Thursday, May 30, 2002

Wilmington -- Emily Burnett, daughter of Hank and Allison Burnett of Raleigh and spring 2002 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, has won a Fulbright French Government Teaching Assistantship to spend 2002-03 teaching in a French school. Emily is a graduate of Leesville Road High School in Raleigh.

The Fulbright grants allow students to spend 10 months in France, where they become fully integrated into the life of a French school and a French community. Assistants may teach at the elementary, middle, or high school level.

A double major in International Business and French, Emily spent the summer of 2001 studying French and International Business at the

CESEM-Mediterrannée in Marseille, France. She will be teaching elementary school in the Aix Marseille academy but she will not know until later this summer the exact town or school where she will be placed.

Emily was recently awarded "Most Outstanding Student in International Business 2001-2002" in UNC Wilmington’s Cameron School of Business. She said her interest in French was sparked by her eighth grade French teacher, Maria Bonito, who set up an exchange program for the class with a school outside of Paris. Emily also thanked UNCW Professor Alison Murray, “who has been wonderful in helping me fulfill my dream of returning to France.”

"Emily has done excellent work at UNCW," said Dr. Murray, assistant professor of French. "With her mastery of the language, along with her strong spirit, personal initiative, and sense of adventure, she will be an asset to the program wherever she is placed. I think the year will be a wonderful experience for her."

Dr. Murray herself received a similar award upon graduation from college and spent a year in a middle school in Vaison-la-Romaine, France, an experience that she said was “positive and important in her life.”

This is the second Fulbright Scholarship to be awarded to a UNCW student this academic year. Mark C. Kelly of Pineville, La., a senior marine biology and psychology double major, received a Fulbright Scholarship to Norway.

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For additional information, contact Emily Burnett at 910/794-8728.