History professor heading to Austria after receiving second faculty Fulbright award

“It’s such a fantastic opportunity,” Sinke said of her upcoming trip, “to work with peers on an in-depth basis, to work with students in a new setting, to work with people around the world.”

Few people in academia have the honor of being named a Fulbright scholar. However, one Florida State University faculty member has now doubled that honor, receiving her second faculty Fulbright award in 14 years.

Suzanne Sinke, an associate professor in the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of History, will leave for Salzburg, Austria, on Feb.19 to teach and conduct research after earning her second faculty Fulbright award. While at the University of Salzburg, she will be conducting research and teaching as a visiting faculty member in the cultural and social sciences department through July 2013.

“In Salzburg I will be teaching two U.S. history courses, one on gender and one on international migration,” Sinke said. “Both are topics I teach regularly at the graduate level here at Florida State. My classes will take place primarily in English to allow students to practice that language, although I am also fluent in German and will use it as needed.”

Sojourning in Europe as a Fulbright Scholar is becoming old hat for Sinke. In 1999, she traveled to Finland to teach for a year after receiving her first Fulbright.

“The last Fulbright was the best year of my life,” she said. “It was so wonderful to get to know people, to work with students, to understand what the education system was like, to get to know something of the culture, and to share my culture as well.”

Sinke, who joined the FSU faculty in 2002 says her main area of research comes from a curiosity to understand how far people are willing to go when it comes to the big “I do.”

“It’s relating marriage and migration, so it can either be ways in which people move to marry, or move to avoid being married. Perhaps because of migration they’re not allowed to marry or they don’t have opportunities.”

Sinke has written a book, co-authored three more books, and published many journal articles on topics relating to migration, gender issues and ethnic history. For the past four years, she has also been a consultant and co-chair of the U.S. curriculum development committee for the College Board, helping to establish the Advanced Placement history curriculum for high school students throughout the United States.

As the daughter of a history teacher, Sinke says the always knew what she wanted to do with her life.

“I grew up thinking about history, going to historical sites, and seeing how much the past still has an impact on us today, and how important it is for people to understand that,” she said. “I felt it was important to try to put find more stories from history that haven’t been told.”

“When I started college there wasn’t a whole lot of women’s history out there, so that was one of the areas that I moved into.”

Sinke joins a growing list of faculty Fulbright recipients at Florida State. More than 40 have served as Fulbright scholars since 1990.

“It’s such a fantastic opportunity,” she said of her upcoming trip, “to work with peers on an in-depth basis, to work with students in a new setting, to work with people around the world.”

While in Austria, Sinke plans to make sure there’s a written history of her visit by maintaining a blog, ”A Salzburg Sojourn,” at takeonthepast.info. She will also stay busy crafting her next big project on transnational migration and marriage, as well as giving lectures in several countries and even taking informal hiking excursions.

“I welcome the opportunity to work with students in Salzburg, to learn more about the Austrian culture, and to bring a little bit of FSU and my experience to another group of students and scholars,” she said.

Sinke won’t be making the trip alone. Whereas during her last Fulbright she traveled to Finland with her husband, a preschooler and a newborn baby, this time only her son — now in middle school — will be tagging along (and practicing his German). Sinke’s daughter, who will graduate from high school this spring, will stay behind, while her husband plans to visit.

“I couldn’t imagine even trying for a fellowship that would require leaving some of my family members behind,” she said. “But my daughter in particular insisted that I try (to earn the second Fulbright grant), so I did. Another chance to teach at a university in another land, to write and to make contacts: On so many levels, this has the makings of a second dream come true!”

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the Fulbright Scholar Program is an international educational exchange program designed to increase the mutual understanding between citizens of the United Sates and those of more than 155 participating countries. Roughly 1,600 U.S. students, 4,000 foreign students, 1,200 U.S. scholars and 900 visiting scholars receive awards each year, in addition to several hundred teachers and professionals.

In addition to its success with faculty Fulbrights, Florida State also is one of the nation’s top research institutions for producing student Fulbright Scholars, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education, which recently published a list of the top producers of U.S. Fulbright students by type of institution. For the 2012-2013 academic year, 12 FSU students — a record for the university — are traveling abroad to conduct research or teach after winning the grants from the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.