Published on June 14, 2024

by Jade Elwess

Four MU faculty members from a wide range of disciplines have received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award for the 2024-2025 academic year from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board: 

Christina Carney, Women’s & Gender Studies, Brazil 
Dan Edidin, Mathematics, Israel 
Brian Silvey, School of Music, Australia 
Robert Walker, Anthropology, Brazil 

David Crespy, professor in the Department of Theatre, and MU Fulbright Liaison for the Office of the Provost, advised these faculty members on their applications, plus others who either applied or considered applying throughout last fall and spring semesters. He has been on two Fulbright Scholar programs and enthusiastically speaks about the many professional benefits to faculty. 

After Brian Silvey, professor in the School of Music, decided to apply for the Fulbright to go to Australia, he contacted Crespy for advice on his application.  

“Not only did he provide me with one of his previously successful applications, he offered feedback about my submission”, said Silvey. “I really can’t thank him enough for being such an invaluable mentor and resource in this process.”   

His host institution next year is the University of Melbourne, where he will guest lecture at the University of Melbourne Conservatory of Music. Silvey will also conduct archival research at the Percy Grainger Museum, home of one of the most famous concert band composers of the twentieth century and attending the Australian National Band Championships.  

Christina Carney, assistant professor in the Department of Women’s & Gender Studies, met with Crespy about three years ago, but didn’t think her research made her a strong candidate for the Fulbright, since it was mainly focused in the U.S. She began to look at the many Fulbright program options, and, having studied in Brazil as a student, shifted her thinking to the possibility of doing research there for her second book project. She completed her application and asked Crespy to review her materials and he wrote her a letter of recommendation.  

Carney was awarded the Fulbright’s Distinguished Chair in Racial Studies at the University of Bahia in Salvador (UFBA) Brazil, a very prestigious type of Fulbright fellowship. Her project will center around the participation of non-Brazilian black LGBTQ tourists in the sex tourism industry in the Northeastern region of Brazil. 

Crespy also worked closely with the other successful Fulbright applicants. Professor Dan Edidin of the Department of Mathematics will conduct research in Tel Aviv University in Israel to study molecular imaging and Associate Professor Robert Walker of the Department of Anthropology is going to Brazil to study geoglyphs. 

The deadline for the 2025-2026 Fulbright Scholars program application is September 15, 2024, but it is not too late to begin the application process. Crespy says after discussing your plans with your department chair, get a letter of invitation from your host institution as soon as possible. Consider what benefits your research will have to your specific host country and how you can build upon those international partnerships in the future. 

Carney’s advice to faculty thinking about a Fulbright, “Give yourself permission to dream and think creatively about a project that impacts us all as global citizens.”

Silvey also encourages faculty to work with Crespy and apply for the Fulbright. “Now, more than ever, developing and strengthening international and educational relationships is important,” he said.   

Since 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided over 400,000 talented and accomplished students, scholars, teachers, artists, and professionals of all backgrounds with the opportunity to study, teach, and conduct research abroad. Over 800 participants exchange ideas, build people-to-people connections, and work to address complex global challenges through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program annually. For more information about the Fulbright Program, visit https://fulbrightprogram.org.  

Applying for the 2025-26 Fulbright?  

Even though David Crespy is doing his own research remotely, he is still available for Zoom consultations throughout the summer. Contact him at: CrespyD@missouri.edu.  

Watch recordings of previous Fulbright webinars hosted by Crespy: 

• Fall 2023–humanities-focused Fulbright Webinar featuring MU Fulbright alum Dr. Pilar Mendoza from Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis. 
• Spring 2024– STEM-focused Fulbright Webinar featuring Wilson Majee, in the College of Health Sciences, and his Fulbright experience in South Africa.