International Fellows Program Projects

Winter 2026 Projects

Title: Cross-National Comparative Analysis of Dementia Care and Long-term Services and Supports for Older Adults in the U.S. and Spain

Faculty: Dr. Frances Hawes (Health Care Administration) 
Students: Inessah Cernohous, Helena Martinson, Allison Pazdernik, Emma Reinhardt
Abstract: This research aims to undertake a comparative analysis of long-term services and supports (LTSS) for older adults in the United States and Spain, with a particular emphasis on dementia care. This initiative aligns with the imperative in healthcare to draw insights from diverse systems to elevate care quality and guide policymaking, as underscored by recent calls for papers in leading aging journals. This study will investigate healthcare professionals responsible for individuals with dementia and concurrent health conditions, addressing the inherent complexities of such care. The unique healthcare systems, funding mechanisms, and regulatory frameworks in the United States and Spain present a valuable opportunity to unearth best practices and identify areas for improvement, ultimately informing policy decisions and optimizing resource allocation for LTSS.

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Title: Travel Writing in Contemporary Georgia

Faculty: Dr. Heather Fielding (Director: Honors College and Department of English) 
Students: 
Abstract: This is a student-driven project to develop an original creative-critical work of travel writing about the Republic of Georgia. Informed by postcolonial theory within and the context of post-Soviet English-language travel writing about Georgia, we aim to produce a new work that will avoid the “othering” strategies that continue to persist in literary accounts of travel to Georgia since 1991. Postcolonial travel writing
insists on intensive self-reflexivity by the writer-traveler, in terms of their positionality in global power dynamics and how their authority is
established in the text. It also explores the complex political and cultural meanings of mobility and authenticity in this age of globalization. Writers in this tradition experiment with formal strategies of multi-vocal narration and non-linearity to tackle these questions. In country, we will explore key sites depicted in important works of travel writing about Georgia, develop creative strategies for depicting our experiences, and discuss with our collaborating professor and his students in Kutaisi. During and after our travel, we will compose a theoretically informed essay that situates itself in the history of travel discourse and contributes both to the field of postcolonial travel writing and to the tradition of English-language literary texts about travel to Georgia.

Summer 2026 Projects

Title: Summer Internship at the Charles Darwin Research Station; Galapagos, Ecuador

Faculty: Robert Arndt (Biology) and Wil Taylor (Biology Emeritus)
Students: TBA
Abstract: In addition to being a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Galapagos Islands is the birthplace of modern biology and a mecca for world-class scientists conducting research in evolutionary biology, island biogeography, marine science, and other disciplines. UWEC students will have a unique opportunity to work at the Charles Darwin Research Station, side-by-side with top scientists, in research projects with various specific themes.

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Title: Imaging Holocaust and Coastal Environments: Latvia and Lithuania

Faculty: Harry Jol (Geography and Anthropology) and Martin Goettl (Geography and Anthropology)
Students: TBA
Abstract: Many Holocaust, archaeological, and geomorphic site investigations lack a tool that will provide an image of the subsurface in a noninvasive and non-destructive manner. As a leader in educating undergraduate students on the use of ground penetrating radar (GPR) to better understand the subsurface, UWEC has been invited to collaborate with several Latvian and Lithuanian organizations and conduct original research at multiple sites. This student-faculty international joint research project will obtain non-invasive GPR and UAV data at sensitive and significant Holocaust, archaeological, and geomorphic sites.