A West Virginia University professors longing to travel to Croatia to teach and learn about the culture was answered this summer in the form of a Fulbright Award.

Eric Pyle , WVU Associate Professor of Education Theory and Practice, received the Fulbright this spring and traveled to Croatia for a two-week teaching fellowship at the University of Split in June.

The Croatian school system is a lot like Americas school system, he said.

“A school teacher from America could go teach over there and know exactly what is going on,”Pyle said.”Classroom styles and subject materials are pretty similar.”

The University of Split, however, is trying to continue improving its graduate program in mathematics and also to provide teachers with a professional development opportunities.

“Theyre trying to give their teachers an on-going education, so as they teach they can continue to gain new knowledge about their fields,”Pyle said.

There also are many misconceptions of Croatia, Pyle learned.

“Violence is not as prevalent as depicted by the media, though other nearby regions are experiencing turmoil,”he said.”In Croatia, there are no visible signs of war. The towns had big high-rise buildings, and the scenery was beautiful along the Adriatic Coast.”

“I was delighted to have had this Fulbright experience and found the Croatian people warm and friendly, interested in education and improving the world around them, just as we are,”he said.”I hope to return some day.”

The Fulbright Awards provide grants for graduate students, scholars, professionals, teachers and administrators from the U.S. and other countries. The program, established in 1946 under legislation introduced by former Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Approximately 250,000”Fulbrighters,”94,000 from the United States and 155,600 from other countries, have participated in the program since its inception. The Fulbright Program awards approximately 4,500 new grants annually. Fulbright alumni include Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, governors and senators, ambassadors and artists, prime ministers and heads of state, professors and scientists, Supreme Court Justices and CEOs.