MEADVILLE, Pa. – June 26, 2008 – As American families take time off from work to celebrate Independence Day with traditional picnics and fireworks, Afua Osei, of Bowie, Md., is preparing to study a much younger country's efforts to balance the needs of its growing economy against the desire to preserve its cultural traditions.
Afua Osei, a 2008 graduate of Allegheny College, has been awarded a Fulbright Award to study and teach in Malaysia, which will celebrate 50 years of independence on August 31.
As a double major – she majored in political science and was the first student at Allegheny to design her own major in black studies – Osei took full advantage of the college's interdisciplinary approach to education by also taking courses in economics, history, women's studies, philosophy, religious studies, communication arts and English.
Now, with her long-range sights set on winning a seat in the U.S. Senate, the young scholar sees her upcoming experience in Terengganu, Malaysia, as an opportunity to serve others, to immerse herself in the country's culture and to explore the complex intersection of commerce and heritage.
“My independent research in Malaysia will examine methods that Terengganu officials have used to balance the tension between the needs for economic and technological progress with the preservation of their historic culture,” Osei said.
“When I return, I plan to work with community organizations to develop strategies that promote sustainable revitalization without destroying the culture of an area. The preservation of culture is important not only on a domestic level, as the gentrification of urban centers threaten to displace long-standing community institutions, but also on an international level, as globalization turns unique cultures into commercial goods.”
At Allegheny, Osei served as the president of the Association for the Advancement of Black Culture, a student fellow for the Center for Political Participation and chairperson of the Community HIV/AIDS Awareness Committee. She was honored with a 2007-2008 Cornerstone Award at Allegheny and was a public policy and international affairs fellow at the H. John Heinz III School of Public Policy and Management at Carnegie Mellon University.
