STUDY ABROAD, CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS ENHANCE UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

Written by IIGE Program Coordinator Liz Hunt and staff
Published on November 13, 2024
Students across UW Tacoma majors presented their study abroad experiences during International Education, November 18-22. The IIGE provides financial awards for study abroad and conference travel.
Study Abroad Award Winners
L-R: Juliana Magee, Bee Kisky, Tatyana Vashchenko, Yasmine Silva, Eamon Challinor, and Gregory Esters.

Food and culture, environmental restoration, child-family health, and business management were some of the topics explored overseas by winners of the Institute for Innovation and Global Engagement (IIGE) $1000 Study Abroad Award. During International Education Week (November 18-22, 2024), six presented on their experience. Students, staff and faculty gathered in MLG 203 to hear the valuable insights students gleaned from their process of researching, applying for funds, and participating in one of the many UW tri-campus study abroad programs.

The six IIGE Study Abroad Award winner presentations included:

  • Bee Kisky and Gregory Esters (Prague: Psychology of Culture and Food in the Czech Republic)
  • Eamon Challinor (New Zealand: Exploring Environmental Restoration in Aotearoa/New Zealand)
  • Juliana Magee (Italy: Biobehavioral Health - La Dolce Vita: Food, Community, and Well-Being)
  • Yasmine Silva (Bolivia: Child Family Health International's Global Health Experiential Learning Program)
  • Tatyana Vashchenko (Germany: European Summer School - Business Management, Culture, and Economics)

Through generous funding from the Bamford Foundation, the IIGE supports up to 15 awards each year, providing unique global learning opportunities that build upon classroom experience and aligning with UW Tacoma's strategic goal to advance global learning. Members of the IIGE's representative Faculty Council constitute the review committee. Students for this highly competitive award open to all UW Tacoma students are selected based on a variety of factors including merit, need, and a personal statement.

Applications are now open for the 2025 IIGE Study Abroad Award and are due by Friday, March 14, 2025.

Apply Now

Student presents at National Collegiate Honors Council Conference

Eamon Challinor presents at NCHC 2024
Eamon Challinor presents his poster, ""The Implications of the Third Agricultural Revolution for the Fourth."

The Institute for Innovation and Global Engagement provides up to $750 in conference travel awards, open to all UW Tacoma students, with priority funding for students in its Global Honors Program. Global Honors Senior and NextGen Civic Leader Corps Officer Eamon Challinor presented his paper, "The Implications of the Third Agricultural Revolution for the Fourth" at the 2024 National Collegiate Honors Conference in Kansas City, on October 30-November 3. Says Challinor,

“The conference was a transformative converging point of perspectives, disciplines, and knowledge from every corner of the United States. I was able to connect with and be inspired by peers, faculty, and speakers who circulated to Kansas City through the greater body of the country. One of the goals of the NCHC is to provide the experience of the 'City as Text' and included an exploration of Kansas City--similar to analyzing a captivating novel. I was immersed in African American cultural heritage, jazz, and barbecue in the historic district of 18th Street and Vine District. The conference broadened and transformed my perspective.”
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Institute for Innovation and Global Engagement (website)
1900 Commerce Street, Tacoma, WA 98402-3100