Barnard's Fulbright recipient headed to Ukraine

Kaley Hanenkrat, BC ’11, will leave the country for the first time next year—as a Fulbright scholar.

Four days ago, the Ohio native learned that she would spend next year in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.

“At first I thought, ‘What if it’s a giant rejection letter?’” Hanenkrat said. “It took everything I had not to scream because I was in the mail room.”

The scholarship, funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, is the largest international exchange program in the U.S. The Fulbright allows students, scholars, and professionals to attend a university program, teach, or conduct research abroad for an academic year.

Hanenkrat will conduct research at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in affiliation with the university’s law school dean. Although the research plans are still uncertain, Hanenkrat said she plans to research activists in the opposition movement, a group which led the revolution in Ukraine, and their role in gaining power in the country.

She explained she wants to learn about their preparations for their elections in 2012 and their view on political changes.

Hanenkrat is a political science major concentrating in Slavic studies and is currently president of the Columbia University Democrats. She also participates in the Ukrainian Film Club screenings, and said she looks forward to giving back in some way to the Eastern European community.

“Meeting the Ukrainian community in New York City has been great,” Hanenkrat said, adding that she’s learned a lot about the culture, history, and films of the region from students at Columbia.

Hanenkrat can get caught up in animated conversations about everything Eastern European from borscht to bride kidnapping in the Caucasus region. And though she’s traveled to rural areas in West Virginia and Pennsylvania with the College Dems, she has never crossed American borders.

“Getting my passport will be pretty exciting,” Hanenkrat said, adding that she looks forward to being in a completely different environment. “It’s exciting to see a city I’ve spent hours reading about.”

Aaron Schneider, dean of studies at Barnard, was among the first who heard the news from Hanenkrat. “Barnard really helped me,” Hanenkrat said. “He [Schneider] made sure I emphasized the values Fulbright was founded on.”

Although it was a stressful process, she said in retrospect it was a lot of fun.

“Because I’m so passionate about what I want to research, it wasn’t as daunting as I thought it would be,” Hanenkrat said.

karla.jimenez@columbiaspectator.com