W&L’s Lorena Terroba Urruchua ’21 Earns Fulbright Lorena Terroba Urruchua '21 has received a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) to Spain.

By Erica Turman
April 21, 2021

Washington and Lee University senior Lorena Terroba Urruchua ’21 has received a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) to Spain, specifically in the autonomous community of Galicia. At W&L, Terroba is double majoring in cognitive and behavioral science and romance languages, and she is minoring in poverty and human capability studies.

Terroba’s proposed Fulbright project is about engaging students in various volunteer work areas, particularly those involved with the community of people with disabilities.

“This experience will be a great culmination of my studies thus far as it brings together all the things I have loved learning about in college,” Terroba said. “I applied to be placed in a high school so I can lead a project I am very excited about with my students and be able to have fruitful conversations with them about how disabilities are approached and accepted in their culture and community. With these new community partners and organizations, we will make a unified community mural on what service and inclusion mean to those involved.”

Francile Elrod, associate director of community-based learning, recommended Terroba for a Fulbright.

“I am thrilled for Lorena and for the children she will teach in Spain,” Elrod said. “Her enthusiasm for learning is contagious. Lorena will be a gift and joy for any child to have as a teacher.”

Karla Murdock, professor of cognitive and behavioral science (CBSC), has mentored Terroba’s research training in the Technology and Health research lab, her CBSC community-based learning capstone project at Blue Ridge Autism and Achievement Center (BRAAC) and her internship at Special Olympics.

“As someone who easily grasps big-picture, programmatic perspectives as well as fine details of project logistics, Lorena’s superpower as a teacher will be packaging her curriculum in a way that makes students want to engage,” Murdock said. “She is a bridge builder who is able to put people at ease and motivate them to do their best work with the gifts they possess. She will be a stellar representative of W&L and ambassador for the United States in Spain.”

On campus, Terroba is heavily involved in the Bonner Program, a program dedicated to civic engagement and service that requires students to complete 1,800 hours of community service. Through the program, she has worked at the BRAAC and has been on the leadership team for Campus Kitchen since her first year.

She is also a member of Alpha Delta Pi, where she was the director of philanthropy; Omicron Delta Kappa; Phi Beta Kappa; and Catholic Campus Ministries, where she was the service chair.

“It is so exciting to see how my passions are finding meaning together in the intersections of disability studies, linguistics and general inclusion and dignified treatment of all persons,” Terroba said. “I am so grateful that through Fulbright, I will not only be able to teach English in the ways that helped set me up to where I am today, but also build relationships and engage in conversations that will keep opening doors for me to do the work that I hope to be doing for the rest of my life.”

The CBSC Department is home to two Fulbright recipients this year, Terroba and Amanda Dorsey ’21.

“One of the greatest pleasures of teaching at W&L is witnessing our students find their strengths and grow into young professionals who are fully prepared to do good in the world,” Murdock said. “Amanda and Lorena have crafted Fulbright projects that make exquisite use of their CBSC skills as well as the individual talents that make each of them so special. The CBSC faculty are very proud that they have found these avenues for serving the greater good.”

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