Chelsea Laun (B.A. Communication/English ’09) has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship for 2009-2010.
Laun is the fourth student from USC Annenberg to win the prestigious scholarship in the last two years and the sixth in the last three years. She will spend a year in Thailand as an English teaching assistant and plans to do volunteer work focusing on the Burmese refugee crisis there.
“Laun has distinguished herself and USC by winning the Fulbright,” said journalism professor Bryce Nelson, who also chairs the USC Provost’s Committee on National and International Graduate Fellowships. "Chelsea joins a recent tradition of Annenberg majors winning Fulbright Scholarships. Many Annenberg students have the international interests and preparation to make them top contenders for these prestigious fellowships."
Following Commencement, Laun plans to satisfy a long-standing desire to demonstrate her keen interest in a culture much different than her own.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the culture, the people, and the politics of Southeast Asia,” Laun said. "To me, Thailand is interesting because it’s the only country in the region that hasn’t been directly affected by colonization or genocide. I’m excited to learn from a country that’s completely different from my own and I hope my Fulbright experience will help me forge a deeper connection with Thailand’s history and its people.”
The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to “increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.” With this goal as a starting point, the Fulbright Program has provided almost 300,000 participants — chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential — with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns.
