Fulbright Reality Czech

Maryellen Stohlman Vanderveen was one of our 31 English Teaching Assistants during the past school year. After seven months of teaching at Gymnazium Moravsky Krumlov, located in the middle of South Moravian vineyards, the alumna of Smith College with a double major in Philosophy and Psychology, decided to keep teaching, but this time on a different continent. Read about Maryellen's reflections on moving across the world amid COVID-19. If you asked me what I would be doing this time last year, I definitely would not have answered that I would be writing a blog post from quarantine in Hong Kong. However, I do not think anyone really anticipated what the year 2020 would bring. One year ago, I had just arrived in the Czech Republic. I was attending Masaryk University’s Summer School of Slavonic Studies, trying to learn as much Czech as possible before beginning my Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in a small Czech town. (Okay, so maybe there was a little partying happening...

Interview By: Maureen Heydt This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity. Hanna Sachs Frýdek-Místek lies on the outskirts of Ostrava, thirty kilometers from the Slovakian border, and only twenty kilometers from the Polish border, making it easily the most eastern placement town this year for a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant. That ETA is Hannah Sachs, a 22-year-old American who is driven by work that connects her diverse passions of theatre, religious studies and social justice. Hannah is working diligently this year to be as involved in her community as she can, even committing to directing a fully produced play with the students at her high school. With plans to study next year at the prestigious Yale University, Hannah is enjoying her year abroad in the Czech Republic immensely. Read below to hear her thoughts on teaching English, cultural diversity and the rich history of the theatre in the Czech Republic. -------------------------------------- Fast F...