Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

Carolyn Bugg, Marie Franco, and Jillian Moga are the newest West Virginia Wesleyan students to be named Fulbright Scholars.  The government’s flagship international exchange program is sponsored by the United States Department of State and was established by the U.S. Congress in 1946 to “enable the government of the United States to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.”

The Fulbright program is the largest U.S. International exchange program and operates in more than 140 countries worldwide.  The program provides participants—chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential—with the opportunity to study, teach, and conduct research, exchange ideas and contribute in finding solutions to shared international concerns.

Bugg, a political science and international studies major and Honors minor from Hinton, Franco, an English writing major with minors in Honors and Spanish from Burlingame, CA, and Moga, a communication studies major with minors in Honors and English literature from Ashtabula, OH, will graduate from Wesleyan on May 9. Bugg will study in Taiwan, while Franco will teach English in Italy.  Moga will be an English teaching assistant in South Korea. They are Wesleyan’s fifth, sixth, and seventh Fulbright Scholars in the past four years.

At Wesleyan, Bugg has served as a tutor in the English as a Second Language program and participated in Mandarin Chinese Language training at the Mandarin House Language Institute during the summer of 2008.  She also completed an independent study in Mandarin Chinese during the past three semesters.   She completed an internship for United States Senator John D. Rockefeller IV and presented a number of research papers in state and regional competitions. She was recently named one of four Wesleyan Outstanding Seniors, Wesleyan’s Outstanding Honors Student, the Outstanding International Studies major in 2009 and 2010, and the Outstanding Political Science student in 2008 and 2010.  An active volunteer with the American Red Cross, Relay for Life, and Stockert Youth Center, she has also held a number of leadership positions in Sigma Alpha Iota music honorary and has served as an English as a Second Language tutor for the past three years.

Franco is an active member of Mortar Board, vice president of Phi Kappa Phi, and a member of the Order of Omega and Gamma Sigma Alpha.  Franco has earned a 4.0 grade point average for the past six semesters.  She has served as the prose editor for “Vandalia,” the College’s literary magazine, and completed an internship at the Institute for Curriculum Services, where she did copy editing for non-profit organizations.  She has also interned at the “San Mateo Daily Journal.  Franco was recently named an Outstanding Student by the English Department and the Pamela Thorn Humanities Award winner.

Moga, who was also named an Outstanding Senior, was an Irish-American Scholar in 2008 and participated in Roanoke College’s highly competitive Innovative Challenge program, where she and other students developed an exhaustive business proposal that included marketing, finances, and operations for a psychologist.   Moga is a certified level one tutor in the College’s Learning Center and the Athletic Department’s Study Strategies program.   She has served as president and vice president of the Honors program, secretary of International Students Organization, and secretary of the Pre-Law Society.  She is a member of Phi Kappa Phi and Lambda Pi Eta communication honorary.  Moga was also a member of Wesleyan’s 2007 WVIAC Championship softball team. In addition, she has participated in Alternative Spring Break trips to New Orleans in 2008 and 2009, and has competed internships with the Upshur County Magistrate’s Office and the Upshur County’s Prosecutor’s office.  A recipient of the Outstanding Leadership award from the Honors Program, she was presented with the Excellence in Applied Learning Award by the Communication Department.

These women are very well qualified for the Fulbright program,” noted Dr. John Saunders, associate professor of English, emeritus.  “All have a rich range of international experiences as well as a strong record of community engagement experiences.  Their level of scholarship and leadership experience place them among the top students in the country.”

“This is a tremendous opportunity for Carolyn, Marie, and Jillian, three of Wesleyan’s most outstanding seniors,” said Dr. Pamela Balch, president of the College.  “It is not only a wonderful accomplishment for the students, but also for the College and Dr. John Saunders, who spearheads our scholars program.   Seven Fulbright Scholars in four years is a great testament to our academic and student life programs.  We are deeply indebted to Dr. Saunders for his leadership in assisting students with their pursuit of opportunities such as the Fulbright program.”