After her undergraduate class organized a women’s empowerment non-profit, Alona Dorosh has never looked back. Dorosh spent the last eight years working for the Center Partnership for Development (CPD) in the Republic of Moldova, before taking advantage of an educational opportunity in the United States.

She came to the University of Louisville through the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program. The program is administered by the International Research and Exchanges Board out of the U.S. Department of State. “Alona is the first Muskie Fellow we've hosted,” said Steven Bourassa, director of the School of Urban and Public Affairs. “We were impressed by the work she has been doing in Moldova’s incipient non-profit sector.” She is one of six applicants from her country that made this year’s cut, out of 133.

“The Muskie program is very popular in Moldova,” she said. “I’d been hearing about it since I was an undergrad.” The program provides graduate level studies for students coming from countries that are former Soviet Union members. The fields of study vary from business to journalism, from library science to public policy.

At UofL, Dorosh is in her first semester of the MPA program, with a specialization in non-profit management. She has also applied to work for a city organization and a campus group that also deal with similar issues. “We think that she will benefit from enrolling in our non-profit management program and spending some time in the United States to learn how that sector operates here,” Bourassa said.

Dorosh and fellow students at her university started a women’s empowerment group called the “Girls Club” that met with dignitaries and experts while she was in school. After graduating from the Free International University of Moldova with a degree in translation and interpretation she started working with the CPD. She worked up through the CPD, starting as a program assistant and eventually moving up to a program director for the economic empowerment projects.

After graduating she is planning to continue her work at the CPD. “This is an important time because we changed a lot from an organization dealing with women’s issues to the idea of encirclement of a larger social spectrum,” she said. “All this new information and practice will be great, new perspectives and new approaches are always good.” While she had some fear of culture shock or a language barrier, everyone has been receptive and helpful, Dorosh said. “Upon return to my home country, I hope I can succeed at making positive changes,” she said. - story by Patrick Lewis