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Professor receives Fulbright to teach, study in Czech Republic

May 28, 2020

Jacob Vanhouten, professor of biology, in Prague.

Jacob Vanhouten, professor of biology, in Prague.

Jacob Vanhouten, professor of biology at Delta College, has been selected to receive a prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar award for the 2020-2021 academic year.

Vanhouten, a Midland resident, will teach courses and conduct research on stream ecology and environmental science at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic during the 2021 winter semester. He is one of more than 800 U.S. citizens who were selected to participate in the historic program.

“This experience will also benefit my students and Delta,” Vanhouten said. “I’ll bring back with me new connections and knowledge, which I’ll be eager to share by giving presentations and writing about it.”

During his time at Masaryk University, Vanhouten will teach graduate- and undergraduate-level courses and serve as an advisor to graduate and doctoral students. He’ll also give presentations to community members and teach a course about grant writing in English.

Vanhouten, who has applied for the highly competitive program twice before, was notified of his award in March.

“I thought it would be another rejection letter, but the email said, ‘Congratulations.’ I was pleasantly surprised and very happy,” he said.

A world traveler, Vanhouten has visited the Czech Republic several times already. He taught at Charles University in Prague during a sabbatical in 2010, and gave a presentation on a separate occasion in 2003. He’s hopeful the program will not be canceled due to the coronavirus.

“Czech citizens are very friendly, and they are culturally unique because the country sits at a crossroad to many diverse countries,” he said. “I’m excited to spend time in Brno. It’s a traditional, beautiful and small town.”

Vanhouten, who is also a coordinator for Delta’s environmental studies program, joined the college in 1995. He worked in Corporate Services for some time before making the transition to teach full time. He has participated in several Delta study abroad trips and was a reservist for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for 12 years, helping at disaster sites across the country. 

The Fulbright Program, established in 1946, is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program and is designed to build lasting connections between people of the United States and people of other countries.

The program is funded through an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State, and recipients are selected based on academic and professional achievement, record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields.


Written by Leah Twilley, Communications Specialist.