A Nebraska Wesleyan University English professor has been awarded a Fulbright Specialists Grant to teach in India next fall.
Gerise Herndon, Professor of English, Director of the Gender Studies Program, and the University’s Fulbright Program Advisor, will spend six weeks at Banaras Hindu University where she will teach feminist theories, multiculturalism and identity politics.
The Fulbright Specialists Program — created in 2000 to compliment the traditional Fulbright Scholar Program — provides short-term academic opportunities to U.S. faculty and professionals to support curricular and faculty development at post-secondary academic institutions across the world.
Herndon said she is interested in sharing her expertise on feminist theories and providing consultation to an international university that may not have an expert on the topic. She spent her last sabbatical in Rwanda teaching English and gender studies. This will be her first visit to India.
Not only will she be lending her expertise to students and faculty in India, but she will bring back experiences to share with NWU students. Herndon has used Indian novels in her English classes.
“Experiences like this always enhance teaching,” she said. “It will give me a snapshot of the reality of the origins of the novels I use in class.”
Herndon has taught at Nebraska Wesleyan University since 1993.