Fulbright Reality Czech

Teresa Contino is a creative writer,  a mindful observer, and a fresh Fulbright ETA alumna. In May 2023, she graduated with a B.A. in English and Psychology from Santa Clara University in California. Teresa plans to use concepts of cognitive psychology to design visitors’ experiences in museums and art galleries. To prepare herself for these future plans, Teresa wanted to sharpen her pedagogical skills and broaden her culture perspective by spending a year in an environment significantly different from her own. Given her liberal arts background and passion for literature, mindfulness, crafts, and creative writing, Teresa was placed at Jiráskovo gymnázium Náchod, a college-preparatory high school, located in a town of 20,000 in northeast Bohemia. Before embarking on her trans-Atlantic journey, Teresa did her research on how to have a successful Fulbright experience. Finding the advice from the program alumni to be somewhat daunting and intangible, she began to contemplate how one encour

Ondřej Horák je umělec, kurátor, galerijní animátor a popularizátor umění. Před 15 lety založil vzdělávací platformu Máš umělecké střevo? s cílem inovovat výuku výtvarné výchovy na středních školách ve spolupráci s českými galeriemi. Je autorem výstavních, vzdělávacích a sociálně angažovaných projektů. V prostředí bývalé čerpací stanice u Slaného provozoval Galerii Benzinka. Podílel se na vzniku knihy Proč umění , ve které odpovídá na otázky jako “Kdo je umělec?” a “Proč chodit do galerie?” Je autorem knih Obrazy pro nevidomé (2001), Obrazy u seniorů (2011), Věznice: místo pro umění (2012) a Nezůstaneš sám (2019). Za knihu Proč obrazy nepotřebují názvy získal v roce 2015 Magnesii Literu v kategorii knih pro děti a mládež. Působil jako lektor v Národní galerii v Praze (2005 - 2009), vedl Lektorské centrum GASK (2009 - 2011) a diváky České televize v roce 2020 seznámil se současnými českými umělci a jejich tvorbou v pořadu Průvodce výtvarným uměním . V roce 2022 strávil tři měsíce

Kurt Klaus is an English Teaching Assistant. This June, he is wrapping up his 10-month Fulbright grant at Sportovní gymnázium Pardubice, a general college-preparatory high school for athletes located in a regional hub and university town of 90,000. With a B.A. in American Literature and Culture and a B.S. in Cognitive Science, a college-preparatory high school was an obvious placement. As an athlete with experience playing basketball and volleyball in high school, Kurt was excited to meet his colleagues and students in September. While he could have simply tried to blend in, he instead decided to take advantage of a fresh start in a foreign country: to him, this meant embracing his authenticity with all that it contains, including his stutter. Throughout his life, Kurt had developed various strategies to mask his impediment and pretend it didn’t exist. This year, however, in his new role as a teaching assistant, he approached the situation differently. Fast forward to June, and today h

Hanka Landová je odbornicí na informační vědu a vzdělávání. Vystudovala Informační studia a knihovnictví na Filozofické fakultě Univerzity Karlovy a na stejné fakultě pokračovala v doktorském studiu. Jako lektorka informačního vzdělávání vyučovala na České zemědělské univerzitě a od roku 2017 vede její Knihovnu ČZU. Po obhájení své rigorózní práce na téma "Problematika zvyšování informační gramotnosti v prostředí vysokých škol: teorie a praxe" získala Fulbrightovo stipendium a akademický rok 2004/2005 strávila na University of North Carolina ve městě Chapel Hill. Na School of Information and Library Science, škole, která patří v oboru knihovnictví ke světové špičce, zkoumala, jak informační gramotnost prostupuje výukou na amerických univerzitách. Cílem desetiměsíčního pobytu bylo pokusit se některé postupy otestované v USA implementovat v českém akademickém prostředí. Rozhovor s Hankou Landovou vznikl ve spolupráci s Ladislavem Loukotou ze stránky  Vědátor  a je třicátým pát

Elise Wright is an English Teaching Assistant. During this academic year, she teaches English at Gymnázium Jakuba Škody in Přerov, a town of 42 thousand, located in the Olomouc Region, in the eastern part of the Czech Republic. With an MA in Liberal arts studies, a goal to become a European history teacher and a life-long passion for running, Elise was placed at a general college-preparatory high school. Throughout the school year, however, Elise has discovered another passion - when traveling across the county, mostly by train, she has developed a habit of sketching the places that she wanted to keep in her mind. When Elise shared some of her sketches at the Fulbright mid-year conference, her fellow grantees were amazed by her talent. Later in the year, Elise hosted a painting workshop at a school of her fellow Fulbrighter Bea Voorhees in Ledeč nad Sázavou. Dozens of students managed to paint a “typical Czech countryside” within a regular 45-minutes long lesson. Their results were qu

Chanah Haigh is an English Teaching Assistant. She teaches English to 250 students at Gymnázium Kolín in close cooperation with six Czech colleagues. In her free time, she hosts an English conversation club for students and one for teachers. Outside of school, Chanah has joined a local orchestra, which performs in Kolín and Prague. She takes regular yoga lessons in her host town and has fallen in love with the sport of jumping. As an enthusiastic observer of Czech culture and traditions, Chanah had been excited about May first, a holiday traditionally celebrated by kissing under a blossoming tree. This year, however, "May first rolled around and there were no cherry trees in blossom! They had all bloomed (beautifully) back in March." With a BA in Environmental Analysis from Scripps College, a passion for outdoors and a future plan to study environmental law, Chanah was nominated to represent American Student Fulbrighters from the Czech Republic at the EU US Young Leaders Semi