Students, young alumni awarded national scholarships to study, teach abroad – University of Dayton
09.02.2025
Studying abroad wasn’t a consideration for University of Dayton student Caden Gallihugh because it didn’t seem financially possible.
Gallihugh said this was “set in stone” until Associate Professor of English Elizabeth Ann Mackay told him about a UD summer language and culture immersion program in Granada, Spain, and pointed him to the Education Abroad and Away office.
There, he learned about funding opportunities including the U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program, which supports students of limited financial means to study or intern abroad, providing them with skills critical to our national security and economic prosperity.
“It was a national scholarship as opposed to an internal one, so I was nervous I wouldn’t be able to get it,” said Gallihugh, a sophomore English major from Cincinnati. “After a lot of work, I finally got the good news back that I was awarded funding for my studies abroad. This was a big deal to me, because without it, I wouldn’t have been able to partake on the trip.”
From May 18 to June 19, Gallihugh lived and studied in Spain. He was one of two 2025 Gilman Scholarship recipients from UD.
Kadence North, a junior pre-medicine major from Holland, Ohio, also studied abroad in Amsterdam from July 3-31 with support from the Gilman program.
In addition, Noah Lorbach ’25, who graduated in May with a degree in Pre-K to Grade 5 education major with a TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) endorsement, was awarded a Fulbright English teaching assistantship to Bulgaria.
“Every year, national scholarships become more competitive,” said Laura Cotten Howell, director of fellowships and graduate school advising in UD Career Services. “By applying for Fulbright and Gilman awards, our students indicate they are ready to accept the challenges of traveling abroad and learn more about themselves and another culture. I am excited for all the students who have won this year, but equally proud of all the students who applied.”
This year’s honorees also include Melanie Hendrick ’25 of Pittsburgh, who graduated in May with adolescence to young adult education and history degrees. She was an alternate for a Fulbright English teaching assistantship to Malta.
The Fulbright English Teaching Assistant programs place graduating students and young alumni in classrooms abroad to aid local English teachers. Assistants help teach the English language while also serving as cultural ambassadors for the U.S.
Lorbach chose Bulgaria for his Fulbright assistantship after briefly visiting the country in 2024 and deciding he wanted to return. Currently, he lives in Stara Zagora and teaches one day a week at an elementary school and three days a week at a vocational high school, both in the town of Galabovo.
“It is still too early to know for sure, but I hope to teach abroad for a few years before starting my career focusing on international education and intercultural engagement, wherever that may be,” said Lorbach, of Cincinnati.
While in Amsterdam, North took two courses toward her psychology minor that tied closely to her goal to attend medical school and become an OBGYN.
“One class was Women and Gender Psychology, which was especially interesting to take abroad,” she said. “Being able to compare gender roles and the way women are viewed in the Netherlands versus the U.S. gave me a new perspective on how culture shapes health care experiences and patient needs.
“My other class was Current Implications of Drug Dependency, which was really interesting to study in a country with drug laws and policies so different from ours.”
Academic study abroad programs facilitate and support global learning experiences, but it’s often the extracurricular activities to immerse students in new and different cultures — with unfamiliar languages, food, histories and habits of being — that most impacts them, said Mackay, who was a faculty leader on Gallihugh’s Common Academic Program study abroad trip to Spain.
“Caden fully embraced all aspects of the experience,” Mackay said. “He was, simply, a remarkable, bright student, and now, from his experience, he has become a remarkable global citizen.”
Gallihugh said his trip abroad increased his understanding of the world, which will benefit his aspirations for the future.
“During my time abroad, I saw so many things that I hadn’t before, and it was really a perspective changer,” he said. “It was so different from what I usually see every day and I truly believe I am a better person now from having seen this.”
Top photo: Caden Gallihugh
Middle photo: Noah Lorbach ’25
Bottom photo: Kadence North
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