BOWLING GREEN, Ky., June 22 -- Western Kentucky University issued the following news release:
When Samantha Gerdes first toured WKU's campus as a prospective student, she wasn't planning to spend her college career immersed in Mandarin. But a conversation with a tour guide who happened to be a Chinese Flagship alum, followed by a meeting with Mahurin Honors College former director, Dr. Craig T. Cobane, changed the trajectory of her entire WKU experience - and this fall, it will take her to Taiwan for a 10-month stay funded by the prestigious Boren Award.
"I decided to come to WKU because the university is only about an hour away from home," Gerdes said. "So it's far enough away that I can have my own life and close enough that I can come ...