Walter Thomas-Patterson ’25 has earned a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) to Ecuador for the 2025-2026 academic year. “I’m most excited about the chance to work with a new group of students and have an immersive experience in Ecuadorian culture,” says the Latin American studies and musical studies double major from O’Fallon, Illinois. As an undergraduate, Thomas-Patterson wrote for the Oberlin Review, worked at the Oberlin Writing Center, and also contributed an Oberlin Alumni Magazine feature on George Boyer Vashon, the college’s first Black graduate.
How did Oberlin shape or influence you to pursue the Fulbright?
My intro Spanish class during my first year with Professor of Hispanic Studies Sebastiaan Faber was a catalyst for my interest in pursuing the language. Also, my experience working in the Writing Center only further encouraged me to pursue working with students.
How does pursuing the Fulbright align with your post-college life and career goals?
I’ve always wanted to be a teacher, either at the college or high school level, and pursuing a Fulbright will give me teaching experience and a chance to impact students who I normally wouldn’t get the chance to interact with.
What’s the best advice you’ve received from your Oberlin faculty mentors?
I have received so much advice from faculty mentors who have helped shape me into who I am today. I’m especially grateful to James Monroe Professor of Politics and of East Asian Studies Marc Blecher, who helped guide me through my senior thesis. He pushed me to embrace my interest in studying Latin America with a political emphasis, and always reminded me to understand just how interconnected politics and culture are!
If you’re a rising or graduating senior interested in Fulbright, connect with Fellowships & Awards to learn more about pursuing research or an arts project, obtaining a graduate degree, or teaching English in a foreign country of your choice following graduation.
