News

Scholars make visit to CAFB

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Danielle Powell
  • 14th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
COLUMBUS AFB, Miss. --  Thirty International Fulbright Scholars visited Columbus AFB Tuesday. The group is being hosted by Mississippi State University and was here to view the Columbus AFB training program. 

The international Fulbright scholars were from 25 different countries and will be pursuing Masters of PhD's at 26 different universities across the nation. "Mississippi State University's Pre-Academic Summer Program is designed to help acclimate the students to U.S. culture and academic systems" according to Pam Sullivan, program coordinator at MSU's Holmes Cultural Diversity Center. According to Sullivan, the students receive English as a Second Language classes every morning. They receive presentations by different MSU professors or take trips to different areas of Mississippi to help them understand our culture. Learning how to live in the United States, from apartment hunting, how utilities work, to banking, are all helpful topics they explore. 

According to the Department of State website, the Fulbright Program, which is sponsored by the U.S. Government, is designed to "increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries..." With this goal, the Fulbright Program has provided approximately 275,000 participants, chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential, with the opportunity to observe each others' political, economic, educational and cultural institutions, to exchange ideas and to embark on joint ventures of importance to the general welfare of the world's inhabitants. The Fulbright Program provides grants for Graduate Students, Scholars and Professionals, and Teachers and Administrators from the U.S. and other countries.
During their tour, the scholars received a wing mission brief by Capt. John Ryan, 41st Flying Training Squadron. They also were able to take part in a T-37 Simulator and see static displays of CAFB aircraft on the flightline. 

After the mission brief, the scholars were able to interact with some international student pilots in training at CAFB. Scholars were able to talk to student pilots from Pakistan and Mali about what they are experiencing while in pilot training in the United States.
Sonic Johnson, 14th Flying Training Wing, told the scholars after the mission brief, "As many of you have only been away from home for three weeks, I know it is comforting to hear your home dialect." 

According to Senator J. William Fulbright, "The Fulbright Program aims to bring a little more knowledge, a little more reason and a little more compassion into world affairs and thereby to increase the chance that nations will learn at last to live in peace and friendship."