Dessane Cassell Receives Fulbright Grant

Dessane Cassell ’14 has been awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in South Africa. An art history major with a minor in Africana studies, Cassell says she plans to work on an independent research project involving apartheid while teaching.

“I hope to learn more about the roles that music and visual art played in voicing the frustrations of the black community during apartheid,” she says. “I’m also interested in working with women’s advocacy groups to combat the unusually high rates of domestic violence and sexual abuse in South Africa.”

At Oberlin, she is a writing associate and the senior co-chair of Exhibition Initiative, a student-run arts organization. She also co-hosts a storytelling radio show on WOBC and teaches English as a second language class in the community. After her Fulbright year, Cassell wants to pursue a career as a curator or work for a public arts foundation.

“Applying for a Fulbright was one of the most challenging, yet rewarding experiences I have had at Oberlin,” says Cassell, who is from New York City. “Receiving the Fulbright has made all of that hard work feel even more worthwhile, and has greatly expanded the scope of what I can see myself doing in the future.”