May 29, 2009

Jerry Dickinson never seriously entertained the possibility of playing professional soccer during his first three years at the College of the Holy Cross.

Although he had been a starter since his freshman season and a three-year captain, playing soccer for a living seemed like a distant dream.

But by the time Dickinson was finishing his stellar college career for the Crusaders, he was getting feelers from professional teams, including an invitation to a tryout for the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer.

There was only one problem. Dickinson had another opportunity that he could not turn down.

Dickinson, 22, a Shaler Area High School graduate, was awarded a Fulbright grant to work and study at the University of Witwatersrand School of Law and the Centre for Applied Legal Studies in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Only 1,500 students are awarded Fulbright grants each year and Dickinson is one of only 159 African-Americans to earn one this year. The Fulbright grants are funded by the U.S. State Department, which this year contributed nearly $221 million to the fellowships.

Dickinson will spend a year in South Africa and will write his master's dissertation on how to better serve the interests of low-income black African families in Johannesburg, where forced evictions occur at a high rate.

For the complete article by Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh (Pa.) Post-Gazette click here