Bush School Prof Named Fulbright Distinguished Chair

Valerie Hudson, professor and George H. W. Bush Chair at the Bush School has been selected as a Fulbright scholar for her work on women’s security issues. She has been appointed to serve as the Fulbright Distinguished Chair in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Australian National University during spring 2017. The chair is open to American professors in order to promote collaborative research between faculty in Australia and the US in the arts, humanities, and social sciences.

“I’m excited to have the privilege of working with scholars and policymakers in Australia at the Australian National University,” said Hudson. “In addition to examining Australian foreign policy-making, I’ll also be researching the implementation of Australia’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security.”

As the holder of the distinguished chair, Hudson will spend up to six months participating in the Fulbright Distinguished Chair Lecture Series at four universities across Australia and will engage with faculty, staff, and students at Australian National University in order to develop long-term collaborations between Texas A&M University and Australian National University.

During the past several years, Hudson has become a leading expert on issues related to women’s security issues and their relationship to the security of nations. In 2001, she co-created the WomanStats Project, a database with more than 180,000 data points covering more than 350 variables and 176 countries. Her research has been vetted at the United Nations, the US Department of Defense, the CIA, and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Hudson has also presented her research at USAID, the US State Department, UN Women, and the Department of Foreign Assistance and Trade in Australia. Recently, Gloria Steinem named Hudson’s book, Sex and World Peace, as the book she would require the president of the United States to read if she could only choose one book.

In addition to the prestigious Fulbright honor, Hudson also recently received the 2016 Bush Excellence Award, an annual award given to individuals who have made significant contributions to international teaching, international research, and international public service. The Bush Excellence Award was established through the vision and support of President and Mrs. George Bush in 2002, with financial assistance from the George Bush Presidential Library Foundation.