Scattered among this year's graduating seniors are winners of a number of prestigious fellowships, including Rhodes, Marshall, Truman and Fulbright scholars.
"The Class of 2006 was a particularly committed and exciting group," said Associate Dean of the College Linda Dunleavy, who works with students on their fellowship applications. Dunleavy said it was "an exceptionally good year" for fellowships.
In November, Sasha-Mae Eccleston '06 learned that she had been awarded a Rhodes Scholarship, which sends 32 Americans to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Eccleston, who is double concentrating in literary arts and classics with a focus in Greek and Latin, will pursue a Master of Philosophy - the English equivalent of a Master of Arts - in Greek and Latin next year at Oxford.
The Lawrenceville, N.J., native said every undergrad should consider applying for fellowships. However, Eccleston cautioned against blowing the process out of proportion.
"Don't think of the fellowships as confirmations of who you are," she said. "Too many seniors go through that crisis."
Eccleston will not be the only member of the Class of 2006 pursuing graduate studies at Oxford next year. As the winner of a Marshall Scholarship, Jessica Ashooh '06 will be studying for a Master of Philosophy in international relations, with the intention of eventually pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy in the same discipline.
Ashooh, who concentrated in international relations at Brown, called her award "a dream opportunity - I get to go to Oxford for free."
However, Ashooh said the application process was incredibly time-consuming. "It was almost like taking an extra class," she said.
Dunleavy called Eccleston and Ashooh "poised, brilliant and inspiring individuals ... with a passion and drive that comes through."
After spending her junior year in Italy, Eccleston said she has "been dying to go back" overseas and looks forward to living in England and traveling around Europe and the Middle East.
Ashooh, who speaks four languages, has previously studied abroad, having spent a summer studying Arabic in Tunisia and a semester in Lebanon studying at the American University of Beirut.
Named for former Secretary of State George Marshall, who engineered the post-World War II reconstruction of Europe, the Marshall Scholarship "embodies a diplomatic tradition that fits in nicely with my academic plans," said Ashooh, who is interested in a career in international political security consulting.
Another member of the Class of 2006 to snag a prestigious scholarship is Juhyung Lee '06, who was awarded a Rockefeller Brothers Fund Fellowship in his junior year.
The fellowship enabled him to fund a summer project and will provide him with money for graduate school.
The fellowship, which is awarded to 25 students annually, strives to "get more teachers of color" in public schools, Lee said. "They make you feel like teaching is a valued profession. ... It is one of the hardest jobs."
Last summer, Lee taught at Providence Summerbridge, a national educational and extracurricular summer program for inner-city youth. "It was nice to be able to choose what I wanted to do" with respect to the project, Lee said, adding that the money enabled him to do extra activities with his students.
Lee took a semester off last fall to teach in an inner-city public school in New York City. Lee, who first thought about going into teaching his sophomore year, called the profession an "effective way of advancing an agenda of social change."
This year Brown reviewed about 55 applications for Fulbright grants, Dunleavy said. Fulbright awards allow students to teach or conduct research in a foreign country.
Dunleavy said Brown students often fare well in the Fulbright competition because the University's focus on academic freedom produces students who are able to craft strong independent research proposals.
Two of Brown's many Fulbright winners this year are Julian Leichty '06 and former Herald Senior Editor Zachary Barter '06, who both won grants to spend a year teaching English in elementary schools in Taiwan.
An education and public policy concentrator, Leichty called the Fulbright "a neat opportunity to spend time abroad" and said he looks forward to the cultural exchange aspect of the program.
"Fellowships provide good opportunities to explore things after graduation," Leichty said.
Class of 2006 Fellowship Winners
Afreen Akhter - Fulbright GrantJessica Ashooh - Marshall ScholarshipZachary Barter - Fulbright GrantJasmine Bauknight - Samuel T. Arnold FellowshipJessica Beckerman - Fulbright Grant, Goldman Sachs Global Leadership AwardRobert Blair II - Fulbright GrantKai Carter - Rotary Ambassadorial ScholarshipKristen Chin - Fulbright GrantWen-Chuan Dai - Fulbright GrantSelma Durakovic - Fulbright GrantEvelyn Duran - Harry S. Truman ScholarshipSasha-Mae Eccleston - Rhodes Scholarship, Ford Pre-Doctoral FellowshipArmando Garcia - Ford Pre-Doctoral FellowshipAnya Goldstein - Fulbright GrantAnthony Halperin -Harvey Almy Baker FellowshipEmily Israeli - National Science Foundation Graduate Research FellowshipLisa Jacobson - Fulbright GrantStella Klemperer - David J. Zucconi '55 FellowshipSamuel Krinsky - Fulbright GrantKarim Ladha - Harvey Almy Baker FellowshipJuhyung Lee - Harvey Almy Baker Fellowship, Rockefeller Brothers Fund FellowshipJulian Leichty - Fulbright GrantVictor Long - Harvey Almy Baker FellowshipChristopher Lowrey -Keasbey ScholarshipBenjamin Mantell - Medical Science Training Program, Barry M. Goldwater ScholarshipMika Nagasaki - Morris K. Udall Scholarship (Honorable Mention)Ceara O'Leary - Anne Crosby Emery FellowshipEric Perlmutter - Barry M. Goldwater ScholarshipLaurel Rapp - Rotary Ambassadorial ScholarshipVanessa Reese - Medical Science Training ProgramSasha Rubel - Samuel T. Arnold Fellowship, Fulbright GrantRobert Sand - Harry S. Truman ScholarshipCara Sandberg - Rockefeller Brothers Fund FellowshipAllison Shaw - Fulbright GrantSrigowri Vijayakumar - Anne Crosby Emery FellowshipCarina Wallance - Fulbright Grant- Provided by the FellowshipsOffice of the Dean of the College
