Scholarship Recipient Prepares for New Challenge
June 11, 2010
Rising junior Haleigh Wallace, a Foreign Languages major fluent in both Spanish and French, was looking for a new challenge after spending time in both Spain and France to master her language skills. She decided spending a year in Germany would be the next logical step for her.
"I thought it would be good to do something completely different from what I'm used to and to have an experience that is just my own," says Wallace, who currently has intermediate German speaking skills.
"I'm not going with anyone I know, so I think it will be an opportunity to get out of my comfort zone. Mostly I am looking for an opportunity to challenge myself intellectually and personally, and I thought that going somewhere completely new for a whole year was the best way to do that," says Wallace.
Wallace will spend the next academic year studying at the University of Heidelberg in Germany thanks in large part to a prestigious DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service/ Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst ) Undergraduate Scholarship she received.
"The DAAD Undergraduate Scholarship is a premier undergraduate award and the Stonehill community is extremely proud of Haleigh's accomplishment. Professor of Foreign Languages John Golden also deserves to be recognized for his role in mentoring Haleigh during the application process," said Stonehill's Dean of Academic Achievement Craig Almeida.
"It is such a relief to know that I don't need to worry about money while I am there. If I hadn't received this scholarship, I really don't know how I would have afforded living in Germany for the year so I am very thankful," notes Wallace.
Maintaining a perfect 4.0 grade point average, Wallace is a member of the Honor's Program at the College and has advanced proficiency in Spanish and proficiency in French. By the time she returns to Stonehill to begin her senior year, she hopes to be at an advanced level in German as well, taking full advantage of her year in the country.
The DAAD Undergraduate Scholarship program supports study aboard opportunities in Germany and at German universities for third and fourth-year students. A selection committee is comprised of academics and international experts. Wallace will also receive a monthly stipend while studying in Germany, plus additional funds to help defray travel and research expenses.
Last winter, Wallace worked as a teacher's aide at Brockton's English Transcultural Center, teaching secondary English to a large group of adult learners. In the summers of 2007 and 2009, she spent time in Salamanca, Spain, living with a host family as she immersed herself in the Spanish culture. In turn, Wallace hosted multiple Spanish students in the U.S., serving as their translator and guide to American culture.
In the spring of 2008, Wallace spent two weeks in Oyonnax, France, living with a host family while learning the French language and culture.
Wallace says she will most likely attend graduate school upon receiving her bachelor's degree from Stonehill.
"I will either study Spanish or German, depending how things go for me next year in Germany."
Similar to the Fulbright Program in America, DAAD is the largest German support organization in the field of international academic co-operation. A private, federally- and state-funded, self-governing national agency of the institutions of higher education in Germany, it represents 365 German higher education institutions.
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