Archives: Meet Our USA Fulbrighters

Sunila Kale

Prof. Sunila S. Kale is associate professor of international studies at the University of Washington. Her research and teaching focus on Indian and South Asian politics, energy studies, the political economy of development, and the history of capitalism. She is the author of Electrifying India (Stanford, 2014), Mapping Power (OUP, 2018), and “Rural Land Dispossession in China and India” (Journal of Peasant Studies, 2020). She completed her BA from the University of Chicago and her PhD from the University of Texas.

In 2020, India’s Railway Ministry announced that the railways would resurrect the practice of selling chai (tea) to its millions of customers the old-fashioned way, in kulhads, the small mud-clay cups that are meant to be used once and discarded. Prof. Kale’s Fulbright research asks whether and how policies such as the kulhad program support and reproduce modes of informal, artisanal work that persist despite developmental ideologies that have long predicted their demise. In her project, she is focusing on small-scale, labor-intensive informal production in urban India by looking at the work of traditional potters, or kumbhars, in western India.

Rebecca Waxman

Ms. Rebecca Waxman is a PhD candidate at UCLA in the Department of History, specializing in South Asia and with a concentration in gender studies. Her work aims to study occurrences of sexual and gender-based violence that marked turning-point moments in colonial and postcolonial Indian social, political, and feminist histories. Ms. Waxman received her BA in history with a certificate in South Asian Studies from Wesleyan University in 2016, where she wrote her honors thesis historicizing the Delhi Gang Rape of 2012. Her work has been published in Women’s History Review and A Cultural Encyclopedia of Lost Cities and Civilizations (forthcoming).

Ms. Waxman’s dissertation project historicizes the relationship between the interpersonal, violent act of rape and the broader Indian society and politics, exploring how colonial categories and dynamics shaped understandings and legislation of female sexuality and of sexualized violence in British and independent India. It also studies the continuities and discontinuities between colonial and postcolonial India regarding rape. Ms. Waxman’s research endeavors to illuminate key nodes in the complex heterogeneous history of sexual violence in modern South Asia in order to recuperate the subjecthood of Indian women who enter the archive in moments of violation; it also aims to question the dominant knowledge structures informing the subjugation of women.

Carolisa Watson

Ms. Carolisa Watson is currently pursuing a PhD in geography at the University of Kansas. Her research revolves around questions of placemaking, home, and identity. She is engaged in collaborative ethnographic work with displaced communities. Ms. Watson has previously received FLAS funding to study Tibetan, Mongolian, and Chinese languages. She holds bachelor’s degrees in East Asian languages and literatures and in global and international studies from the University of Kansas; she also holds an MA in folklore and ethnomusicology from Indiana University.

Ms. Watson’s Fulbright-Hays project is examining how Tibetan identity is expressed through placemaking in Dharamsala and the ways in which place and identity interact. As a visiting scholar, Ms. Watson is involved in archival and ethnographic fieldwork exploring the relationships between Tibetans, Dharamsala, and the governmental organizations, and how they impact the Tibetan diaspora in Dharamsala; the project is being carried out by studying the historical, contemporary, political, and social contexts of “territorialized exile” in a city. It is also drawing upon an interdisciplinary background in geography, folklore, religious studies, and media studies to understand how individuals interact with their larger communities and the city itself to create meaningful places and express collective and individual identity.

Meher Ali

Ms. Meher Ali is a PhD candidate in the Department of History at Princeton University. At Princeton, she has been an organizer for the South Asia Graduate Workshop and the South Asia Digital Humanities Working Group, as well as a co-founder of the South Asia Translation Workshop. She was previously a Fulbright student researcher in Kolkata, India, and her work has also been supported by the AIIS language fellowship, the CLS program, and the American Institute of Bangladesh Studies. She received her MA from the University of Chicago and her BA in history with honors from Brown University.

Ms. Ali’s dissertation project traces the history of the public university and higher education in modern South Asia. By taking a capacious definition of the university — as, for example, a product of state policy, an icon of modernity, a material campus, and a site for politicization — her research engages multiple historiographical fields and methods including the history of global development, urban history, architectural history, oral and social history, and ethnographies of the state.

Taryn Williams

Ms. Taryn Williams is currently a head teacher and secondary generalist with the Lake and Peninsula School District in remote Alaska. She is a former Fulbright Fellow to Germany and a Kathryn Davis Fellow for Peace at Middlebury College. This past summer, she was a WWI Fellow through the National Endowment for the Humanities at the National WWI Museum and Memorial in Kansas City. Ms. Williams also serves as her district’s student government advisor and as treasurer of her local National Education Association.

Ms. Williams got her BS in urban studies (with a focus on urban education) from the University of Pennsylvania in 2014 and her MSEd in elementary education from the same university in 2015; she also earned a certification in K-12 TESOL. Additionally, she completed a certificate through the Strategic Leadership in Education Program at the University of Pennsylvania in 2021.

Her goal for her Fulbright DAST in India is to share and compare knowledge about the best practices in curriculum and assessment design, and learn about Indian culture. She is also teaching people about the unique and beautiful location she calls home: the Alaskan bush.

Michael Whalen

Mr. Michael Whalen is a teacher at Kearsley High School in Flint, Michigan, where he has taught for eight years. During his time with Kearsley Community Schools, he has served as the Student Council advisor and as the Social Studies Continuous Improvement chair, and has made presentations on professional-development topics such as technology use in the classroom and on the electronic lesson planning and resources offered by the Michigan Department of Education. Mr. Whalen served as an elected member of the Mt. Morris Board of Education for 11 years, was an administrative intern with the Kearsley High School leadership team, and was one of 24 teachers in Michigan selected to serve as a representative on Michigan’s Teacher Leadership Advisory Council.

Mr. Whalen received his master’s degree in educational policy and leadership from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, a bachelor’s degree in social studies education from the University of Michigan in Flint, and earned a minor in Finnish education and pedagogy while studying at the University of Helsinki in Finland.

For his Fulbright project, Mr. Whalen is exploring how India’s secular and non-secular schools are adapting to the social emotional impact of trauma caused by issues such as the COVID pandemic and poverty. In this area, he has been identifying strategies for inspiring self-awareness, self-reflection, and mindfulness in trauma-impacted youth which can then be shared with local and regional communities. Additionally, Mr. Whalen has been identifying various stakeholders that have successfully leveraged social emotional programming to positively impact student outcomes.

Tara Seekins

Ms. Tara Seekins teaches English at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley, California. She has served as a school leader, an English instructor in the college program at San Quentin State Prison, and as a lecturer in the Graduate School of Education at UC Berkeley. Ms. Seekins has a National Board certificate in English language development and was part of the 2015 Fulbright-Hays delegation that traveled to China. Each of these experiences has reinforced her belief in the transformative power of education as well as intensified her passion for developing culturally relevant curricula, collaborating with colleagues across the globe, and encouraging students to become engaged citizens of the world.

Ms. Seekins holds a bachelor’s degree from Smith College, a master’s degree in English from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and both a master’s degree in education and a law degree from UC Berkeley.

Ms. Seekins’s Fulbright inquiry project is exploring gender representation in contemporary Indian literature and film and has a curriculum guide and instructional unit for secondary English teachers. The guide and instructional unit are focusing on women’s voices in contemporary Indian literature through university coursework and interviews with students and professors; collaborations with Indian educators to support cross-cultural dialogue; and site visits to locations of cultural and literary importance. This will form one of the cornerstones of a newly developed course on world literature that concentrates on diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.

J.P. Singh

Dr. J.P. Singh is Professor of International Commerce and Policy at the Schar School of Policy and Government, George Mason University, and Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow with the Robert Bosch Academy, Berlin. Previously, he was Chair and Professor of Culture and Political Economy, and Director of the Institute for International Cultural Relations at the University of Edinburgh.

Prof. Singh has published 10 books and over 100 articles. His latest books are: Cultural Values in Political Economy (2020), and Sweet Talk: Paternalism and Collective Action in North-South Trade Negotiations (Stanford, 2017). His book Globalized Arts: The Entertainment Economy and Cultural Identity (Columbia, 2011) won the American Political Science Association’s award for best book in information technology and politics in 2012. His current book project is Development 2.0: How Technologies Can Foster Inclusivity in the Developing World (Oxford, forthcoming). He has worked with international organizations such as UNESCO, the World Bank, and the WTO, and played a leadership role in several professional organizations. He is Founding Editor of the journal Arts and International Affairs. Previously he was Editor of Review of Policy Research, the journal specializing in the politics and policy of science and technology. Awards in 2022 include a $1.39 million grant from the Minerva program (as Principal Investigator), Distinguished Scholar in International Communication award from the International Studies Association, and Outstanding Scholar Award from the Schar.

He has taught at Scripps College (Claremont), University of Mississippi, American University, Georgetown University, School of Advanced International Studies – Johns Hopkins University, and George Mason University. Outside of the United States, he has taught at the University of Edinburgh, Graduate Institute – Geneva (IHEID), University of Siena, and University of Jyväskylä. He holds a PhD in Political Economy and Public Policy from the University of Southern California, an MA from Mumbai.

How are India’s export industries adopting artificial intelligence technologies to compete in the global economy? Can AI enhance Indian exports just as Information technologies did a generation ago? Prof. Singh’s Fulbright-Nehru project in India seeks to conduct research on the Indian policy and business landscape for AI technology adoption in export industries, while also presenting teaching modules on related topics of technology, diplomacy, and international commerce.

Elizabeth Simon

Dr. Elizabeth Simon RN, PhD, ANP-BC, has over 25 years of academic nursing experience and over 30 years of clinical experience. She had served in the capacity of Staff Nurse, Staff Development Instructor, Program Coordinator, Director, and Dean. She was also appointed as a Critical Care Nursing Consultant for the Corporate Nursing Services of the NYC Health and Hospitals Corporation (NYCHHC). Dr. Simon is also a board-certified Adult Health Nurse Practitioner. She has authored and reviewed books on Critical Care Nursing, book chapters on transcultural issues, edited a book on non-communicable diseases, published many articles in peer reviewed journals and periodicals in the US and India. She has presented at various national and international forums. Dr. Simon was a Fulbright-Nehru Academic Excellence Scholar during 2015-16 academic years. Her academic degrees include BSc (N) from College of Nursing, Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, Punjab University; MS in Critical care nursing from the School of Nursing, Columbia University; EdM. in Nursing Education from Teachers College; MS in Adult Health Nurse Practitioner from Hunter College, and PhD in higher education from Walden University. She was an LANP fellow of American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

The proposed Fulbright-Nehru project intends to implement three specialized nursing programs. A US model of specialized education for graduate nurses as Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) to provide care to the rape trauma victims. A second area of special training in Critical care transport nursing to solve the lack of a systematic prehospital care. Men in Nursing will be utilized to fulfill this advance role. A third curriculum introduced will be Home Hospice and Palliative Care Nursing. The Indian Nursing Council (INC) will oversee and guide implementation of these proposed programs.

Lumina S Albert

Dr. Lumina Albert is an Associate Professor of Business Ethics and Management, a Daniels Ethics Fellow, and the OtterBox Faculty Fellow in the College of Business at Colorado State University. She also serves as the Executive Director of the CSU Center for Ethics and Human Rights. Her research seeks to extend knowledge of social justice, ethical behavior, and interpersonal relationships in the business world. She has an MBA (with a dual specialization in Marketing and Human Resource Management) and a PhD in Business Management. Following her doctoral studies, Dr. Albert received the prestigious AAUW International Postdoctoral Fellowship to continue her research at the Department of Psychology at Stanford University and at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. She is an award-winning teacher and has been honored with the College of Business Excellence in Teaching Award and the ‘Best Teacher of Colorado State University’ Award, which is given to outstanding educators at CSU by the CSU Alumni Association and Student Alumni Connection. Her research has been published in scholarly journals such as Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Journal of Business Ethics, Human Resource Management Review, Organizational Psychology Review and Group & Organizations Management. Dr. Albert’s service at CSU and to the Northern Colorado Community has been recognized with the College of Business Outstanding Service Award, CSU Multicultural Distinguished Service Award, and the Distinguished Service Award from the Office of International Programs at CSU. She has served as a consultant with organizations such as Procter & Gamble, International Justice Mission, and Child Relief & You (CRY) on issues ranging from strategic public relations to organizing social marketing campaigns. She serves on the Board of Advisors of New Horizons House, an international organization providing holistic restoration for survivors of human trafficking and sexual abuse. She is also a central organizer of the Northern Colorado Human Trafficking Symposium, a premier and distinctive conference that seeks to engage and educate on the issue of human trafficking through research, training, and collaboration. In her spare time, Dr. Albert enjoys cooking for her friends and family, interior designing, and traveling around the world!

The proposed Fulbright-Nehru project focuses on the ethics and human rights impact of corporates on people and communities in India. The project intends to examine the macro- and micro- level aspects of the ethics and human rights practices of global business organizations. Specifically, this research utilizes a norms-based framework to assess how corporate ethics practices impact the emergence of individual behaviors and community outcomes. Areas of research and teaching include how these businesses impact their stakeholders (i.e., consumers, employees, workers, the environment, and the community in which they operate).