Jersey City, N.J. – October 8, 2019 – Saint Peter’s University today announced that the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board has selected Virginia Bender ’78, Ph.D., special assistant to the president for institutional planning at Saint Peter’s University, to receive the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award for the U.S.-France International Education Administrators Program.
Through this program, Dr. Bender will join eleven fellow senior level university administrators from across the U.S. on an intensive two week seminar in France to learn about the country’s education system and establish a network of U.S. and international colleagues. Participants will meet with higher education professionals at several institutions including the Universite de Bordeaux, the Universite de Paris and the Sorbonne.
“I am honored to be selected for this esteemed program, which I believe will provide new and exciting prospects to develop deeper knowledge of the French educational system, create networks that support international learning and enhance my individual capacity to promote the Fulbright program’s goal for international understanding and cooperation,” said Dr. Bender.
As special assistant to the president for institutional planning, Dr. Bender leads strategic planning and assessment, institutional research, human resources and compliance efforts, while also serving as chief of staff to the president and secretary to the Board of Trustees. Her prior experience includes more than twenty years in enrollment management..
Dr. Bender’s participation in the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program can afford Saint Peter’s with a variety of valuable outcomes. The program can serve to enhance the University’s strategic goal of Global Knowledge and Engagement through international curricular and co-curricular experiences and new partnerships for international study, research and career preparation.
The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program and is designed to build lasting connections between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Fulbrighters address critical global challenges in all disciplines, while building relationships, knowledge, and leadership in support of the long-term interests of the United States. Fulbright alumni have achieved distinction in many fields, including 59 who have been awarded the Nobel Prize, 84 who have received Pulitzer Prizes, and 37 who have served as a head of state or government.
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Saint Peter’s University, inspired by its Jesuit, Catholic identity, commitment to individual attention and grounding in the liberal arts, educates a diverse community of learners in undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and professional programs to excel intellectually, lead ethically, serve compassionately and promote justice in our ever-changing urban and global environment.
Media Contact
Angeline Boyer
(201) 761-6238
aboyer1@saintpeters.edu