Dr. Mary Ellen Heian Schmider

The Fulbright Association proudly announces that Dr. Mary Ellen Heian Schmider has been selected as the recipient of its 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing more than five decades of leadership in education, international exchange, and dedicated service to the Fulbright Association and community.

A two-time Fulbright Senior Scholar (China, 1997; Macedonia, 2005), Dr. Schmider has lived a life exemplary of cross-cultural friendship and empowerment through education. She has taught and lectured across Asia, Europe, and the Balkans, and reached U.S. military communities in Germany and Turkey through the University of Maryland Global Campus. Her teaching and scholarship—especially her work on Jane Addams—have inspired students to connect education with civic responsibility and global understanding.