ASB Alumna Ibby Newland '21 Awarded Fulbright to Italy

Ibby Newland '21 is headed back to Italy this fall as part of a record-breaking year for Wesleyan Fulbright winners. Seventeen recent alumni accepted Fulbright grants that begin in the 2026–2027 academic year, the most in Wesleyan's history, through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, the largest U.S. exchange program that offers graduates the opportunity to pursue international graduate study, advanced research, English teaching, or creative work abroad. This year's cohort will teach, study, and conduct research in destinations ranging from Morocco to South Korea to Spain, with Ibby's grant returning her to Italy. Her English Teaching Assistant (ETA) grant means she will be teaching English to high schoolers next year.

At Wesleyan, Ibby pursued a College of Letters degree, the school's interdisciplinary major spanning European literature, history, and philosophy, a foundation that speaks directly to the year she's about to spend abroad.

Some may remember Ibby from a 2022 alumni spotlight, when she wrote in about her gap year adventures. She spent September through November 2021 at the Accademia d'Arte in Florence, studying painting, sculpture, and Italian, then volunteered for a month at Rebombori Cultural, an arts center in Valencia, where she designed art and theater workshops for children. From there, she joined Where There Be Dragons for an immersive program in Senegal, seeking, in her words, to "learn to be a traveler and not just a tourist, to meet and talk to and live with people whose lives took a different shape from my own." Her time in Florence in particular seems to have left a lasting mark, one she'll now build on through her Fulbright year in Italy.

Fulbright grants typically cover round-trip travel, living costs based on the host country, and health benefits, along with country-specific support such as research allowances, tuition assistance, or language study.

Ibby has kept just as busy closer to home this summer, back in Barcelona. She took the stage at an open mic at The Comedy Clubhouse, sharing poetry she originally wrote for her Wesleyan thesis. Her former IB Art teacher, Ms. Ana Martinez, was lucky enough to catch the performance.

Congratulations to Ibby on this remarkable achievement. We look forward to following her journey and hearing what she discovers along the way.

Ibby comes from a family well known to our school community: her sister Mimi '24, a lead performer in many of our Spotlight Productions, was recently accepted to Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts in London.

Ibby's younger brother Benji will be a junior this year; her mother, Brook, is an active parent volunteer; and her father, Benjamin, serves as Vice President and Secretary of the Board of Trustees.

Are you an ASB alum with news to share? Let us know for a future issue. Email Michelle Collin at mcollin@asbarcelona.com.