Will Andriola ’21 is eager to share his Hamilton Debate Team experience with debate students in Bulgaria over the next year while serving there as the recipient of a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA). Bulgarian Fulbright ETAs contribute to coaching BEST (Bulgarian English Speech and Debate Tournament) Foundation debate teams. “After three years competing on Hamilton’s debate team, I thought it would be a great way to help students improve their confidence and public speaking skills,” said Andriola.
A government major and economics and Russian studies double minor, Andriola said he’s excited ... to learn “more about a culture that most Americans aren’t familiar with, while also improving my Russian and learning Bulgarian.
Major: Government
Hometown: South Glastonbury, Conn.
High school: Glastonbury High School
“While Bulgaria is the poorest country in the EU, and one I hadn’t known much about, I was really struck by the optimism of its people and by the extensive Bulgarian Fulbright program …,” he said. “Bulgaria’s rich culture and history really drew me toward this country that I will call home for a year.”&
At Hamilton, Andriola served as treasurer of Student Assembly, managing editor of student newspaper The Spectator, and student member of Honor Court. A Dean’s List student, he studied abroad at Oxford University in 2019-20 in a program of philosophy, politics, and economics. Last summer he was project team leader for Oxford Development Consultancy, and he interned previous summers at South Street Advisors LLC, and the Connecticut House of Representatives.
The Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) Program places recent college graduates and young professionals as English teaching assistants in primary and secondary schools or universities overseas. The goal is to improve foreign students’ English language abilities and knowledge of the United States while increasing the U.S. student’s own language skills and knowledge of the host country. ETAs may also pursue individual study/research plans in addition to their teaching responsibilities.
