Kate McKinney '07
About
Kate
Kate graduated summa cum laude in 2007 with
a degree in Economics and German. While at Richmond, Kate was
involved with the Residence Hall Association, Equestrian Team,
and Phi Alpha Delta. She also volunteered as an English as a
Second Language tutor. Kate received the Herman P. Thomas
Economics Scholarship and the Department of Modern Languages
Award and was a member of several honor societies including
Omicron Delta Epsilon Economics Honor Society, Phi Sigma Iota
Language Honor Society, Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, and Golden
Key Honor Society.
Kate spent a semester abroad in New Zealand
at the University of Otago as well as one summer in England with
Richmond Law's Cambridge program and one summer studying in
Berlin.
After graduation, Kate received a
Fulbright Teaching Assistantship grant to teach English in
Düsseldorf, Germany during the 2007-2008 academic year. One of
her favorite experiences was pairing up her seventh grade
students with the students a friend's class in Harrisburg, PA.
Seeing the students' giddy excitement at receiving letters from
real Americans, as well as the effort they put into crafting
interesting and grammatically correct letters in English for
their new friends, made her feel like she was accomplishing her
goals of increasing mutual understanding between the United
States and Germany and of sharing American culture with Germans
while motivating them to learn English.
Personal Statement
I was born in Germany to American parents
and moved to the United States as a child, but maintained a
strong interest in foreign languages, cultures, and travel as I
grew up. I was thrilled to take advantage of the amazing
opportunity to study abroad (three times) in college, and cannot
overstate the profound and positive impact these experiences
have had on my life. I spent a semester in New Zealand during
the spring of my junior year and studied in England that summer
and Berlin the following summer. In addition to meeting amazing
people, seeing beautiful sights, and developing as a person,
going abroad opened my eyes to other cultures in ways that are
only possible through experience. The flexibility and awareness
I gained during my time abroad have become an integral part of
my personality, and I would strongly encourage other students to
take advantage of the incredible opportunity to study abroad
during their college career.
In addition to studying abroad, I highly
recommend that students apply for a Fulbright grant as they
prepare for their senior year. There are several types of
grants in locations around the world, and my experience teaching
in Germany was life-changing; I made wonderful friends with whom
I’ve never spoken a word of English, traveled all over Europe,
and experienced the country of my birth on a close personal
level. I made friends and connections that will stay with me
for the rest of my life, and had the opportunity to serve as an
ambassador of the United States to many people who had never met
an American before. Please feel free to email me if you would
like to discuss this amazing opportunity in further detail.
Graduate Intern for
the Office of Student Life at Randolph-Macon College
Contact Kate
Kate invites students to
contact her about her experiences at Richmond and abroad.
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