After studying abroad in Morocco in 2010, alumna Jordyn Arndt '11 will return to the country in the fall on a Fulbright Research Grant. Photo courtesy of Jordyn Arndt.
Jordyn Arndt ’11, who graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in French and International Business and Economics from St. Kate’s, has been awarded a Fulbright Research Grant to study in Morocco.
Arndt will conduct research into "The Impact of Economic Globalization on Moroccan Women in the Textiles and Clothing Sector" in Fez and Rabat, Morocco, and study under a professor of women's studies at Al Akhawayn University.
In her research, she will study social, economic and political factors influencing women's involvement in the textiles and clothing sector, including the experience of women workers, the impact of factory closures, changes in the labor movement and the responses of public, private and civil society members to a changing industry.
Arndt initially explored this subject in an International Economics Class with Professor Deep Shikha, Ph.D., during her junior year at St. Kate's. The resulting research paper garnered the "Excellence in Undergraduate Research" award and earned Arndt the opportunity to present her research at the Education Without Borders conference held in the United Arab Emirates in 2011. Arndt was also a student in the St. Kate's Antonian Scholars Honors Program, was named a Portz Scholar and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.
Arndt applied for a Fulbright Research Grant in Senegal during her senior year, conducting research relative to the grant application for her Senior Honors Thesis at St. Kate's. Though her initial proposal did not result in a grant, she was determined to study as a Fulbright Scholar. She spent nearly every Friday and Saturday in the summer of 2011 at the Library of Congress researching and writing a new proposal, alongside a stint volunteering with the Jubilee USA Network in Washington, D.C.
Arndt said she was very pleased upon learning she would receive the research grant, though she attributes much of her success to the mentors, colleagues and friends she met along the way.
"I would not have succeeded in this competition if it were not for the help of many people around the world," says Arndt. "As a result of all of this support, I am eternally grateful to the wonderful people worldwide who assisted me."
Arndt will embark on her trip to Morocco, and the Fulbright research she will conduct there, in September 2012.
By Melissa Kaelin