UNH senior Ashley Haselton awarded Prestigious Fulbright Scholarship

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Ashley Haselton has received a Fulbright Scholarship to teach English in Kenya.

DURHAM, NH (05/11/2011)(readMedia)-- University of New Hampshire senior Ashley Haselton has received  a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship that will provide her support to teach English in Kenya  during the 2011-2012 academic year.

Haselton, of North Attleboro, Mass., will graduate in May with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English education. For the past several years, she has been editor and contributing writer for Main Street Magazine, a campus literary publication; site coordinator for Seacoast Reads, tutoring students in reading and serving as a volunteer group leader; and a participant in the Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Seacoast.

She is a member of UNH Golden Key honor society and Pi Lambda Theta national honor society and professional association for educators. In May 2009 she was the winner of the Phi Beta Kappa essay competition for an analytical piece of academic writing.

"Education and cultural awareness are great equalizers and can shatter the linguistic barriers that often separate people--both internationally and provincially," says Haselton. "Through my Fulbright teaching assistantship, I will utilize my experiences as educator, mentor, writer, editor, and ESL tutor in improving linguistic skills in a variety of academic settings."

In her free time, Haselton plans to start an English-language book club to help participants improve their fluency, pronunciation, and literacy in English. Selecting from a variety of American authors, Haselton notes, "The meetings would also serve as a forum for discussing the ways in which the material is approached from a unique cultural viewpoint."

When she returns to the U.S., Haselton wants to apply what she learns about teaching students from other ethnicities and language backgrounds.