'Bring it on': HES major set to teach in Mongolia

Courtesy. Integrity. Perseverance. Self-Control. Indomitable Spirit.

Adherence to those tenets of Tae Kwon Do has helped Rowan University senior Jonathan McGuire excel in martial arts. But they've also propelled the education major to live his life--and pursue his studies--with even greater purpose.

The Health and Exercise Science (HES) major will likely utilize those same qualities as he begins a challenging English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) to Mongolia this summer through the highly competitive Fulbright Program.

McGuire, who will earn his bachelor's degree from the College of Education on Friday, May 14, leaves for Mongolia in August. He'll spend 10 months teaching English to university students near Ulaanbaatar, the country's capital.

This is the first year that the Fulbright Program is sending ETA students to Mongolia. McGuire, who is the 11^th Rowan student in the past decade to receive a Fulbright, will be one of five ETA recipients in the country, which borders Russia and China.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, the Fulbright Program provides opportunities for students, scholars, and professionals to undertake international graduate study, advanced research, university teaching, and teaching in elementary and secondary schools worldwide. According to the Fulbright Program's web site, 616 students applied for teaching assistantships to the program's East Asia area, which includes Mongolia. Only 187 were awarded.

Originally, McGuire applied for a Fulbright scholarship to South Korea, in part because of his interests in Tae Kwon Do and Chon-Tu Kwan Hapkido. But when the Fulbright Program asked him to consider Mongolia, a country that can have temperature ranges from 70 degrees to 40-below, the Maple Shade resident didn't blink.

McGuire, who will graduate magna cum laude, loves nothing better than a little adventure, a good challenge and the chance to prove himself. That's what makes martial arts so appealing and, also, what convinced him to apply for a Fulbright.

"A Fulbright is something you really can't turn down," says McGuire. "And studying abroad was always something I wanted to do."

Teaching, however, wasn't. Though he graduated 13^th in his class at Maple Shade High School and had an offer to study at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, McGuire wasn't sure of his career path. So, rather than spending big money at Rensselaer, he earned his associate's degree in liberal arts from Burlington County College through the New Jersey STARS program. The program covers the cost of tuition at community colleges for students who graduate in the top 15 percent of their high school class.

"I couldn't justify spending that kind of money at Rensselaer when I didn't know what I wanted to do," says McGuire. "I experienced a large amount of indecision in my early years of college."

By the time he left BCC in 2007, McGuire was certain he wanted to pursue his teaching degree at Rowan.

"My experience at Rowan has left me with the feeling that I have found my calling in life--and it has provided me with the skills to pursue that calling to the fullest," says McGuire, a member of the Golden Key National Honor Society and the New Jersey Stars II Program.

Now completing his student teaching at South Valley Elementary School in Moorestown in health and physical education, McGuire has no worries about teaching English in Mongolia. He's studying up on Genghis Khan and Mongolian history and researching the country through the American Center for Mongolian Studies. He does not speak Mongolian.

"Teaching is teaching, regardless of what you're teaching," says McGuire. "The HES program is rigorous and combines elements of literacy, health, physical education and general teaching classes. So, even when we're teaching physical education, we're also including lessons on literacy.

"I started to have thoughts about teaching when I was in high school after I started developing strong relationships with teachers," he continues. "I love the impact you can have on students as a teacher. Rowan was my first choice because of its proximity to home and the strength of the education program."

McGuire's logical, thoughtful approach to his studies will transfer well to his Fulbright work, says Richard Fopeano, chair of the Department of Health & Exercise Science. To his knowledge, McGuire is the first Rowan HES student to be awarded a Fulbright.

"Jon is an excellent student and stuck out in class as the ‘strong, silent type' who really had a lot to say," says Fopeano. "He's a very intelligent, well-thought-out individual who is interested in learning how to make a difference in the lives of his students. He is eager for the adventure."

In Mongolia, McGuire hopes to see the Gobi Desert, the steepes, Buddhist temples that survived the Communist purge, and Nadaam, a nationwide festival. He's even hoping to visit China and Russia.

"Immersion for a year in the Mongolian culture within in a teaching environment will greatly strengthen my ability to respond to and approach education with a multicultural mindset," says McGuire.

"Understanding another culture also will allow me a much greater ability to understand how students from diverse backgrounds approach learning," he continues. "The experience will give an additional perspective. And seeing things through multiple perspectives is the key to understanding."

Those "multiple perspectives" include learning a lot about Mongolian people. According to McGuire, about half of the country's residents live in yurts--felt huts that are modern versions of ancient shelters used by nomads in Central Asia for centuries.

Additionally, through his research, McGuire learned that one of the country's big sports is wrestling. Since he stands 6 feet, 7 inches, he's fairly certain the country's residents will look to test his wrestling skills.

"I hear that all of the people my size are professional wrestlers in Mongolia. So I may be challenged a few times on the streets.

"That's right up my alley," he continues, grinning. "Bring it on."