Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad (GPA) Program

Study Abroad in South Korea in Summer 2026

Collage flyer of Korean cultural photos. Study abroad in South Korea. May 11 - 29. Earn course credit while learning about Korean culture, eating delicious food, visiting historical sites, and meeting new people! Taught by Dr. Kyle Messick as either Global Studies GLST B398 or Cultural Psychology PSYC B380. Estimated cost including tuition: $4,600. Email Dr. Messick if interested at messickk@uscb.edu. Open to all majors! Interest meeting Wednesday, February 25th at 5pm in Library 267.Click to view PDF

Dates: May 11-29, 2026

Study abroad in South Korea. May 11 - 29. Earn course credit while learning about Korean culture, eating delicious food, visiting historical sites, and meeting new people! Taught by Dr. Kyle Messick as either Global Studies GLST B398 or Cultural Psychology PSYC B380.

Estimated cost including tuition: $4,600

Interest meeting Wednesday, February 25th at 5pm in Library 267.

Email Dr. Messick if interested at messickk@uscb.edu. Open to all majors!

Register Now

 

USCB Faculty to Present at Asian Leadership Conference in Seoul

On May 20-21, 2026, Dr. Juanita Babet Villena-Alvarez, Associate Vice Chancellor for International & Academic Engagement, and Dr. Cindy Lahar,  Professor of Psychology and Director of Research, will present The Asian Leadership Conference (ALC) in Seoul. The ALC is Korea's premier international conference and has been held annually since 2012. The Chosunilbo, the largest media institution in Korea, hosts the conference to inspire younger generations and provide a platform for global leaders to gather and discuss pressing issues facing the world.

World political leaders, global corporate executives, and academics share their visions at ALC. Attendees have included the CEOs of Korea’s largest conglomerates, senior governmental leaders, and premier academic researchers.”

USCB's Second Asian Cultural Studies Conference Focused on Korea and Japan

Flyer presented by OSHER Lifelong Learning Institutre, USCB, and Japan Foundation New York. Asian Cultural Studies Conference 2025. Join us to celebrate and support Japanese and Korean culture! Our region is growing with the arrival of many Asian companies including the Hyundai Metaplant, HL Mando and Skydrive. USCB Bluffton Campus Center 105 and 106. Friday October 24, 2025. 10am to 4pm. For more information visit USCB.edu/SKALE or contact Dr. Juanita Babet Villena-Alvarez, HIGHLIGHTS@uscb.edu

Click to view PDF

CONFERENCE PROGRAM

Date: October 24, 2025
Location: Bluffton Campus, USCB

Japan Foundation New York logoTo celebrate and support the arrival of many Korean and Japanese businesses to our region and to showcase the findings of the SKALE Fulbright-Hays project,  USCB invites the community to the 2025 Asian Cultural Studies Conference, an event dedicated to fostering education, understanding, collaboration, and friendship during this period of demographic transformation.  Sponsored by The Japan Foundation,  New York.

Who Should Attend:

  • Business leaders and professionals
  • Community members and local organizations
  • Students and educators

Anyone interested in cultural exchange and community development 

Cost and Registration

The conference is free, but registration has since closed.

USCB's South Korean and Asian Literacy Education (SKALE) Project 
Fulbright-Hays Logo

(United States Department of Education Grant)

International and Foreign Language Education & USCB logos

South Korean culture and economic power are impacting the Lowcountry/Coastal Empire, due to the development of a multibillion-dollar Korean automotive manufacturing complex and its affiliates and suppliers in the area. The "Korean Wave" in entertainment and technological innovation also are influencing local culture.  Educators in South Carolina and Georgia must be prepared to teach their students about South Korean language and culture.

South Korea Group Picture

USCB's SKALE  Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad Program (News Announcement) emmerses educators/students in South Korean culture, language, and daily life during a 4-week educational trip to various institutional and historical South Korean sites in Summer 2024.

In addition to the time spent abroad, participants will complete pre and post activities designed to help educators develop lessons and activities related to South Korean culture.

The SKALE group was in South Korea: June 23 - July 24, 2024.  Learn more about their adventure in this SKALE press release after the trip.

USCB SKALE Group Social Media

USCB ChanceLLOr's JaPAN STUDIES InstitUTE

 

 

SKALE Participants

The SKALE participants selected include high school educators in the Beaufort/Jasper/Chatham/Bryan/Effingham County Areas, USCB faculty and staff, and junior and senior USCB Education students.

SKALE participants

SKALE Partners

While overseas, the University of South Carolina Beaufort will be partnering with other American Universities with locations in South Korea to further facilitate the knowledge of South Korean culture as well as engaging with South Korean universities and education centers. The following universities will be providing our SKALE participants with tours, presentations, language classes, and cultural exchange opportunities to heighten the cultural emersion of our participants. Thank you to the following universities:

  • The University of Utah Asia Campus
    University of Utah Asia Campus LogoThe University of Utah Asia Campus is located in Incheon, South Korea. Since opening in 2016, the university has provided students in South Korea and around the world with the opportunity to earn a degree through the University of Utah.

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  • George Mason University
    George Mason University LogoGeorge Mason University Korea, “Mason Korea”, was established in 2014 in Incheon. It provides students with an opportunity to receive a degree from George Mason University within the Metropolitan City of Incheon.

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  • Ewha Language Center at Ewha University
    Ewha Language Center at Ewha University LogoEwha Language Center is based out of Ewha Woman’s University is Seoul, South Korea. Each year, approximately 6,000 students attend a program through the Ewha Language Center to build their Korean language skills. It offers Korean Language learning programs to students of all levels. Program durations range depending on the chosen program. Students at Ewha not only learn about Korean language within the classroom, but have the ability to take their new found knowledge outside the walls of the classroom into the city of Seoul.

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  • Seoul National University of Education
    By Seoul National University of Education, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=35482873Seoul National University of Education began its roots in 1946 as the Gyeonggi Public School of Education. The university offers both undergraduate and graduate programs in different disciplines regarding education. A few of its most recent achievements include being selected as the Most Excellent University in diagnosis of capabilities of teacher cultivation (2022) and selected as an excellent university for sharing and distributing academic information of the university library (2018). A big thank you to Dr. Sun-Ho Hong, the Director of SNUE’S Language Teaching Center for Creativity and Character Education for directly offering our SKALE team with an organized lecture and tour of the University.

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Contact Us

Juanita Babet Villena-Alvarez, PhD

Associate Vice Chancellor for International & Academic Engagement
Coordinator, USCB International Programs
Professor of French, Spanish and Global Studies

Hargray Room 245
One University Boulevard
Bluffton, SC 29909

Grayson House Room 100
801 Carteret Street
Beaufort, SC 29902
Office: 843-521-4152
Juanita Babet Villena-Alvarez, PhD

Brianna Wells          

Coordinator for International and Academic Engagement

Hargray Room  253
One University Boulevard
Bluffton, SC 29909
Office: 843-208-8171
Brianna Wells