Im Doppelpack

Verleihung des Fulbright-Preises: Laudator Mario Klarer, Preisträger Tobias Auböck, Fulbright-Kommissions-Direktor Lonnie Johnson, Preisträgerin Lisa Hasenhütl und Laudator Klaus Rieser (v.l.) Foto: Uni Graz/Schweiger

Vizerektor Peter Scherrer und Roberta Maierhofer, Leiterin des Center for Inter-American-Studies

Fulbright Preis 2014 an der Uni Graz im Rahmen der Tagung „Space Oddities“ zweimal vergeben

And the winner is … Die beste, von österreichischen Studierenden verfasste Masterarbeit in Amerikanistik wird jedes Jahr mit dem Fulbright-Preis gewürdigt. Heuer war die Anzahl der qualitätsvollen Arbeiten so hoch, dass sich die Austrian-American Educational-Commission (Fulbright-Commission) entschloss, die Anerkennung gleich zweimal zu vergeben. Lisa Hasenhütl, MA, von der Uni Graz und Tobias Auböck, MA, von der Uni Innsbruck heißen die beiden PreisträgerInnen 2014, die am 21. November 2014 in der Aula der Uni Graz die Auszeichnung erhielten.

Dr. Lonnie Johnson, Direktor der Austrian-American Educational-Commission (Fulbright-Commission), und Kommissions-Vizepräsident Univ.-Prof. Dr. Ralph Poole gratulierten den NachwuchswissenschafterInnen – ebenso die beiden Laudatoren: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Mario Klarer, Institut für Amerikastudien an der Uni Innsbruck, sowie Ao.Univ.-Prof. Dr. Klaus Rieser vom Institut für Amerikanistik an der Uni Graz, der für Betreuerin Ass.-Prof. Dr. Silvia Schultermandl – derzeit in den USA – eingesprungen war.

Eingebettet war die feierliche Verleihung in die Jahrestagung „Space Oddities: Urbanity, American Identity, and Cultural Exchange”. Mehr als 60 Vortragende beleuchteten wissenschaftlich Fragen zu amerikanischer Identität und kulturellem Austausch. „Wir wollen die Stadt nicht als Wüste, sondern als produktives Pflaster darstellen“, erklärte Institutsleiter Univ.-Prof. Dr. Stefan Brandt. Und Vizerektor Univ.-Prof. Dr. Peter Scherrer stellte in seiner Begrüßung fest, dass die Jahrtausende alte Idee der städtischen Identität nach wie vor lebendig ist.

Andreas Schweiger

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