Fulbright-Hays 

Group Projects 

Abroad Program

International and Foreign LanguageEducation 

Office of Postsecondary Education

U.S. Department of Education
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A C L O S E R L O O K A T G P A

The Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad (GPA) program is 

designed to promote, improve, and develop modern foreign 

language training and area studies programs for all levels of 

American education. The program provides opportunities for 

faculty, teachers, and undergraduate and graduate students to 

conduct individual and group projects overseas. Projects may 

include short-term seminars, curriculum development, group 

research or study, or long-term advanced intensive language 

programs.
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W H A T W E D O

W H Y

The purpose of the Group 

Projects Abroad (GPA)

program is to promote, 

improve, and develop 

modern foreign languages 

and area studies at various 

levels of education.

H O W

Applications are submitted 

online through Grants.gov. For

more information, visit 

https://www2.ed.gov/progra 

ms/iegpsgpa/index.html

W H O W H E R E

Institutions of higher education 

(IHEs), state departments of

education, private nonprofit 

educational organizations, and

consortia of institutions,

departments, and organizations 

are eligible to apply.

Projects must focus on one or 

more of the following areas: 

Africa, East Asia, South Asia, 

Southeast Asia and the 

Pacific, the Western 

Hemisphere (Central and 

South America, Mexico, and 

the Caribbean), East Central 

Europe and Eurasia, and the 

Near East. Applications that 

propose projects focused on 

Canada or Western Europe 

will not be funded.
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T Y P E S O F P R O J E C T S

Purpose: to 

internationalize 

curriculum at the K12 or postsecondary 

level

Length: five to six 

weeks

Focus: a particular 

aspect of area 

studies, such as the 

culture of the area or 

a portion of the 

culture.

Purpose: to undertake 

researchorstudyina 

country outside of the 

UnitedStates inarea 

or international 

studies

Length: minimum of 

12 weeks

Purpose: to acquire 

resources and materials for 

curriculum development in 

modern foreign languages 

or area studies programs for 

systemic use and 

dissemination in the U.S.

Length: four to six weeks

.

Participants: a curriculum 

development team (several 

faculty members, teachers, 

and/or administrators)

Purpose: intensive advanced foreign 

language training

Length: full year, academic year, semester, 

trimester, quarter, or summer

Scope:the languageto bestudiedshall be 

indigenous to the host country and 

maximum use shall be made of local 

institutions and personnel.

Proficiency level: language training shall be 

given at the advanced level, i.e., at the level 

equivalent to that provided to students 

who have successfully completed at least 

two academic years of languagetraining

Abroad

Seminar Projects Group Research or

Study Projects

Curriculum

Development Projects

Advanced Overseas

Intensive Language 

Training Projects
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M E E T O U R P A S T P A R T I C I P A N T S

GAIL PRESBEY, 2016

GROUP PROJECTS ABROAD 

SHORT - TERM PROGRAM

Gail Presbey is a professor of philosophy 

at the University of Detroit Mercy. She 

participated in the university’s 2016 

Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad 

program in Brazil. Having gone back to 

graduate school to develop a new 

specialization in world history with a 

concentration on Latin America, Presbey 

affirms that the Fulbright-Hays 

experience offered her a unique 

opportunity to explore the culture and 

history of Brazil. During her time abroad, 

Presbey visited historic sites, such as 

slave pillories, and learned from AfroBrazilian academic specialists who 

conveyed the nation’s history of racism,

inequality, and creative responses, as

well as the current context. She visited

vibrant communities that are working to 

educate youths about their African

heritage, history, and culture. These

learning communities inspired Presbey 

and provided her with renewed guidance 

on ways of teaching African and AfroBrazilian history and culture to her own

students. Presbey has incorporated

several lessons on Brazilian social

issues into her U.S. classroom. She 

believes strongly that her students will 

have a better understanding of U.S. and 

global issues if they are able to learn 

more about challenges and leadership in 

Brazil.

JACLYN LEDFORD, 2016

GROUP PROJECTS ABROAD 

SHORT - T E R M PROGRAM

Jaclyn Ledford is a social studies teacher 

from Georgia who participated in Savannah 

State University’s 2016 Group Project Abroad 

program in Ghana. A local teacher at the 

middle school level, Ledford hoped to use her 

experience abroad to incorporate more 

aspects of Ghanaian culture, history, and life 

into social studies curricula at her school.

According to Ledford, “The whole trip 

connected me to history in the past and how 

it connects to various parts of the world. I 

took a particular interest in the economy of 

Ghana because that is my subject area of 

choice when teaching. When you are driving 

through the streets and see everyone 

hustling to sell their goods or services, and 

then you realize this is a cash-based society, 

things get interesting. I teach about bartering 

and the art of markets but seeing something 

so different than what I experience daily was 

exciting. I look forward to taking those stories 

and examples back to the classroom.”

DENIS SULLIVAN, 1984 AND 2008

GROUP PROJECTS ABROAD 

LON G - T E R M PROGRAM

Denis Sullivan is a graduate of Harvard’s 

Center for Arabic Study Abroad (CASA) and 

former participant in the center’s 1984 and 2008 

GPA Long-Term Program. He currently serves 

as professor of political science and 

international affairs and co-director of the 

Middle East Center at Northeastern University,

and director of the Boston Consortium for Arab

Region Studies. Two years after his 1984 

experience with the CASA program, Sullivan 

returned to Cairo as a Fulbright-Hays Doctoral 

Dissertation Research Abroad (DDRA) fellow to 

conduct field research and complete his 

doctorate. As a result of his experiences with 

Fulbright- Hays, Sullivan earned his Ph.D. from 

the University of Michigan and secured a tenuretrack position at Northeastern University in 

Boston. Sullivan attests, “Fulbright-Hays and 

CASA have been the foundation for all of my 

subsequent successes in language acquisition,

field research, and study abroad programs that I 

lead, as well as grant-writing. ... Over the past 30

years, I have been on my lifelong journey to learn 

as much as possible about Egyptian politics,

history, culture, and — again — the Arabic

language, in particular Egyptian dialect.” Sullivan

has built his career in Boston and the Arab region

(Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Oman, and 

other locations) ever since.
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F Y 2 0 2 3 F A C T S A N D F I G U R E S

Short-Term 

projects funded

Long-Term 

projects funded

Million Million

awarded to ShortTerm projects

awarded to LongTerm projects

Total projects 

funded (see 

map below)

Million

total awarded to 

GPA participants

 

Central and Eastern Europe 

East Asia

Southeast Asia

South Asia

Africa

Middle East

Western Hemisphere

1

7

6

5

5

5

3
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O U R I M P A C T

Since 2018,

119 4 0 1,764

Programs have 

been funded, 

totaling 

$16,095,502

Different 

countries have 

hosted GPA 

participants

Individuals have 

participated in 

the GPA 

program

T E S T I M O N I A L S

“In retrospect, receiving that great distinction forever defined and validated my professional 

career. Little did I know this very special program would make such a lasting contribution to 

my profession and my life.”

–Ariel C. Gil, Ph.D., University of Alabama at Birmingham, GPA Participant to Bulgaria

“My participation in Fulbright-Hays programs has truly been life-changing. Not only has it 

transformed my own teaching and professional activities, but I have seen the long-term 

effects the programs have had on teacher-participants. The curriculum creation and 

conference presentations – and the impact on students – continue for years after the 

completion of the program.”

–Lisa Adeli, Ph.D., Director of Educational Outreach, University of Arizona, Center for Middle Eastern 

Studies, GPA Program Leader

“The program afforded me so many opportunities to increase my isiZulu efficiency and study 

South African culture. I had so many amazing opportunities, including attending a Zulu 

wedding, meeting the Zulu king and princess. I walked the mountains near Madiba's (Nelson 

Mandela’s) homeland of Qunu, I met with former president Thabo Mbeki, and studied at the 

University of Zululand.” 

–Corey Holmes, Ph.D., Howard University, GPA Participant to South Africa
F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D 

Q U E S T I O N S

How many grant awards are provided each year?

The program is estimated to award 20 short-term projects and 10 long-term 

projects, as stated in the Federal Register. However, the Department is not 

bound by any estimates in the Federal Register.

What is an average size award?

The average size of an award for a 2023 GPA short-term project was $132,474, 

whereas the average award size for a 2023 GPA long-term project was $250,663. 

The estimated range of awards for GPA short-term projects is between $50,000 and

$180,000. The estimated range of awards for GPA long-term projects ranges 

from $50,000 to $300,000, as stated in the FY24 Notice Inviting Applications 

published in the Federal Register.

What level of language proficiency and area studies 

are required by the project participants?

For the Short-Term Group Research or Study Project, participants must have 

completed at least one semester of intensive language training and one course 

in area studies relevant to the project. For the GPA Long-Term Advanced 

Overseas Intensive Language Training Project, participants must have 

successfully completed at least two academic years of training in the language to 

be studied in the host country.

What techniques are helpful in preparing an application 

narrative and other important information for the 

program?

Start early and contact the GPA program contact.

Review GPA legislation, regulations, and competition priorities thoroughly. 

Review the Federal Register Notice and Application Package.

Review abstracts and application narratives of funded projects.

Form an internal task force and management team with appropriate grant, 

international, and project-related experience.

Provide clear goals, measures, and activities.

Provide a detailed plan of operation and evaluation. Prepare a specific and 

detailed budget.

Identify your academic host country coordinator and establish strong 

linkages.

For more frequently asked questions, visit

https://www2.ed.gov/programs/iegpsgpa/faq.html#2
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C O N T A C T U S

Website: www.ed.gov/ope/iegps

Email: gpa@ed.gov

Phone: 202-704-3437

@GoGlobalED