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Drew Cunningham ’20 Receives Fulbright English Teaching Assistant Grant

Drew Cunningham standing in front of the Grand Trianon in Versailles

Drew Cunningham '20, shown here in front of the Grand Trianon in Versailles, will move to Germany in Janauary to beging his Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship. 

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The English major and German and philosophy minor will return to Germany, where he studied abroad last year, to enhance his teaching and language skills. 

Drew Cunningham ’20 loves literature and teaching, and hopes to combine the two in his future career. At Haverford, the English major, who is double minoring in German and philosophy, has prepared for such a path by serving as a teaching assistant for the “Intermediate German” class and as a writing tutor for the College’s Mentoring and Student Teaching (MAST) outreach program. 

Next year, he will put those skills to use as the recipient of a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) award in Germany. The ETA program places Fulbrighters in classrooms abroad to provide assistance to the local English teachers while serving as cultural ambassadors for the U.S. That means that for six months, Cunningham will work with German teachers of English to help students improve their language proficiency and to answer questions about the United States. His stipend from the Fulbright will cover his monthly living expenses as well travel to and from Europe. 

Cunningham, who studied abroad in Berlin last year, is eager to return to Germany and explore more of the country and Europe in general. He is also excited that “the Fulbright will allow me to get more teaching experience and improve my German-speaking skills.”

Though he doesn’t yet know where in Germany he will be placed and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has already moved the usual German Fulbrighters’ September departure date to January, he is looking forward to the future with optimism. As he finishes up his Haverford career, Cunningham has advice for his fellow Fords, not just those that wish to follow in his footsteps to a Fulbright, but anyone looking to enhance their college experience. 

“I encourage any current or prospective student to seriously consider either majoring or minoring in a foreign language,” he said. “I hadn’t taken any German before arriving at Haverford, and I had no intention of minoring, but I am so glad that I did. Studying a foreign language will help you with your other courses—sometimes in unexpected ways—create more opportunities for you, and introduce you to new friends. You can’t go wrong. It’s incredibly rewarding!”

 

Read more about Fords who have won fellowships, scholarships, or grants.

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