NEWS

Dr. Michael Crosby, Assistant Professor in Louisiana Tech’s School of Agricultural Sciences and Forestry, has been selected to be included on the Fulbright Specialist Roster for three years.

Established in 2001 by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the Fulbright Specialist Program selects qualified U.S. academics and professionals and connects them with host institutions to complete projects overseas.

Crosby’s research focus is in the application of technology in the assessment and management of natural resources. Service is the biggest reason behind his pursuit of the Fulbright Program.

“This fits my professional, academic, and educational goals by providing me an opportunity to be able to serve a host institution and be able to work on questions that I work on closer to home,” he said. “Hopefully, this leads to institutional collaborations that continue beyond the life of any project in which I might participate.”

Fulbright Specialists are competitively selected based on an individual’s expertise and ability to be instrumental in their overseas projects. These short-term projects of two- to six-week durations allow Specialists to work dynamically both overseas and at their current place of work.

This program grants Crosby opportunities to gain knowledge and seek different perspectives in research and “exposure to different methods, opinions, laws, and cultures,” he said. “This opportunity will provide unique insights, and I’m interested in how we might, internationally or globally, work on solving problems that impact our world.”

Crosby is interested in gaining hands-on experience and in providing Tech students with something similar.

“Every country and city is different, as are their perspectives and priorities,” he said. “I hope to be able to work with people in some of these countries and bring those lessons home to students at Tech.”

Selected professionals contract with institutions from over 150 countries through the Fulbright Specialist Program, which encourages non-academics that specialize in 24 disciplines, including journalism, business, education, and agriculture.