Five UW Students Receive Prestigious Gilman Scholarship to Study Abroad

Five University of Wyoming students have received a total of $19,500 from the U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program to study abroad this semester.

They are among nearly 1,600 undergraduate students selected to participate in study-abroad programs in more than 90 countries worldwide. The recipients represent over 500 U.S. colleges and all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

UW’s awardees are supported by Shelley Jewell, director of Education Abroad, and her team, as well as the UW Education Abroad Office and Global Engagement Office.

UW recipients, listed by hometown, are:

Cheyenne -- Nick Williams, a senior pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in visual communication design. He studied in Seoul, South Korea, during the January term. His coursework included speculative design practice using research and generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools in a course called “Designing the Future: Creativity with Generative AI” at Hanyang University.

“With the Gilman Scholarship Program, I focused on learning about Korean culture and how the culture inspired the design practices and vice versa,” he says. “At the school I studied at Hanyang University, I practiced product and speculative design while exploring how to incorporate AI approaches to optimize the workflow. I’m excited to be back and to imbue my own work with what I learned while in Seoul.”

Cheyenne -- Phoenix Strobel, a junior majoring in design, merchandising and textiles with a concentration in interior design. She is participating in a spring semester study-abroad program in Florence, Italy, at Lorenzo de’ Medici, where she is completing courses toward her major. 

Oak Bluffs, Mass. -- Mason Mercier, a junior majoring in economics with a minor in honors. He completed the UW faculty-led program “Buddhism in Thailand” during the January term to Bangkok, Thailand. This program is organized by UW Assistant Professor Kate Hartmann of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies. Upon successful completion of this program, students earn three credits for “HP 3154: Buddhism in Thailand.”

Riverton -- Taniesha Smith, a senior majoring in marketing, management and professional sales, with a minor in hospitality business management. During three weeks in January, she studied in France, Italy and the United Kingdom.

“Receiving the Gilman Scholarship has been an amazing opportunity for me. It has allowed me to participate in a study-abroad program that takes me to multiple cities across Europe,” Smith says. “This experience supports my academic goals as a business major with a focus on marketing, management and sales by exposing me to international markets and diverse cultures. As a single mom, this opportunity also is about showing my children that, with determination and hard work, you can achieve your dreams.”

Rock Springs -- Orlando Gonzalez Perez, a junior majoring in physiology. He will participate in a UW faculty-led program this summer in three cities in Japan. The program is organized by UW Assistant Lecturer Noah Miles of the Department of Modern and Classical Languages. Upon successful completion of this program, students earn three credits for “HP 4151: Modern Japanese Society and Culture.”

Gonzalez Perez was a recipient of the Gilman-McCain Scholarship for dependents of active-duty military members, and the supplemental Critical Need Language Award for studying Japanese.