Former Lady Blazer Earns Fulbright Scholarship

Katie Steffen awarded Fulbright-Garcia Robles Scholarship

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Former Lady Blazer Katie Steffen was awarded a Fulbright-Garcia Robles Scholarship for the Bi-National Business Program.

The 2007 summa cum laude graduate will begin the prestigious full-time internship program with the New Business and Finance Department of Nestle Mexico in Mexico City. She will play an integral role for 10 months to introduce a new Nestle product into the Mexican market.

Steffen played basketball at Valdosta State for two years and played a role on the 2004-05 team that went to the NCAA tournament. It was the first appearance for Head Coach Kiley Hill's Lady Blazers. In the first round of the tournament, Steffen came up big against Florida Tech to help lead VSU to a first round victory. Now she will work with a different team through every aspect needed to succeed in introducing the product into the market. Steffen can't wait.

"I hope to gain awesome international work experience, while using this opportunity to improve my business Spanish; and like most people my age, I hope this great experience can give me more clues as to what I want to do long-term," Steffen said.

During her time at Valdosta State, Steffen was the ideal student-athlete. In addition to playing basketball, she served as a resident assistant, volunteered for the Migrant Education Agency and participated in the Society for International Students, the Langdale College of Business Administration Student Advisory Board and the Ultimate Frisbee club team. She also earned the President's Award, the Outstanding Management Student Award and others.

"These are the kinds of stories collegiate athletics are all about," said women's basketball assistant coach and senior woman administrator Jennifer Head. "Let's celebrate her determination and success."

Steffen went through a nearly 10-month application process that included essays, recommendation letters and interviews with as many as 12 people along with each participating company.

Nestle Mexico was her top choice. While there, she will also use her time to take classes toward a Master of Business Administration.

"I'm also hoping to gain a graduate assistantship to aid my studies towards an MBA and Ph.D.," Steffen said. "This opportunity will make me a much more appealing candidate."

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