Salve Regina recognized as a top producer of Fulbright recipients

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs has recognized Salve Regina for being one of the colleges and universities with the highest number of students selected for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, among master’s degree institutions. Fulbright Top Producing Institutions such as Salve Regina value global connection and support members of their campus communities across the U.S. to pursue international opportunities.

Three of the seven Salve Regina students who applied for Fulbright awards in the 2024-2025 academic year were selected and an additional student was named as an alternate. This was the highest number of students selected for Fulbright awards in a single year in Salve Regina’s history, and the first time the University was recognized as a top producing institution.

The Fulbright program is the U.S. government’s flagship international academic exchange program. Since 1946, the Fulbright program has provided more than 400,000 talented and accomplished students, scholars, teachers, artists and professionals of all backgrounds with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research abroad. Fulbrighters exchange ideas, build people-to-people connections and work to address complex global challenges.

“We are honored to be recognized as a top producer of Fulbright award recipients,” Salve Regina President Kelli J. Armstrong said. “This milestone is a testament to our students who have earned these fellowships, and to our distinguished fellowship committee members who bring our students’ talents to the forefront.”

John Rangel Marte ’23 and Kaelie Piscitello ’24, Salve Regina’s 2024-2025 award recipients for the Fulbright English Teaching Assistant program, are currently studying in and teaching in Spain (Martel) and Taiwan (Piscitello). As undergraduates, Marte studied abroad in Barcelona and Piscitello in Oxford. Past Fulbright scholars from the University include Hannah Cazzetta ’15, who served as an English Teaching Assistant in Colombia and is now associate director of advising for Salve Regina’s Center for Advising, Career and Life Design, and Angela Wheeler ’12, who conducted research in the Republic of Georgia through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program and is now a visiting lecturer at Amherst College.

John Rangel Marte ’23 (left) and Kaelie Piscitello ’24.

“Studying abroad changed my mindset about education,” Piscitello said. “It got me interested in not only learning but teaching around the world.”

“It’s incredibly rewarding to see this kind of growth in our Fulbright program,” said Erin FitzGerald, Fulbright program advisor and director of the Center for Global Education and Fellowships. “The results highlight the many experiential opportunities Salve Regina students have on campus, locally and globally, that help them prepare to be successful candidates for post-graduate fellowships, and to make a positive impact in those communities.”

Marte spoke to those opportunities and noted, “Working with students of different ages through the Pathways program and Fab Newport gave me great experience and confidence for my studying and teaching in Barcelona. Receiving a Fulbright scholarship is such an honor. I’m thrilled to continue contributing to the world and local community here in Rhode Island.”

Students seeking to prepare and apply for Fulbright and other fellowships at Salve Regina are mentored and supported by the University’s distinguished fellowship committee, an interdisciplinary group of faculty, advisors and librarians in the Academic Center for Excellence’s Writing Center and the Center for Global Education and Fellowships. For more information, visit Salve Regina’s distinguished fellowships page or email Erin FitzGerald at erin.fitzgerald@salve.edu.