Morocco RPCV Jim Heaton Wins Prestigious Fulbright Research Scholarship
WIU Peace Corps Fellow Wins Prestigious Fulbright Research Scholarship
Jim Heaton, a graduate student at Western Illinois University has been selected as a Fulbright Award winner by a competitive national selection process. The prestigious honor offers grants to U.S. and foreign students, educators, scholars, and other professionals to conduct career launching study and research abroad in over 100 countries.
“We are very proud of Jim’s accomplishment. This is one of the most prestigious scholarships in the United States. He submitted a very strong application and is very interested in his project and the country of Morocco,” states Gloria Barr, Assistant Director of Extended Learning within the Travel and Study Abroad Program at WIU. Barr mentions that this is the first Fulbright Research Scholarship in WIU history. Additionally, it is the second year that a WIU student has been a Fulbright recipient and the third Fulbright for the area. In the 2002-2003 academic year, Caroline (Carrie) Vojta received a Teaching Fulbright and taught in Korea. Debbie Hunt, a community winner, taught in Japan through the Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program.
Heaton, of Wilton, California, plans to conduct research in Morocco where he served as a Peace Corps Volunteer from 1998 to 2000. He served in the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco as a Rural Community Development and Agriculture Volunteer.
Upon returning to Morocco, Heaton plans to utilize his knowledge of the Moroccan culture, language, and social environment to discover practical development techniques that will assist Moroccan institutions and associations in supporting development in communities that can be easily maintained by native Moroccans.
According to Heaton, “There are a great number of development organizations that have practiced economic development with a top-down approach and had limited success with little sustainability. By focusing on efforts within communities, I think we can demonstrate that a methodology based on public participation will not only see greater success and long-run sustainability but will capture the hearts and spirits of people and inspire continued localized efforts for betterment.”
Heaton is in the Peace Corps Fellows Program at Western. The Fellows Program recruits returned Peace Corps Volunteers into graduate school where they earn a master’s degree while receiving specialized training in community development. As part of their graduate training, Fellows serve an 11-month internship in a rural Illinois community. Heaton is currently serving as an intern with the Rock Falls Community Development Corporation in Rock Falls, Illinois.
Heaton hopes that his vast array of experiences both domestically and internationally assists him in becoming a leader in the realm of community development.
