Written by Colin McEvoy | June 8, 2026 | SHARE
Fourteen Lehigh students earned Gilman Scholarships this year, contributing to the university’s standing among the nation’s top institutions for producing Gilman scholars.
When Lesly Maria Hernandez arrived at Lehigh University from Arizona, she already had a specific goal in mind.
“As soon as I got on campus, I was like, ‘Okay, so how do I get out of the country?’” said Hernandez, an Earth and Environmental Sciences major. “Studying abroad was a big priority for my college career.”
That ambition has already taken her to Costa Rica, where she studied ecological resilience and conducted research on tropical salamanders. This summer, she’ll be going even farther, traveling to Bhutan to study forest biodiversity, conservation and sustainability.
Her Bhutan experience will be made possible through the U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman Scholarship Program, a nationally competitive award that helps students with financial need pursue international study opportunities.
Gilmans expand global opportunities
Hernandez is one of 14 Lehigh University students who have recently been awarded Gilman Scholarships, funding study abroad in such countries as Argentina, Austria, Cambodia, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Italy, Ireland, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, and more.
This continues Lehigh’s long-standing tradition of success with the Gilman program. The U.S. Department of State previously recognized Lehigh as among the top colleges and universities whose students have won these merit-based, nationally-competitive scholarships.
“This recognition reflects the hard work of our students and the strong support network at Lehigh that helps them pursue global opportunities,” said Bill Hunter, Director of Fellowship Advising and UN Programs. “The Gilman Scholarship opens doors for students with high financial need to study abroad and gain experiences that shape their academic paths and future careers.”
Pursuing diverse goals abroad
Among the 14 recipients was Loba Salami, a music and biology double major who became the first Lehigh student to receive the Gilman-McCain Scholarship. This specialized award is available exclusively to children and spouses of active-duty U.S. military personnel.
Salami is a prolific composer and pre-med student whose composition Land of the Free was performed at a symphony in San Diego in honor of the 250th anniversary of the United States. He will study abroad in Vienna this fall, where he plans to use the scholarship to attend concerts, participate in field trips and connect with conductors, performers and other musicians.
The opportunity aligns with Salami’s goal of establishing himself as an American composer and building connections that will support his future career in music.
“Networking is, I think, one of the really big things I want to take away from that trip,” Salami said. “Any chance I can get to go to a concert or meet conductors, meet performers, and get my name out there, that's what I really want to put that money into use for.”
The 14 Lehigh students recently awarded Gilman Scholarships include:
- Lucy Anglin (Spain)
- Pilar Bartley (Japan)
- Jasper Curphy (Cambodia)
- Rowan Gallagher (Spain)
- Tinuola Gbadamosi (Hong Kong)
- Lesly Hernandez (Bhutan)
- Elizabeth Janes (Ireland)
- Jisue Kim (South Africa, Argentina, Italy)
- Vicky Kossi (South Korea)
- Leana Noureldaem (Singapore)
- Tatiana Rivera (Spain, Morocco)
- Loba Salami (Austria)
- Elizabeth Walker (Denmark)
- Liana Woo (Germany)
Lehigh is among the top 25 institutions in the “Medium Colleges and Universities” category for supporting Gilman scholars from 2001 to 2025, according to the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA).
“We are grateful for your institution’s engagement with the Gilman program as we support American undergraduate students to develop essential career skills through study and intern abroad experiences,” said Heidi Manley, Chief of USA Study Abroad, which is part of ECA.
Opening doors around the world
For Liana Woo, a junior majoring in molecular and cellular biology and health, medicine and society, the Gilman Scholarship will support a summer of cancer-related research at the University of Dresden in Germany.
The opportunity grew from a connection she first made through Lehigh's Iacocca International Internship Program (IIPP) and later developed into an invitation to join a research group studying tumor cell signaling and CRISPR-related technologies.
Woo said Lehigh's combination of scholarship support, experiential learning grants, and fellowship advising helped make international experiences accessible. She credited Lehigh’s Office of Fellowship Advising (OFA) with helping strengthen her Gilman application through multiple rounds of feedback and revision.
“I actually had a copy of my very first draft and then a copy of what I ended up submitting, and reading them side by side, I could tell how much their feedback and input had really strengthened my application in ways that I didn't even see was possible,” Woo said.