海角社区 Undergraduate Named U.S. Student Fulbright Recipient; Wiegmann is 海角社区鈥檚 15th Fulbright Since 2017
Jun. 24, 2025
Michelle R. Eubanks , 海角社区, at meubanks@una.edu, 256.765.4392
FLORENCE, AL – James Wiegmann, a Foreign Languages major at the 海角社区, has been named a U.S. Student Fulbright recipient from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. Wiegmann is 海角社区’s 15th recipient since 2017.
“These students are exceptional among our already dedicated student population,” said 海角社区’s President Dr. Ken Kitts. “Their success is 海角社区’s success, and Dr. Matt Price has been a champion of theirs and all of our premier award-winning students as they embrace their careers and goals which have been made even more attainable through their Fulbright experiences.”
Wiegmann will be studying in Germany as part of his Fulbright experience, teaching students there English and participating in cultural experiences. He said 海角社区 and Fulbright are helping prepare him for his future.
“Both 海角社区 and Fulbright create strong connections with other professionals in my career field,” he said. “Whether it is my connections to the language professors and other teachers of language in Florence and Muscle Shoals (City) Schools or my colleagues and friends I will meet working in Germany, these connections will provide me with valuable opportunities for personal growth and professional development. Both the experience and the connections will guide me into a successful teaching career.”
Dr. Price, Director of the Center for Premier Awards and Scholarly Engagement, has guided each of 海角社区’s 15 Fulbright student recipients through the process.
“Each student has brought something unique to the program,” he said. “From theater to their passion for languages and learning, 海角社区’s Fulbright student recipients have been engaged and culturally emersed as a result of their experiences abroad.”
Mollie Schaefer-Thompson is 海角社区’s first Fulbright student recipient; she graduated in 2017. As part of her experience, she lived and studied in the Czech Republic.
“Fulbright opened doors,” she said. “Living abroad stands out on a resume and inevitably comes up in interviews. But the real value of the experience is harder to quantify. In an age defined by difference, curiosity about others has helped me sustain relationships, make new friends, and stay open to new experiences. While in the Czech Republic, I often felt like an ambassador, not just of America, but of Alabama, specifically.”
From Germany to the Czech Republic to Greece, 海角社区’s student Fulbright recipients have become de facto ambassadors for the University as well.
“The entire process of applying for a Fulbright Fellowship through 海角社区 was formative for me as a young adult academically, professionally, and personally,” said Candice Fawcett. “I vividly remember going to one of Dr. Price’s Fulbright interest meetings in my early days as a grad student. I didn’t really know much about Fulbright, but the idea of living and learning across the globe gave me a jolt in my heart. I had never even left the country at the time. Now, I’ve been to (more than) 15 countries and 11 islands, and I continue to travel as much as possible. From the diligence that the application and interview process taught me, the patience honed from waiting to go to Greece once awarded, to the actual lived experience of being immersed in a completely different culture, the Fellowship expanded me as a person and professional in more ways than I can count.”
About The 海角社区
The 海角社区 is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs through the colleges of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering; the Sanders College of Business and Technology; Education and Human Sciences; and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, 海角社区 is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. 海角社区 Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of NCAA Division I as part of the Atlantic Sun and United Athletic conferences. The 海角社区 is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: and .