Dylan O’Donoghue has received a 2018 Boren Award from the National Security Education Program, which will provide up to $24,000 to support her academic pursuits overseas.

O’Donoghue, who is pursuing a Master of Legal Studies degree, will conduct research on anti-human trafficking regulations in Taiwan. Boren Awards are designed to support students who are learning less commonly taught languages in regions of the world that are critical to U.S. strategic security interests.

As a Boren Fellow, O’Donoghue will work with experts and practitioners from the Chinese Culture University, National Chengchi University and Yilan Migrant Fishermen Union to examine Taiwan’s successful implementation of anti-human trafficking regulations, focusing on how the 2009 Human Trafficking Prevention and Control Act changed the everyday practice of providers who work with foreign national victims of trafficking. This research will help guide efforts in the U.S. to prevent and protect foreign national victims of human trafficking. She will also improve her proficiency in Mandarin and Taiwanese Hokkien.

In recognition of her academic achievements and promise, O’Donoghue was also awarded a Teck-Kah Lim Graduate Student Travel Award by Drexel’s Graduate College and Graduate Student Association.

Earlier in 2018, O’Donoghue was accepted by the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, which is administered by the U.S. Department of State.