History Doctoral Student Awarded 2024-2025 Fulbright Scholarship

Established in 1946, the Fulbright Program is a prestigious international scholars program meant to cultivate cultural and educational exchange. Fulbright grants are awarded to students, scholars, teachers, and professionals to study, teach, conduct research, or participate in professional development activities abroad. Fulbright scholarships are competitive and cover various fields of study, fostering cultural diplomacy and academic excellence on a global scale. For the second year in a row, a Baylor doctoral student has been awarded a Fulbright. Last year, Patrick Leech spent a year in Budapest as a Fulbright scholar in Hungary. This year doctoral student Annie Himler Cheng was awarded a Fulbright. Annie describes how the Fulbright will enhance her research project in Cambodia. 

I’m excited to spend this academic year in Cambodia through the Fulbright program! Over the next ten months, I plan to create a digital learning tool that visualizes the lived experiences of individuals who are part of the transpacific movement between Cambodia and the United States from the 1970s through the present. 

My project aims to make the history and culture of Cambodian communities across the Pacific publicly accessible and interactive. As a result, my digital humanities project will incorporate oral histories, soundscapes, and photography along with other primary sources. This is a wonderful chance for me to build upon my research interests related to intergenerational memory and experiences, forced displacement and migration, identity and homeland, and diaspora. I’m looking forward to conducting research at numerous libraries, archives, and centers throughout Cambodia that hold material that is unavailable in the United States which I will include in my dissertation. Furthermore, I am eager to experience Cambodia for myself by visiting cultural and historical sites, learning Khmer, creating friendships, and discovering more about my heritage and family history in this exciting new adventure. Thank you to everyone who helped me achieve this incredible opportunity! 

Annie Himler Cheng
PhD Student, History