Luther College’s Gabrielle Bruns selected as Fulbright teaching assistant for the 2019-20 academic year

The Austrian-American Educational Commission has selected Luther College alumna Gabrielle Bruns to serve as a U.S. teaching assistant for the 2019-20 academic year.

Bruns is excited to be placed in Eisenstadt, “a city with strong musical connections to Haydn and an hour away from one of the music capitals of the world.”

Administered by the Fulbright Commission, the Austrian-American Educational Commission has sent more than 2,900 college graduates to teach in Austria since 1962. Teaching assistants act as cultural ambassadors and promote mutual understanding across national borders. The program is funded primarily by direct contributions from the governments of the United States and Austria.

Bruns graduated in May 2019 from Luther College with a major in music and minor in German. She will serve as an English teaching assistant at the Pädagogische Hochschule Burgenland, a teacher training college in Eisenstadt, approximately one hour outside of Vienna. Classroom duties include teaching lessons, leading small-group discussions and engaging in one-on-one conversations with students. As part of the Fulbright program’s goal of increasing intercultural understanding through community engagement, Bruns also plans to play viola in local music ensembles.

After her year in Austria, Bruns intends to return to the U.S. and apply to graduate programs in music.

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