Fulbright plans Frisbee research

Rachel Markowitz, UTD’s first Fulbright Scholar, returned to Morocco Jan. 29 to pursue research that combines her two passions: conflict resolution and Ultimate Frisbee.

Markowitz graduated in 2008 and went to Morocco to study conflict resolution using the research funding that accompanies the Fulbright award. To become a Fulbright Scholar, applicants identify a country where they want to work and propose an 8-10 month research project, said UTD political science professor Douglas Dow.

Markowitz played Ultimate Frisbee during her time at UTD and loved it, she said. Her Fulbright personal statement described how the sport encourages conflict resolution and inner conflict management.

With her Fulbright research complete, Markowitz now plans to start Frisbee camps for disadvantaged youth in Morocco, using the sport to teach conflict management skills that will help them solve conflicts in their communities and in their daily lives.

“I know it sounds crazy — you should hear me try to explain it in Arabic,” Markowitz said.

Markowitz is currently teaching English in Morocco while she seeks funding for the project. If she can’t obtain funding, she said she’ll continue her research in her free time with donated Frisbees.

As a McDermott scholar, Markowitz first traveled to Morocco on a study abroad trip. She was already thinking about applying and asked Fulbright Scholars there about the program.

During that first trip to Morocco, Markowitz said she did a small amount of independent research, which she developed into an honors thesis under UTDpolitical science professor Marie Chevrier’s guidance.

Chevrier noted that Markowitz had been in her classes beforehand, and they were a good fit.

“Dr. Chevrier’s enthusiasm for conflict resolution was contagious,” Markowitz said.

The deadline for applications is in the fall of the student’s senior year, though Markowitz began work on hers nine months before that. Chevrier, a faculty Fulbright recipient, used her experience to help Markowitz refine her application.

“It was encouraging how committed my professors were to the process. They helped me learn how to write and how to present myself better,” Markowitz said.

Markowitz remembers that she was in the Collegium V lounge when she received the e-mail informing her she was accepted, and that she immediately called her mother.

“It was so thrilling — my dream come true,” Markowitz said. “I had to keep rechecking the e-mail, because I couldn’t believe it.”

Markowitz said the hardest part about being a Fulbright Scholar is obtaining the grant because creating a complete, viable application requires extensive work. But once a Fulbright Scholar begins implementing their research project, they have a lot of autonomy, she said.

Her conflict resolution research began with an academic perspective. She worked with high-level officials and wore a business suit. Then she obtained an internship with an NGO (non-governmental agency) that helped her refine her interest, prompting her to focus on development projects.

“Everyone I know who has done a Fulbright has changed their research in some way after they’ve started,” Markowitz said. “We have these grand ideas about what we’re going to do and how we’re going to do it. The reality is, things move slower than you think they will, or you can’t get the context you think you can, or your ideas and how you want to spend your time change.”

While Markowitz enjoyed living in Morocco from the first day, she said living in a new place where she was unfamiliar with the language was initially exhausting.

Although she’ll miss her family, she said, Morocco is now her second home.

“I feel really comfortable here,” Markowitz said. “All my neighbors were excited to see me. They told me I haven’t forgotten my Arabic, and there were little girls who gave me hugs and asked where I had been.”