This summer, two San Antonio College professors will travel abroad as visiting scholars, after being selected to participate in the Fulbright-Hayes Study Abroad Program. The government-sponsored program is one of the most prestigious and competitive grant programs available to American educators.

Nora McMillan, History Professor, will study in Morocco for six weeks, and Dr. Tom Manzo, Foreign Languages Associate Professor, will travel to Bulgaria for one month.

"I feel very honored," Manzo said. "I think most educators get into teaching for the love of learning and the love of teaching, but most of us don't get to be students again." With a Fulbright grant, though, teachers can indeed hit the books again as students.

The Fulbright-Hayes Study Abroad Program awards American educators with international learning experiences, sending them to countries throughout the world, where they study their host country's history, culture, and people. These educators, in turn, are expected to relay what they learned to students, peers, and other community members.

"Our nation is poised on a watershed event," McMillan said. "There are so many changes occurring in our culture, especially in regard to the impact of immigration. The more we teach about other cultures and have students learn about diversity, the more tolerant our entire society becomes."

McMillan will apply her study of Morocco to the classroom by creating a geographic information systems (GIS) map of the country detailing its cultural, political, and linguistic landscape, which will be used in her American and Texas history classes. Her knowledge of Moroccan history and culture will help students understand better the country's influence on America.

Similarly, Manzo will relay his knowledge of Bulgaria, particularly of how Roman civilization shaped the country's history, to Latin students via digital photos and videos. He will display these photos on the Web, so that anyone with Internet access can view them.

"What you hope to do with a Fulbright is make it long-term," Manzo said.

He plans to make his Fulbright last by sharing his knowledge of the place and its peoples with others, and by establishing strong ties between San Antonio College and Bulgarian academic institutions. In fact, he welcomes the opportunity to lead future student study abroad classes to Bulgaria.

"I think we can broaden the awareness of our students," Manzo said. "We tend to think in dualitiesŠ but to push beyond that is where you want to go."

McMillan agrees. "SAC is diversity in action," she said. "We must make our students more appreciative of all the various cultures, ethnicities, and races that constitute our campus population."

Manzo and McMillan will also share their international experience with peers at San Antonio College and Alamo Community College District (ACCD) faculty at an employee development day scheduled this fall.

ACCD Director of International Programs Eduardo Conrado said, "This is a unique experience that can change your life, not only professionally but personally."

As an incentive to its faculty members, the district will pay the cost left uncovered by the study abroad program to faculty members who are chosen to be Fulbright scholars. This cost, which includes registration and insurance expenses, totals about $500.

"We want to give our faculty the opportunity to not only travel the world but to have an international experience, and gain a global perspective," he said. "If we don't travel, we think that this is the only way of life."

Conrado, a Nicaraguan native who himself was a Fulbright scholar, believes that faculty study abroad programs have a "multiplier effect for students and the community," increasing their motivation to learn, to travel, and to gain a global perspective.

"We want to prepare our students to be ready for the global market - not just to compete in it, but to understand it," he said.

For more information, contact Eduardo Conrado at 208-8010, Tom Manzo at 733-2631, and Nora McMillan at 733-2566.