Dear Reader,
I am excited to introduce you to Volume 14 of Fulbright Korea’s literary magazine, Infusion. The Worldwide Fulbright Program is celebrating its 75th Anniversary this year. We have much to celebrate as we reflect on the success and growth of the Fulbright Program both globally and in Korea. After a brief hiatus we are eager to share the reflections, stories, and photos that encompass the experience of our Fulbright Korea community. Like the rest of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed our staff and programs. Some of these changes are temporary and some are permanent.
From 2020 on, our English Teaching Assistant (ETAs) grantees will enter the school year at the same time as their students. ETAs will learn how to best meet their students’ needs while their students learn to adapt to their new classrooms and teachers. In these pages, you will get your first look at what it is like to teach alongside the same groups of students for one school year.
And while the most significant change to our programming occurred with the ETA Program, our other U.S. Program participants have also pivoted and adjusted to COVID in ways that no one would have imagined before. Conducting research, lecturing in Korea, and navigating the university as a student, while ensuring national public health guidelines and regulations are followed has been a challenge that our grantees have risen to meet and overcome.
Important to the history of this program, the dedicated Infusion staff has worked to chronicle these stories and the perspectives of what it is like to live in Korea during a global pandemic as a part of Fulbright Korea’s history. To them, and to the authors and artists who contributed their time and talents to this issue, I extend my most sincere thanks and congratulations. As we read this issue of Infusion, may we find new appreciation and inspiration for what it means to be innovators, trailblazers, and Fulbrighters.
Kind regards,
Dr. Byungok Kwon
Executive Director
Korean-American Educational Commission
