By Sam Cicci '15
Lynx take their local strengths to the international stage.
Spin a globe, close your eyes, and point at it as it stops. Chances are, your finger lands where a member of the Rhodes community is currently researching or studying abroad, taking the rigorous academic and leadership skills acquired in Memphis and applying them to issues on the global stage. Or perhaps you land on a location where members of our community call home. Either way, you’ve found that the idea of a “Global Rhodes” includes students, faculty, and staff contributing to a world built on solid international and cross-cultural experiences.
The Buckman Center for Global Engagement, led by executive director Erin Hillis, is Rhodes’ hub for all things international. And while study abroad might be the most eye-catching component, the Buckman Center is involved in so much more. “Rhodes’ global story is visible in all areas of the college,” says Hillis. “It spans every division, all academic departments, student life, engagement in Memphis, internships, study abroad. All of it is huge. And we help manage all these moving pieces.”
The opportunity for travel is a huge draw, with more than half of the student body electing to take advantage of study, serve, and intern away opportunities. The Open Doors 2025 Report on International Educational Exchange ranks Rhodes as 30th in the country for student participation. During the 2025-2026 academic year, students from 27 different majors traveled to 31 countries, ranging from Argentina to Morocco to Uzbekistan.
global stories. The college is recognized as a Top Producing Institution for the Fulbright U.S. scholarship program, which selects students to teach English abroad and serve as cultural ambassadors. Associate professor of Russian Alexandra Kostina and associate professor of psychology Jason Haberman advise students on their Fulbright applications, and credit Rhodes’ curriculum for the high number of acceptances. “Many applicants note that it is Rhodes’ liberal arts curriculum that prepares them for the kinds of skills and projects that the Fulbright Foundation supports,” says Kostina. “Our office and many faculty mentors and reviewers serve as encouraging and guiding stewards.”
Erin McTigue ’26, an English and German studies alumna from Collierville, TN, received both a Fulbright U.S. Student Award for 2026-2027 to teach in Germany and an earlier Robert Buckman Fellowship, which supported her study abroad in the fall of 2024 in Freiburg, Germany, where she combined her passion for film, writing, and photography with community outreach. She has spent the last two years tutoring others in German and English; last year, she also interned at World Poetry Books in New York City as part of the Literary NYC: Reading the City program.
“I studied abroad and volunteered in Germany,” she says. “I hope to use the cross-cultural teaching and communication skills I will gain through the Fulbright fellowship in order to pursue a career in teaching and publishing.”
2025 Mertie W. Buckman International Intern Lydia Gold ’26, a Chinese and international studies double major from Madison, WI, traveled to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to design play-based STEM lessons for children on behalf of Konnit Play to Learn. “My pedagogical approach includes implementing interactive lessons that incorporate visuals, simplified instructions, and movement-based activities to reach learners of varying abilities,” she says. The year prior, she studied abroad at the National Taiwan University via the Robert Buckman Fellowship for Study Abroad, taking classes in Mandarin while teaching English. This year, Gold also received a 2026-2027 Fulbright Scholarship and will teach in Taiwan.
Faculty are also frequently earning awards that send them overseas, with several earning prestigious recognition. This academic year alone, Geoff Bakewell, professor of ancient Mediterranean studies, was appointed the inaugural holder of the Brian D. Joseph Endowed Chair in Classics at College Year in Athens, where he will start a three-year visiting term beginning this fall; Eric Gottlieb P’20, associate professor of mathematics, received his second Fulbright Scholar Award to teach and conduct research at the University of Primosrka in Koper, Slovenia, from October 2026 to February 2027; and professor of English Scott Newstokwas awarded a four-year grant from the State Research Agency of Spain to support his scholarship at the University of Murcia on the multilingual heritage of early modern English.
All of these awards, recognitions, and opportunities combine to tell the story of Rhodes’ global footprint. Students are eager to travel, and faculty are equally keen to create these opportunities. “There’s always been passion for study abroad from our faculty,” says Hillis. “Going back more than twenty years, faculty have consistently advocated for and supported study abroad opportunities. This is visible by the number of students who participate in these programs and pursue international opportunities after graduation. Rhodes is fortunate to have faculty who are deeply engaged in international research and collaborations, including those who develop and lead Rhodes’ own study abroad and away programs.”
Looking Ahead
Plans for new programs and international experiences are always in the works, with faculty eager to build new opportunities for academic exploration. The Buckman International Curricular Development Grants support up to ten faculty members dedicated to innovative teaching and curriculum development. Their grant-funded site visits both enrich their own academic research, which makes its way back to the Rhodes classrom and or aid in developing new study-abroad or study-away programs.
Five faculty received grants this summer and are currently scattered from Europe to Asia. For example, Joel Parsons ’07, assistant professor of art and director of Rhodes’ Clough-Hanson Gallery, toured the Venice Biennale—a famous exhibition in Italy tracing back to the
19th century that showcases Italian art and architecture—with an eye on developing a new summer program focusing on the intersection of art and art history, gender and sexuality studies, and international studies.
Brian Larkins, associate professor of computer science, and Ricardo Martins, assistant professor of modern languages and literatures, journeyed through Japan to develop a new summer program exploring the evolving fields for robotics and gaming. The program will incorporate many disciplines, from computer science to media studies, art to psychology, or business.
Laura Loth, associate professor of French and Francophone Studies, and Benjamin Curtis, visiting assistant professor of interdisciplinary humanities, will travel to France independently for their development. Loth’s journey will take her to several locations around the country with the aim of updating an existing course centered on conservation, climate change, and cultural practices within France’s wine industry. Her research may also contribute towards an upcoming program at the Meeman Center for Lifelong Learning, which has offered recent global excursions to France and Thailand. Curtis, meanwhile, is studying artistic, literary, and philosophical movements in Paris to develop a new course in the Foundations Curriculum.
A further innovative approach to global learning has recently been trialed in the Modern Languages and Literatures department. Collaborative online international learning (COIL) is a pedagogical teaching approach that connects students and faculty from around the world through virtual collaboration. This approach introduces students in different classes from across continents for the purpose of working together on projects and research. Currently, associate professor of Spanish Eric Henager ’89, P’26, who has led the immersive summer program in Ecuador for more than 20 years, leads one such project with Magali Arteaga at the Universidad del Azuay. “Students taking Spanish here work with students studying English in Ecuador,” says Hillis. “And the two group meet regularly online, cooperatively design learning tasks, present research to each other in English and Spanish, and receive feedback from the other cohort. Connecting with peers in environments like this may provide just the right amount of encouragement needed for them to consider studying abroad.”
Making Memphis Home
A big part of Rhodes’ globalization efforts involves looking inward. While students and faculty travel the world, Rhodes also hosts a robust community of international faculty and students. When international students enroll at Rhodes, Hillis’s team understands they are transitioning, not only from high school to college, but also between languages, countries, and cultures, so the team works tirelessly to make the transition as soon as possible. As the new students filter in to Memphis for orientation, faculty, staff, and international peer advisors volunteer to pick them up from the airport, armed with “jet lag” survival kits: T-shirts, water bottles, toiletries, Rhodes swag, and snacks. “After checking them in at the Buckman Center, our incredible volunteers take them to their residence halls so they can begin to settle in.” International Peer Advisors continue serving as support network after arrival.
The Buckman Center’s robust services for these students include everything from connecting to other support offices at Rhodes, obtaining a local SIM card for their phones, helping set up a U.S. bank account, or giving continuous English language support for classes and tutoring, among many other services.
“In fall 2004, Rhodes enrolled four new international students, so shopping for college necessities was as easy as picking them up in one car for a quick Target run,” says Hillis. “Now, we regularly charter multiple buses for orientation and those important shopping trips.” For the Class of 2029, 12 percent are international students. In the 2025-2026 academic year, 240 students from more than 60 countries attended Rhodes.
Similar to cultural excursions that study abroad students receive, Rhodes is now planning special out-of-city trips for international students, helmed by director of education abroad and away Elin Ovrebo. Proposed destinations include Nashville, New Orleans, and other iconic American cities. “We’re exploring the idea of a music, food, and culture comparison series,” says Hillis, “to give our students the chance to see more of the country while they’re calling Memphis home. The students fall in love with Memphis, and excursions like these will help them get an even greater exposure to U.S. culture in other cities.”
