GAMBIER — The Fulbright U.S. Student Program has selected seven Kenyon graduates to participate in the government’s flagship international exchange program for the 2026-27 academic year.
In addition, Associate Professor of Chemistry Katie Mauck will spend the coming year conducting research in France as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar.
This year’s fellows from Kenyon, all members of the Class of 2026 unless otherwise noted, are:
- Lucas Aho, a double major in religious studies and German from Boston. He received a grant to teach English in Saxony, Germany.
- Clara Beliavsky, an international studies major from New York City who has a minor in Spanish. She will teach English in Argentina.
- Victoria Mei-ling Kerrigan, Class of 2025, a double major in Spanish and English from Brooklyn, New York. She will teach English in Colombia.
- Nicholas Kloor, a double major in music and Japanese from Brooklyn, New York. He will teach English in Indonesia.
- Emma Rice, an English major from Alexandria, Virginia, who has a minor in Spanish and art history. She will teach English in Uruguay.
- Iris Santalucia, a philosophy major from Queens, New York. She will teach English in Thailand.
- Dylan Sibbitt, a political science major from San Francisco who has a minor in Japanese. He will conduct research in Indonesia.
Fellows have diverse skills, interests
This year’s awardees bring a diverse set of skills, interests and leadership experiences to their posts.
Sibbitt, for example, was senior class president at Kenyon. He will be researching how youth in Indonesia are navigating the rise of artificial intelligence, social media and digital finance, and what those changes mean for education, economic opportunity and civic life.
“At Kenyon, my work often returned to questions about democracy, youth, technology and inequality. The Fulbright gives me the chance to keep asking those questions in a new context, while also learning from Indonesian students, scholars, and communities directly,” he said.
Rice, who obtained a teaching licensure certificate through a Kenyon partnership with Capital University, has helped tutor fellow college students as well as area Latino individuals. She looks forward to continuing her development as a writer and teacher in Uruguay.
“I cannot wait to reimagine English from the perspective of my students, translate poetry with my toes in the sand of Cabo Polonio, and learn new Spanish vocabulary in the midst of a tango class,” she said.
Kloor, in addition to being a Fulbright fellow, is also a recipient of the U.S. Department of State’s Critical Language Scholarship. A member of various student bands and Kenyon’s Jazz Ensemble, he said he is excited to teach in Indonesia, whose music has influenced many of his musical inspirations.
Beliavsky, who previously studied abroad in Madrid and Buenos Aires, Argentina, looks forward to engaging with the global community again. “I hope to build on what I learned abroad about experiential, hands-on learning by creating opportunities for students to connect with the material in ways that extend beyond the classroom walls,” she said.
Santalucia, who served as co-president of a meditation club at Kenyon and acted in drama and film productions, aims to bring drama, the arts, and mindfulness techniques into the learning atmosphere as part of her Fulbright.
Kerrigan was co-founder and president of Multicultural Identities Organization at Kenyon while also serving as a Spanish language teaching assistant. She said her exposure to Colombian music and dance have helped her develop a curiosity about the country where she’ll be serving.
And Aho, whose campus activities included serving as a German tutor and Quiz Bowl vice president, said he also is looking forward to immersing himself in a new community and making a positive impact on his students.
Mauck searching for ways to enhance computational chemistry program
As a Fulbright Scholar, Mauck — whose scholarly interests include physical chemistry and materials chemistry — will be learning new computational methods at the Institut des Sciences Moléculaires in Bordeaux and observing how quantum chemistry and computation are taught in France.
“I’ll use this to grow my research program at Kenyon to offer additional access points for students to engage in research in my lab and bring back ideas for enhancing our own computational chemistry curriculum,” she said.
The news continues Kenyon’s string of success in producing Fulbright fellows. More than 70 Kenyon students in the past decade have accepted the fellowships, and the institution was recognized earlier this year for the number of applicants it had selected for the 2025-26 student scholar program.
Kenyon has received this “top producer” designation 19 times in the past 21 years.
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs sponsors the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. It provides funding for students and young professionals seeking graduate study, advanced research, and teaching opportunities worldwide. Recipients of the coveted fellowship receive grants to serve as English teaching assistants (ETAs) or conduct research abroad.
The Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program offers more than 380 awards in over 120 countries for U.S. citizens to teach, conduct research, and carry out professional projects around the world.