May 15, 2009
Elliot Montpellier

Elliot Montpellier

Elliot Montpellier, an environmental health science student in the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, has been selected as a Phillips Ambassador for a summer and fall 2009 study abroad program in India.

Phillips Ambassadors is a scholarship program offered through study abroad programs in the College of Arts and Sciences and Kenan-Flagler Business School. It is designed to broaden students’ awareness of Asia. The scholarship combines an award for study in Asia with an academic course that puts the experience in greater global context.

Twenty-two undergraduates from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill selected for the honor will study in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore and Thailand.

“There is growing interest and understanding of the global importance of Asia among students,” said Bob Miles, associate dean of study abroad and international exchanges at UNC. “The Phillips Ambassadors scholarship program helps encourage a deeper understanding of Asia and rewards high academic achievement.”

A distinguishing feature of the scholarship is an emphasis on what is called the “Give Back,” or sharing of one’s study abroad experience in Asia with the Carolina community and a student’s hometown. In accepting the scholarship, students agree to submit an article about their studies in Asia to a campus or hometown publication. They also give a presentation about their experiences in Asia to a school in their hometown and other local schools around North Carolina, introducing more young people to Asia.

Generating greater interest in Asia among UNC undergraduates was in part the motivation for UNC alumnus Earl N. “Phil” Phillips Jr. in his endowment of the Phillips Ambassadors program.

“Hopefully this gift will encourage more students to spend their study abroad experiences focused on Asia – an increasingly vital region of the future,” said Phillips, an entrepreneur who divides his time between High Point and Chapel Hill, and who has worked and traveled in Asia for more than 20 years. Phillips is also a former U.S. ambassador to the eastern Caribbean.

“My long-term goal is for every Carolina undergraduate to have an international experience before they graduate,” said Phillips.

Phillips Ambassadors receive up to $7,500 each for a semester or year-long program, and up to $5,000 each for a summer program. The summer and fall 2009 Phillips Ambassadors represent 14 different academic majors. They come from nine different North Carolina counties and six other states.

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UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health contact: Ramona DuBose, director of communications, (919) 966-7467 or ramona_dubose@unc.edu.

 

 

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