Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

PCC recognized as 25-year top producer of Gilman Scholars

Story by Misty Bouse

Portland Community College has been named a Gilman Program 25th Anniversary Top Producing Institution in the Associate’s Colleges category, recognizing its long record of helping students with high financial need to study abroad.

The U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program and its implementing partner, the Institute of International Education, recognized institutions that supported the most Gilman scholars from 2001 through 2025.

“This is a competitive national scholarship and a huge accomplishment, especially given our small staff,” said Anne Frey, manager of PCC’s Education Abroad program.

Frey said advisers often spend hours helping each student prepare the strongest application possible.

“It is a time-consuming process with an incredible payoff for the student awardees,” she said. “We aim to make studying abroad accessible.

Historically, roughly one-third of PCC’s education abroad participants receive Federal Pell Grants, and many are the first in their families to attend college or travel internationally.

Across the program’s two 2026 application cycles, nine PCC students received Gilman scholarships to join faculty-led programs. Their awards ranged from $2,000 to $3,000. Funds are paid directly to recipients and may be used for eligible expenses such as tuition, airfare, housing, books, insurance, passports and visas.

Scholarship changes student’s trajectory

PCC Business Administration student Davion Jefferson experienced that impact after receiving a Gilman Scholarship for the 2025 “Intro to Entrepreneurship” course in Prague, Czechia taught by business instructor Heidi Sickert.

Jefferson, 30, is a Pell Grant recipient from Southern California who moved to Oregon in 2024 and works multiple jobs as he pursues his marketing degree. The experience helped lead him toward becoming a travel agent and to his current role as the Education Abroad Office’s student outreach advocate. 

“Coming to PCC is my first honest and real attempt at earning a degree, and it has been fruitful,” Jefferson said. “Last year, I received a Gilman Scholarship and was invited to join Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. The Gilman was, and still is, my greatest accomplishment.”

Jefferson said the scholarship opened doors to opportunities he had never imagined and led him toward new international aspirations.

“Studying abroad isn’t out of reach,” he said. “It’s possible, and it can change your life.

“I embraced all of what Prague and the Czech Republic have offered, Jefferson continued. “I tried new food, met new business leaders, accepted new experiences and went to new places with curiosity and intrigue. I’ve learned that I’ve got a go-getter attitude to make something of myself like these entrepreneurs. I could speak all day about the beautiful benefits it has given me, and I am eternally grateful.”

He believes studying abroad should become a more routine part of a college education.

“I believe we as human beings should see how others live outside our own bubble,” Jefferson said. “It would make people more well-rounded, kind and understanding. I physically felt myself changing every day I was abroad as I encountered new ideas, met new people, ate new foods and saw new sights. It affected me on a molecular level, and I would not change a single thing about my experience. Sometimes you have to leave your tank to allow yourself to grow into a bigger one.”

Expanding access to the world

Established by Congress in 2001, the Gilman Program provides merit-based scholarships of up to $5,000 to American undergraduates with high financial need for credit-bearing study or internships abroad. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or nationals receiving a Federal Pell Grant. The program is sponsored by the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and implemented by the Institute of International Education. 

During its first 25 years, the program supported more than 50,000 students studying or interning in more than 170 countries. The experiences help students develop career skills, global networks, language abilities and a broader understanding of the world.

As PCC’s faculty-led Education Abroad program marks 10 years, the office has previewed 10 programs for summer 2027. Courses are planned in Greece, France, Japan, Chile, Denmark, Mexico, Czechia (formerly the Czech Republic), Croatia, Indonesia and New Zealand.  Interested students can join PCC study abroad students next summer for a class like BA 150, Intro to Entrepreneurship in Dubrovnik, Croatia, fill-out the 2027 Study Abroad Program Interest Form. Instructor Sickert said you will definitely get an update when the application opens.

For more information about scholarships and faculty-led programs, visit PCC’s Education Abroad website .