St. Olaf student selected for Fulbright UK Summer Institute
St. Olaf College student Anna Perkins ’18 has been selected to participate in the prestigious Fulbright UK Summer Institute program.
Each year, the US-UK Fulbright Commission selects an average of 60 undergraduate students from the United Kingdom and the United States to undertake a demanding academic and cultural summer program at leading institutions in both nations.
As part of the program, Perkins will spend four weeks this summer studying archaeology and early medieval history at Durham University in England. She will participate in the excavation of the Roman fort and town at Binchester and study early medieval cultural history through Durham’s Institute of Medieval and Early Modern Studies.
The program is complemented by weekend excursions to London and significant historical sites in Northern England such as Hadrian’s Wall.
“I am very excited and honored to have received a place in the Durham University Summer Institute,” Perkins says. “I think it will be fascinating to investigate processes of historical change and the intersections of past and present identities. And as second-year Great Con progresses through the Renaissance and Modern eras, I hope to enrich the conversation with my summer experience.”
The Great Conversation — or “Great Con” — is a two-year St. Olaf program that introduces students to key elements in Western tradition through an integrated sequence of five courses. Students in the Great Conversation respond to great works through direct encounter and active discussion.
Participants in the UK Fulbright Summer Institute Program are selected for their academic excellence, involvement in extracurricular and community activities, and demonstrated ambassadorial skills.
“To receive a nationally recognized scholarship at any point in one’s student experience demonstrates a high degree of excellence. Anna has been accepted as a first-year student to a program that accepts applications from both exceptional first-years and sophomores across the nation and is known for its rigorous selection process. Anna deserves high praise for her achievement,” says Grant Eustice, the assistant director of fellowships in St. Olaf’s Piper Center for Vocation and Career.
The US-UK Fulbright Commission was created in 1948. The Fulbright Program aims to promote leadership and foster mutual cultural understanding through educational exchange between the US and the UK.
“I look forward to exploring the UK and its culture, and meeting new friends and colleagues from both sides of the Pond,” Perkins says.