May 2020 Belmont University graduate Anas Saba was recently awarded a Fulbright program grant for overseas teaching in Mexico. The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is an international exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government that provides competitive grants to graduating seniors and graduate students to serve as cultural ambassadors of the United States abroad.
Belmont Provost Dr. Thomas Burns said, “Fulbrights are extremely competitive, prestigious national awards that recognize our country’s best and brightest. I am confident Anas Saba will represent the United States and Belmont University well in his international placement as he possesses remarkable intellect, passion and commitment to service. Though a recent graduate, he is already fulfilling Belmont’s mission to empower students ‘to engage with and transform the world.’”
Saba graduated from Belmont earlier this month as a double major in international business and management with concentrations in entrepreneurship and Spanish. A Nashville native, during his time on campus Saba served as president of Belmont’s Collegiate DECA chapter, vice president of alumni relations for Phi Kappa Tau fraternity and as a Belmont Ambassador. Saba also founded Nashville Hidden Gems, a food tour agency that takes guests on food tours of immigrant owned restaurants along Nolensville Pike, known as Nashville’s international corridor. “The support I have received from the Belmont and greater Nashville community as I have grown this business has been incredible,” he said. “I consider it a privilege to facilitate the cultural exchange between tourists of Nashville and the international community that calls Nashville home.”
Saba is also interning with Millions of Conversations, a media campaign with the purpose of transcending divides and bringing Americans together over common values, and his long-term aspiration is to work for the Tennessee Department of Economic and Development’s global strategy team. “Belmont has taught me so much, both inside and outside the classroom. I have been so incredibly grateful to my professors who invested so much in me through their mentorship. From professors, to organization advisors, to administrators, to counselors, I was given unconditional support and encouragement. This support instilled in me the belief that I could pursue a Fulbright award and foster community anywhere it sent me.”
With his Fulbright Award, Saba will continue his commitment to facilitating cultural exchange as he teaches English in a public school in Mexico and works with local entrepreneurs in his host community. Due to COVID-19’s impact on international travel, Saba’s program won’t begin until January.
“My aim is to learn from them what their challenges are, and apply what I have learned from my professional and educational experiences to work together to find collaborative solutions… this Fulbright award gives me the flexibility to engage in the two areas I am most passionate about: education and economic development. In any community in the world, education and economic development are the two tools that must be used in tandem to support a healthy community where everyone can succeed.”
