The University of the ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Announces Fulbright U.S. Student Awards for 2025-2026

May 20, 2025

Sewanee, Tenn.—The University of the ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ is pleased to announce that two recent graduates have received awards for the 2025-26 academic year from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. Both Cecilia Blackledge, C’25, and Mary Browder Howell, C’25, were recognized with the English Teaching Assistant Award, which will provide them with support to teach English abroad. Blackledge will teach in Czechia, the country more widely known in English as the Czech Republic. Howell will teach in Spain. With these two awards, Sewanee now boasts 62 Fulbright winners.

“Having multiple Fulbright winners in a single year speaks to both the high caliber of Sewanee’s students and their exceptional preparation to fulfill the responsibilities of global citizenship through this international educational exchange,” says Interim Dean of the College Betsy Sandlin. “We are very proud of Cecilia and Mary Browder, and are confident they will represent the University and the Fulbright organization well as they head overseas.”

Blackledge is an environmental arts and humanities major from Athens, Tennessee. Interested in environmental education, she hopes to cultivate in her students a respect for the environment as a place of beauty, restoration, and growth. Sewanee’s Fulbright Review Committee noted Blackledge’s commitment to education, recognizing that the global nature of climate change concerns represents a vital point of connection between Blackledge and her future students. “I am ecstatic to integrate outdoor learning with English language development, and the country’s state environmental education program provides new educational methods and insights that I hope to apply in the United States,” she says.

Howell, a mathematics major from Murray, Kentucky, looks forward to connecting with the people of Spain and strengthening local communities. “When I came to Sewanee, I met peers from all over the country and world,” she says. “Each of these experiences has had a tremendous impact on my attentiveness to inclusivity and compassion for diverse perspectives, and I want to continue broadening my perspective by going farther out into the world.” Sewanee’s Fulbright Review Committee adds, “Mary Browder’s experiences as a mathematics major and tutor will inform her approach to teaching English in Spain. She has recognized that to many, mathematics is a foreign language, and she has experience and success in breaking concepts down so that all can understand.”

The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program. More than 2,000 U.S. students, artists, and early career professionals from all backgrounds receive Fulbright U.S. Student Program awards annually to study, teach English, or conduct research overseas. The program has operated in over 160 countries since 1946. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected in an open, merit-based competition that considers leadership potential, academic or professional achievement, and record of service.

The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is administered at the University of the ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ by Associate Dean Alexander M. Bruce. A listing of previous Fulbright awards and other fellowships and scholarships won by Sewanee graduates is available through the Office of the Dean of the College.