fulbright scholar-in-residence

Meet the Incredible Dr. Mtonga

Had a wonderful time yesterday with Dr. Thomas Mtonga, PhD, Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, who was guest-lecturing in NYC at New York University and Guttman Community College-CUNY on Inclusive Education From an African Perspective. I was able to co-present with him at Guttman today (Go, Grizzlies!). Dr. Mtonga’s home institution is The University Of Zambia (UNZA).

There’s a wonderful profile of him at https://www.cehd.umn.edu/overcoming-barriers-through-resilience-and-purpose. Read it and you will understand why I was so awed and honored to share the room with him today as a Fulbright Scholar Alumni Ambassador telling about my own Fulbright experiences as a prelude to his talk.

Many thanks to Nick Fortier, Lecturer of Interdisciplinary Studies and Coordinator of the Teaching and Learning Center at Guttman for making the arrangements (including the hot coffee and delicious brownies).

Astey Ladies!

So glad that things like this are finally happening. A dream come true. Been working on “Project Bring Abhijit Chowdhury to Drexel” since 2019. I’d invite you all but it’s only for our Westphal Film & TV students. Abhijit, Drexel University’s first Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence, will be screening the first 3 episodes of his (writer-director) hit streaming series Astey Ladies!, known in some Indian markets as Salon de Paris, followed by a Q&A moderated by yours truly.

I first met Abhijit while acting on the set of his film Manbhanjan in 2019 while I was a Fulbright-Nehru Scholar to India.

UPDATE 11/18/23:

Abhijit and me during the post-screening discussion.

Welcome, Abhijit

Congratulations, film director Abhijit Chowdhury, on becoming a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at Drexel University’s Westphal College of Media Arts & Design in the Department of Cinema & Television starting in September. We couldn’t be happier to be hosting him.