(Corvallis, OR, May 30, 2025) Oregon State University’s National and Global Scholarships Advising office is pleased to announce that three students and recent graduates have been named finalists and one student has been named an alternate for the 2025-2026 Fulbright U.S. Student Program by the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.
Brenna Prevelige is currently pursuing a PhD in Integrative Biology, set to graduate in 2028. For her Fulbright, Brenna will conduct transdisciplinary research in Nepal surrounding the role of Ganoderma mushrooms in collaboration with Dr. Shiva Devkota with the Gendaki Province Academy of Science and Technology. Brenna’s proposed research will shed light on the cultural role of the Ganoderma mushroom as well as generate biological data which Brenna will share with a local nonprofit conservation organization. Brenna hopes to co-develop affordable genomic technologies in Nepal. This work will directly inform Brenna’s dissertation on Ganoderma ethnobiology in the US and Nepal. After her Fulbright year, Brenna will complete her PhD and aims to become an internationally-based professor working at the intersection of scientific and place-based knowledge.
Sahana Shah graduated in 2024 with an Honors Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and Biophysics and minors in Chemistry and Spanish. With her Fulbright, Sahana will travel to Spain to join the Institute for Research in Biomedicine Barcelona with Dr. Xavier Salvatella and contribute to the institute’s research on Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Sahana’s research will center on a protein that regulates over 200 genes involved in ASD development. Sahana will work as a part of Dr. Salvatella’s lab to investigate the use of a designed peptide to slow down the protein aggregation associated with the development of ASD. She aspires for her work to lead to a therapeutic development and enhanced social and cognitive function for individuals with autism. In the future, Sahana will pursue a career as a pediatric neurologist and continue research into mechanisms underlying ASD.
Kenneth Kang graduated in 2024 with an Honors Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Business Analytics. Although Kenneth has decided to decline the Fulbright for a career opportunity, he was selected to earn a Master of Science degree at Lancaster University in the United Kingdom in Data Science with a focus on Environmental Science. Kenneth’s interest in data science is to help businesses understand how to align sustainability initiatives with profitability.
Additionally, one OSU student is currently an alternate for the 2025-26 Fulbright. Kendal Hobbs will graduate in spring 2025 with a Bachelor of Science in Oceanography and minor in Chemistry. If promoted, Kendal will spend the academic year in Sweden, where she will collaborate with Dr. Andreas Nilsson of Lund University to analyze marine sediment samples using Dr. Nilsson’s novel geomagnetic modeling technique. Kendal will contribute directly to Dr. Nilsson’s global model by analyzing marine sediment samples she collected from Alaska’s Baranof Fan. With this data, Kendal seeks to fill the gaps in the Pacific’s magnetic record and contribute to the greater understanding of Earth’s magnetic field.
The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. The primary source of funding for the Fulbright Program is an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Participating governments, host institutions, corporations, and foundations in foreign countries and in the United States also provide direct and indirect support. Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The Program operates in over 160 countries worldwide.
More than 2,000 Fulbright U.S. Students—recent college graduates, graduate students, and early career professionals from all backgrounds—pursue graduate study, conduct research, or teach English in schools abroad each year. Fulbrighters form ongoing research collaborations and lay the groundwork for future partnerships between institutions.
Since 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided over 400,000 talented and accomplished students, scholars, teachers, artists, and professionals of all backgrounds with the opportunity to study, teach, and conduct research abroad. Fulbrighters exchange ideas, build people-to-people connections, and work to address complex global challenges. Notable Fulbrighters include 62 Nobel Laureates, 93 Pulitzer Prize winners, 82 MacArthur Fellows, 44 heads of state or government, and thousands of leaders across the private, public, and non-profit sectors.
Fulbright is a program of the U.S. Department of State, with funding provided by the U.S. Government. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations, and foundations around the world also provide direct and indirect support to the Program, which has operated in over 160 countries worldwide. In the United States, the Institute of International Education implements the Fulbright U.S. Student and U.S. Scholar Programs on behalf of the U.S. Department of State. For more information about the Fulbright Program, visit their website: https://us.fulbrightonline.org/
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is administered at Oregon State University through National and Global Scholarships Advising. For more information about applying for Fulbright or other national and international scholarships and fellowships, please visit National and Global Scholarships Advising.