Three Kansas State University students receive prestigious Gilman scholarships to study abroad
Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017
MANHATTAN — Three Kansas State University students have received the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to study abroad in Ghana, Japan and the Czech Republic.
Thomas Anjard, junior in industrial and manufacturing systems engineering, Overland Park, will study in the engineering program at Czech Technical University in Prague. Kevin Hernandez, senior in humanities, Millburn, New Jersey, will study in the student exchange program at Kansai Gadai University in Hirakata, Japan. Joel Fry, senior in life science, El Paso, Texas, will study in the University Studies Abroad Consortium at the University of Ghana in Accra, Ghana.
The Gilman Scholarship Program is an undergraduate grant program for U.S. citizens of limited financial means to enable them to study abroad. The program awards scholarships up to $5,000 to help students internationalize their outlook and better prepare them to thrive in the global economy. This year, more than 3,100 students applied, and only 27 percent received the award.
Anjard is the founder and president of the Food Recovery Network, a student-led organization focused on minimizing food waste and providing for the less fortunate. He is also an office assistant in the College of Engineering's Office of Recruitment. He is a member of Delta Sigma fraternity, Johnson County Ambassadors and the Venture Accelerator Program. He has earned the Celebrating Service and Leadership Award, the Neal Atkinson Junior Leadership Award, the Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity McKee Scholarship and the Goss Discovery Scholarship from the Office of International Programs. The son of Ron Anjard and Tonya Hillard, Overland Park, he is a 2014 graduate of Bishop Miege High School.
Hernandez was a volunteer for the Kansas State Collegian. He trains in mixed martial arts. In Japan, he will study the country's business, government and language, as well as its history of mixed martial arts. The son of Giovanni Hernandez and Noemi Rojas, Millburn, he is a 2013 graduate of Millburn High School.
Fry is a member of WellCATS and the Pre-Nursing Club. He was recruitment chair for his fraternity, Sigma Alpha Epsilon. He has received the Loretta Anderson Memorial Scholarship. He will study public health and biology at the University of Ghana while completing an internship with the Accra public health department. The son of Robert and Andrea Fry, El Paso, Fry grew up in Navarre, Florida. He is a 2013 graduate of Manhattan High School, Manhattan.
The Gilman Scholarship Program is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State. The bureau fosters mutual understanding between the people of the U.S. and the people of other countries to promote friendly, sympathetic and peaceful relations.
