SIT alumna named to prestigious fellowship program
Announcement Date: September 18, 2019
Loren Lee Chiesi will oversee teacher training in Myanmar
Loren Lee Chiesi, an alumna of SIT’s MA in TESOL program, has been named to a 10-month fellowship project training teachers and teaching English in Myanmar, the U.S. Department of State has announced. Loren is one of only 200 U.S. citizens selected for the 2019-20 English Language Fellow Program.
Loren will teach at the English Language Proficiency Center in Myanmar’s capital city, Naypyitaw, where she will create and oversee a teacher training program. The training program will focus on building skills capacity for Myanmar teachers who teach English to ministry staff in the capital.
Loren will work directly with local teachers, students, and educational professionals to improve the quality of English language instruction offered to ministry officials and staff in the Myanmar’s capital city.
She also aims to create a literary resource and cultural center at the English Language Proficiency School to increase access to English language materials. Fluency in English provides greater academic and economic opportunities in countries like Myanmar, where decades of political isolation prevented cross-cultural development.
Loren had her first experience teaching English as a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin. After her service, she earned her MA in TESOL from SIT and began her career teaching English abroad. For more than a decade, she has taught English in the United States, Turkey, Morocco, and now Myanmar. Prior to her fellowship, in 2018, she worked with World Learning as an English faculty teacher at the American Center in Yangon, Myanmar.
The English Language Fellow Program is an opportunity for experienced teachers of English to enact meaningful and sustainable changes in the way English is taught abroad through projects developed by U.S. embassies in more than 80 countries. Fellows teach English, conduct teacher training, develop resources, and organize events and conferences.
Teachers selected for these challenging projects represent the best of the U.S. TESOL community. The program provides professional development opportunities to help participants experience different cultures and build skills that can greatly enhance their TESOL careers at home.
English Language Fellows are among more than 50,000 individuals who participate in U.S. Department of State exchange programs each year. The Fellow Program is administered by the Center for Intercultural Education and Development at Georgetown University.
For more information about the English Language Fellow Program visit the U.S. State Deparement website, call 202-632-6452, or e-mail [email protected].