THE GEORGE McMAHON, S.J. TRAVEL FELLOWSHIP

By Norma Vavolizza

Funded by the Alumni Association of Fordham College to honor the Reverend George J. McMahon, S.J., a former Dean of the College, this five thousand dollar ($5000.00) fellowship is intended to help a student defray the cost of travel during the summer of 2010.



The McMahon Travel Fellowship competition is open only to Fordham College students who are members of the Fordham Club, United Student Government, the University Band, or the University’s intercollegiate sports teams.

For the upcoming award year applications must be received in the Dean’s Office (Keating 201) by no later than March 4, 2010.

The recipient of the fellowship will be announced by April 19, 2010.

Please help spread the word about this award by letting students who you know about its availability. Specifics can be obtained from the Dean’s Office.



Past McMahon Travel Fellowship Winners Include:

2009
Carl Shorett: Traveled to Germany and other parts of Europe to study the German economy and to attend the world’s largest sailing event, Kiel Week.

2008
Elizabeth Friedrich: Traveled to four cities within the United States, New York, Detroit, Atlanta, and Philadelphia to study the histories of segregation and ethnic succession. She worked with community organizations in each city to understand what happened to black and white urban communities in America during the 1970’s to the 1990’s, as well as to understand the dynamic of race today. Upon her return, she plans to write a report based on her experiences under the guidance of a professor in the African and African American Studies Department.

2007
Faye Cassell: Studied Modern Standard and Colloquial Egyptian Arabic instruction at the American University in Cairo. In addition to her linguistic experience, she also plans to take study tours to Alexandria, Luxor, and the Sinai in order to incorporate the rich history and culture of the Middle East into the learning environment.

2006
Janet Southern: Spent the summer in a study program in Rabat, Morocco through the School of International Training. It is a seven week class in which she took an Arabic language class and cultural seminar concentrating on the role of Islam in politics and society.

2005
Sara Boyorak: Partly through her experiences with Urban Plunge, Sara has realized how much music plays a part in the experiences of young people. Sara studied the political and social implications of Reggae in Jamaica. She has been accepted as an intern with the Jamaican Cultural Development Commission.

2004
Eric Fergen: After studying abroad in Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua, Eric decided to return to Guatemala to gain further experience to enhance his Latin American and Latino Studies major. He participated in a combination of community service, study and research.

2003
Meghan Caldwell: Spent the summer in the Kakamega forest of Kenya collecting research data on social behavioral patterns of blue monkeys, specifically their eating patterns. The research was done to assist a professor at Columbia University, as well as to provide the data necessary for the student’s environmental internship capstone course and research paper.

2002
Aline Zylberkan: Out of interest in ancient cultures, the student traveled to various locations in Greece to visit and learn about the remnants of the classical Greek society and culture. Locations visited include Athens, Plaka, and Penelopese.

2001
Rich Garr: Toured Europe with a bike and a camera. Countries intended to visit included Spain, Germany, Italy and the Czech Republic. His goal was to visit cities with historical and contemporary importance, studying art, architecture and culture.

2000
Heather O’Rourke: Traveled to rural Mississippi to work with children at a children’s camp where she previously worked as a part of a Fordham-sponsored Global Outreach trip. Her GO experience impacted her life to such an extent that she wanted to continue working at the same location with many of the same children as before.

1999
Eileen O’Rourke: Went to Ecuador to participate in a Georgetown University summer program, improving her Spanish and continuing to learn the cultures of South America and Latin America, as she had previously taken the opportunity to visit Argentina and Chile.