An Ambitious Student Becomes Fulbright Fellow

By Regina Reid
EpilepsyUSA staff
Posted: June 29, 2004

On Sept. 17, 2003, David Boren arrived in Akureyri, Iceland for a nine month stay -- not just to take in the sights of glaciers and hot springs, but to begin his work as a Fulbright Fellow.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, the Fulbright Program is the United States' flagship international exchange program, offering opportunities for recent graduates, postgraduate students and developing professionals and artists to study in other countries. For a young man who had been diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of 16, being a part of this prestigious program may have seemed a lofty dream. But Boren has always displayed a rare tenacity that manages to place all of his goals within reach.

While attending the University of Illinois in Chicago, he carried a heavy course load and obtained a bachelor of arts degree in economics and a bachelor of science degree in biology in four years, graduating in May 2003. He was awarded the highest departmental distinction for both degrees and his curriculum vitae lists a dozen awards and scholarships presented to him prior to his Fulbright fellowship.

Dealing With Medication Side-Effects

Boren said his antiepileptic medications caused serious fatigue and that made completing two degrees in four years difficult to accomplish.

"Fatigue adversely affected my efficiency," he said, "but I compensated by living near campus so I could minimize the commute and by giving myself enough time to make deadlines. I couldn't have done it without having a full schedule every semester and even taking summer school a few times."

He said his experience with treatment for epilepsy was much worse than his experience with the seizures themselves, which caused him to briefly lose consciousness or occasionally jerk.

"The treatment itself was the problem," he said. "The medicine tired me out."

Subtle Seizures Not Recognized

He initially did not recognize that the episodes were seizures. He attributed the momentary blackouts to tiredness.

"When I was a teenager, I didn't get much sleep," he said.

While he suspects he had been having seizures for a few years before his diagnosis, he remembers the incident that led to it.

"In high school, I chose not to have a lunch break so I could take three periods of music classes," Boren said. "I dropped my bassoon in the middle of a lesson and my teacher told my parents."

For the next seven years, Boren took six pills a day to control the absence (petit mal) seizures. After a normal EEG in July 2003, his doctor gave him permission to start weaning himself off the medication. By February of this year, the process was complete. He is now medication-free and hopes a follow-up EEG will confirm the absence of any seizure activity.

Fulbright Project Addresses Ethics

Boren was one of 1,026 Fulbright grantees for the 2003-04 year, but one of fewer than 25 biology graduates. His project is titled, "The Ethics of Human Genetic Research," which addresses the handling of medical data for research purposes.

"My project uses as a case study a proposed centralized medical database," Boren explained. "A private company proposed to build a centralized medical database in Iceland for medical research.

"It was controversial because participation was obtained through presumed consent rather than informed consent, meaning people's medical records went into the database unless they made the active effort to opt out," he said, adding that the database has not been completed.

Boren said he has always had an interest in health care policy, but recently decided to narrow that focus to medical ethics, which he describes as "an intersection among medicine, law and philosophy." He will enter the University of Illinois College of Medicine in 2006, but before that will earn a master of divinity degree with a concentration in ethics at Yale University Divinity School this fall.

"It so happens that philosophy was the one field I didn't study at all as an undergraduate," he said. "But I found that ethics not only allowed me to think more logically, but also gave me a sense of purpose.

"I feel proud to say that I have really taken advantage of the opportunities being a Fulbright fellow has provided," he continued. "Not only have I discovered my interest in the study of ethics, but I have also discovered an interest in foreign language," said Boren who recently passed the Icelandic government's language proficiency exam.

"As a hobby, I studied Icelandic. I always found people to practice with," he said. Boren believes he has enough pen pals to maintain his proficiency in the language, and hopes to find Icelandic speakers in the United States.

Rewarded For Second Attempt

Boren didn't become a Fulbright Fellow on the first try.

"I applied for the Fulbright two times," he said. "In 2002, I was rejected. But I was very lucky I had supportive friends and family. Even though I had almost given up, they persuaded me to apply again.

"On my mother's birthday in 2003, I learned that I'd received the Fulbright grant. My mom told me that the news was the best birthday present she'd ever received," he said.

Throughout the nine months he spent in Iceland, he was able to strike a balance that allowed him to experience the country and complete his project.

Once off the medication and able to function without fatigue, Boren found he had an "internal clock" that helped him pace himself slightly ahead of schedule while he sought to both conduct his research and enjoy the culture. Ever worried that he might fall behind, he worked hard to keep a brisk but comfortable stride.

"Now that I have just finished my grant," he said, " I find I have accomplished quite a bit. I finished my paper, passed the government's language test and immersed myself in a different culture.

"In short, everything I promised I would do."