A Chicago native, Tim is a graduate of the University of Dayton. At UD, he earned a bachelor’s degree in English and a Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) certification. After teaching English at a primary school in southern China, Tim felt called to serve and applied for the Peace Corps. He soon landed in rural Albania as a TEFL Volunteer where he collaborated with local educators and developed extracurricular activities for area schools. Tim’s experience in Albania encouraged a deep interest in democratization trends in Eastern Europe, particularly regarding the EU candidacies of the Western Balkans Six. This interest blossomed into a Fulbright Scholarship, where Tim partnered with academics at Albania’s University of Tirana to study the perceptions of the EU bid amongst Albanian youth. As a Fulbrighter, Tim trained Albanian high school and university students on the values of freedom and human rights. Going forward, he hopes to continue learning Turkish language and use his fluency in Albanian to support civil society actors working on education and democratization projects in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Tim comes to Georgetown eager to learn from both his renowned professors and accomplished peers.