Mount St. Mary's University Goes Three for Three With Fulbright ETA Awards

Brigid Flay of Gainesville, Virginia Wins ETA to Kazakhstan

Emmitsburg, MD (05/10/2017) — Mount St. Mary's University student Brigid Flay, C'17, was recently selected as a finalist for a 2017-18 Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) Program Award to Kazakhstan through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.

Earlier this year Mount St. Mary's students Samantha Solis, C'16, and Alyse Spiehler, C'17, were also named Fulbright ETA finalists to Argentina and Mexico, respectively. The addition of Flay means the Mount's only three applicants have all received the award. Last year only one institution in the nation had a perfect 100 percent success rate with at least three applicants.

Flay, from Gainesville, Virginia, is an economics and philosophy double major, with a minor in Conflict, Peace and Social Justice. Ultimately, she plans to pursue a doctorate in international relations, focusing on Central Asia and the former Soviet region, with a goal of working in the foreign service, continuing to promote global peace and cooperation.

Through the ETA program, Flay would assist local English teachers and serve as a cultural ambassador to Kazakhstan. Additionally, the soon-to-be graduate was also accepted to a master's program in international trade and economic diplomacy at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies this summer. Flay is currently weighing her options on which program she will choose.

"We are extremely proud of Brigid's accomplishments and are excited for her as she begins this next phase in her academic career," says Mount St. Mary's University Interim President Timothy Trainor, Ph.D. "Being able to select from either of these two remarkable options is a testament to her hard work, effort and maturity."

"Brigid's motivation to apply for the Fulbright ETA to Kazakhstan stemmed both from a deep intellectual interest in the country's history and its current politics, as well as a genuine desire to serve others and promote international cooperation," says Jamie A. Gianoutsos, Ph.D., competitive fellowships director and assistant professor of history at Mount St. Mary's. "Brigid's values aligned perfectly with the goals and mission of the Fulbright program."

"I'm beyond thrilled to have been selected as a Fulbright finalist to Kazakhstan," says Flay. "It's a great opportunity to represent the United States abroad, and I'm honored for the Fulbright to be an option for me. This couldn't have been possible without the hard work of Drs. Gianoutsos, Naberhaus, and Patterson; I'm so grateful for their assistance throughout this process, and consider myself lucky to have been able to work with such a dedicated fellowship committee."

These are not the Mount's first Fulbright successes either. In 2015 the Mount had another finalist, John-Paul Heil, C'15, who won the Fulbright ETA to Italy.

About Fulbright

The Fulbright U.S. Student Program provides grants for individually designed study/research projects or for English Teaching Assistant Programs in over 140 countries to recent graduates and graduate students. For more information on the Fulbright U.S. Student Program please visit us.fulbrightonline.org.

About Mount St. Mary's University

Mount St. Mary's University is a private, liberal arts, Catholic university in the Catoctin Mountains near historic Emmitsburg, Maryland, with a satellite campus in Frederick, Maryland's second largest city. The university offers more than 40 majors, minors, concentrations and special programs for traditional undergraduate students, and 17 adult undergraduate and graduate level programs.

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