English Language Fellows continue to accomplish amazing work after completing their fellowships. To see how the Fellow Program has benefited the professional and personal lives of alumni, read the alumni impact stories below.
Kevin Spence
"The fellowship provided the professional development edge and finances, which supported my matriculation to a doctoral program. The ELF Program experience provided me the opportunity to speak as an expert and contribute to others’ learning in my doctoral program. My experience makes me a competitive candidate in both academia and the private sector."
Daniel Perez
“I have always been adventurous and have a love for teaching, but I think that these fellowships have diminished my fear of the unknown. I can fall back on my experiences as a Fellow to comfort me with the knowledge that I can accomplish just about anything I set my mind to.”
Delia Dunlap
“The Fellow Program showed me that with a little creativity, I can create and realize any project I can imagine. It is empowering to know that anything is possible. This experience has helped me to become a more confident teacher— I can teach anywhere, in any conditions and I can thrive and inspire generations of students.”
Shaheed Sabrin
“The fellowship is not always about demonstrating and proving what you know. It’s about growing professionally in areas that you started off being curious about. The program teaches you to get comfortable with the feeling of uncertainty and the unknown. It’ll make you a more competitive professional and set you apart from the competition.”
Lee Anne McIlroy
"Thanks to my colleagues in Tanzania, I am more patient, more grateful, more informed about the world, more thoughtful, more humble, more fulfilled, more compassionate."
Ali Carella
"My fondest memories revolve around the relationships I built with local staff and my students. I come from a large city, so living in Loja was a big transition for me and they were so incredibly welcoming and supportive."
Crystal Bock Thiessen
“This fellowship was a jumping point for me career-wise on so many levels. After returning to the States, I almost immediately was hired on at the University of Nebraska."
Dave Chiesa
“Being a part of a professional organization that is highly respected, and in turn, having my ideas being respected, made me fall in love with the program.”
Phil Dierking
“I enjoy promoting this wonderful opportunity to other teachers and I also enjoy being a part of the process of connecting the right teachers to the right projects. I know how great my experience was with the English Language Fellow Program and I want to be able to make that happen for other teachers."