Students in Ecuador with Dr. Stephen Rabe

Professor Stephen Rabe (back row, left) traveled to Ecuador to work with a Fulbright Program.

Over spring break, history professor Stephen G. Rabe traveled to Quito, Ecuador, to participate in the first-ever Ecuadorian Leadership Workshop and Mentoring Program for Students from the Coast.

The program was held under the auspices of Ecuador’s Fulbright Program. The Fulbright Commission selected 14 high-achieving students from the Pacific Coast region of Ecuador to participate.

“The students were fantastic. They were able, energetic and committed to improving the quality of life in Ecuador,” Rabe said.

Previously in August 2008, Rabe led a similar seminar designed for students from the Andes Mountains in the “Sierra” region of Ecuador. The students he worked with were primarily from the indigenous communities of Ecuador or were Afro-Ecuadorians.  After completing a training program in leadership and U.S. history, the 20 students received support to study English from the Fulbright Commission.

Rabe recently traveled to Quito, Ecuador, where he worked with students from the coastal areas of the country and reunited with former students from the Sierra region.

At a recent reunion dinner for that group held in Quito, Professor Rabe greeted many of his former Ecuadorian students.  “I was very pleased to hear how well they were doing,” Rabe said.

Most of the students had graduated from their respective universities and gained a working knowledge of English.  Some students were beginning their studies in the United States.

The Fulbright Commission promotes international understanding through international education.  The leadership program also supplements national goals.  Ecuadorian President Dr. Rafael Correa wants to increase the number of Ecuadorians holding master’s and doctoral degrees.  Dr. Correa earned his Ph.D. in economics at the University of Illinois. 

Rabe has previously worked with the State Department and the Fulbright Commission, having taught seminars on U.S. history over the past 10 years in Brasília and Recife, Brazil, and in Buenos Aires and Rio Cuarto, Argentina.  Many of his Latin American students have subsequently gone on to graduate study in the United States.

Rabe is an Ashbel Smith Professor at UT Dallas, where he has taught for 35 years.  His research field is U.S. relations with Latin America.  Rabe has written or edited 10 books. He also has served as the Mary Ball Washington Professor of American History at the University College Dublin in Ireland and as the Fulbright Bicentennial Chair in American Studies at the University of Helsinki in Finland. 

Rabe has taught or lectured in 19 countries.