Anya is a preschool teacher, actor, 
and Marketing Director for her local community theater. She is also one of 300 English Teaching Assistants, who have come to spice up foreign language education of Czech students at various high schools all over the Czech Republic since 2005. With a BA in Theater Education, a PreK-12 teaching license, and family heritage in Central Europe, Anya was placed at Masaryk Gymnazium and Nursing School in Vsetín, a town of 25,000 in East Moravia. During the 2019/2020 academic year, beyond teaching English, Anya hosted a popular drama club, where students played theater games, learned how to improv, read parts of scripts, and built scenes with the expectation of performing a play at the end of the school year. In March 2020, however, Covid suddenly paralyzed the world. The Fulbright Program was terminated, and Anya, as well as thousands of other Fulbrighters all over the world, had to return home, often without the opportunity to say a proper goodbye to their local hosts. Anya recalls that, at that time, she felt “ripped out of the life I had established for myself in the town of Vsetín.” Whenever Anya thought about her experience in the Czech Republic, there was a “whirlwind of emotions” and trauma caused by the hurry-scurry departure. She was not sure whether she had done enough as a Fulbrighter, and she wondered what the three remaining months of the grant would have looked like. During the past summer, Anya came back, and today, with major relief, she says: “My visit to Vsetín wasn’t very long, but it was enough time to bring me the much needed closure I was after… I was finally able to tell myself “you did enough, and it made a difference.”
“What should I doooooo?” I moaned to my husband, as I laid on the floor trying to decide whether or not to quit my job to take advantage of an opportunity to travel to Europe. Work had been stressful for a long time and there didn’t seem to be an end in sight, but it was a place where I felt comfortable and surrounded by people I cared about. The trip would be in a month, though, likely not enough time to line up another job, meaning I’d be taking a huge leap of faith. I was completely torn about the decision, but one bullet point on my pros and cons list kept standing out in bold. Going on this trip would take me back to the Czech Republic, and in the end, I decided that I couldn’t pass that up.
Photo: Anya hikes with former youth group students in the Zlín Region, July 2024.
It had been over four years since the Covid-19 pandemic had cut my time short as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) in the Czech Republic, and I hadn’t yet gotten the chance to go back. I desperately needed to gain some closure around the whirlwind of emotions I experienced when I thought about my time there. Some people look back on their Fulbright experience with only nostalgia, but I still felt the trauma of having to leave the country so suddenly. Amidst the wild scramble, I left many of my belongings behind, couldn’t say goodbye to most of the wonderful friends I’d made, and was effectively ripped out of the life I had established for myself in the town of Vsetín.
Photo: Anya celebrates a happy reunion with her mentor and Director of her host school Martin and his family, July 2024, Vsetín.
When I reminisced about Fulbright, this horrible question of “Did I do enough?” nestled itself amongst the life-changing memories and experiences. I wondered if the lessons I taught had been good enough, if I’d made a big enough impact, and if I’d taken enough risks. It felt like I’d been running a mile and had been pulled from the race with a lap still to go, making me wish I’d pushed myself harder during the first three laps.
Photo: Hilly landscape typical of the countryside around Vsetín, July 2024.
But then I went back to Vsetín this summer, and the negative feelings immediately began to break away. I stayed with my generous, welcoming mentor family and heard about all the things they’d been doing over the past few years. I met up with several past students and colleagues and walked the streets and hills of the beautiful town that I had once called home. So many times throughout my visit, I felt a swelling feeling of warmth and gratitude. I loved this place, and I had so many meaningful memories to look back on because of my time there.
Photo: One of several colleagues Anya was able to reconnect with during her visit, July 2024.
I had grown so much as an ETA, challenging myself every day simply by existing within a different culture. When I stumbled over trying to order something in Czech during my visit, I was reminded of how I had once felt fairly confident speaking a foreign language in restaurants, and I looked back at my past self in awe of that accomplishment. After hearing students speak about memories we shared from my time there and teachers comment on activities I had led in the classroom, I realized that my impact was so much larger than I had given myself credit for. I still existed in the memories of so many people. It felt very rewarding to be fondly remembered and welcomed back with such open arms.
Photo: Anya and a friend and former Masaryk Gymnazium student walk together in the streets of Vsetín, July 2024.
My visit to Vsetín wasn’t very long, but it was enough time to bring me the much-needed closure I was after (and to make me want to start planning a return trip!). I was finally able to tell myself “you did enough, and it made a difference.” Though it’s always easy for feelings of insecurity to sneak back in, I can honestly say that I’m proud of my Fulbright. I did challenge myself, I did have an impact, and even though I’ll never know what the last three months of my grant would’ve looked like, my time in Vsetín truly was a life-changing experience that I’ll be forever grateful for.
Photo: Anya and her Czech friends. A student from her drama club on the left, and a student she sang with in the school choir on the right, July 2024.