scholar winner, was able to travel to Japan previously for the Kakehashi Project. Her experience on that trip motivated her to find a way to return to Japan and the Gilman International Scholarship has awarded her that opportunity. Chung reflects, “Going to someone else’s country, experiencing their culture, learning about their history – this is something that cannot help but alter the way one views the world.”
Melissa Matsubara, Director of Study Abroad and International Exchange Programs at HPU has also sat on the Gilman and National Security Education Program Boren Scholarship review committees. She says she is “more than happy to work closely with all students on study abroad scholarship applications.”
For information about HPU’s study abroad programs, visit www.hpu.edu/studyabroad
The Gilman program aims to diversify the students who study and intern abroad and the countries and regions where they go. Recipients have the opportunity to gain a better understanding of other cultures, countries, languages, and economies, making them better prepared to assume leadership roles within government and the private sector. For more information on the program, which is administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE), go to www.iie.org/gilman.
Founded in 1965, Hawai‘i Pacific University has grown to become the state’s leading private, non-profit university, with a student population of nearly 7,000 undergraduate and graduate students from all 50 states and nearly 80 countries around the world. It has campuses in Downtown Honolulu, Kaneohe, and Makapu‘u. USA Today has named it the most diverse university in the nation.
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