Dr. Muthusami Kumaran, Associate Professor of Nonprofit Management & Community Organizations, Department of Family, Youth & Community Sciences, CALS, has received a grant from the U.S. Embassy - Seoul, South Korea. For this grant project entitled “Strengthening Organizational Management Capacities of NGOs in South Korea,” Dr. Kumaran will train 125 Non-Governmental Organizational (NGOs/nonprofits) leaders in the five major cities of Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Gyeonggido & Jeju across the country.

During his 2019-2020 Senior Fulbright Scholarship with the Jeju National University, S. Korea, Dr. K collaborated closely with the U. S. Embassy and trained more than 150 NGO, community and youth leaders in the national capital region of Seoul.

Dr. K credits his Fulbright experience for the success of this grant. He said “I’d like to take this opportunity to highlight the wonderful benefits of Fulbright Scholarships to my UF colleagues. In addition to the intended outcomes of being academic and cultural ambassadors of the USA to the world through teaching/research assignments, networks established through Fulbright experiences can have long-lasting impacts for both Fulbrighters and their host nations. My current grant project in S. Korea is an example of this. The network (or what I call my growing fan-base!) of NGO leaders I established there and collaborative projects with the U. S. Embassy - Seoul during my pre-pandemic Fulbright Scholarship directly resulted in my current grant award from the Embassy. I am looking forward to continuing my engagement with the NGO sector in S. Korea. I strongly encourage my UF colleagues to seek Fulbright opportunities of their choice. Under the auspices of UFIC, we have an UF Fulbright Committee that can assist in your pursuit of such opportunity.”

Since his UF employment in 2009, Dr. K has already trained more than 3000 NGO leaders in nine countries and continues his services to the global NGO sector. We are proud of his international expertise & recognition and wish him the best on his new grant project and travels across South Korea!