2021’s American Rhodes Scholars have been announced in a virtual ceremony for the second year running.
American secretary of the Rhodes Trust Elliot F. Gerson announced the names of the 32 Americans to get the prestigious scholarship, which provides an all-expenses paid international education.
The scholarship scheme provides all expenses for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford, and in some instances, allows funding for four years.
The virtual ceremony took place on November 20, after candidates and selectors “participated [in the election process] remotely, safely and independently”.
The prestigious scholarship scheme provides all expenses for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford
The 32 chosen students will take up their places at Oxford in October 2022.
“Rhodes Scholarships are the oldest and best-known award for international study, and arguably the most famous academic award available to American college graduates,” said Gerson.
“We are confident that their contributions to public welfare nationally and globally will expand exponentially over the course of their careers in varied sectors and disciplines.”
In a big step forward, this year’s cohort includes the most women – 22 – to be elected in a single year.
This class includes students from 24 different colleges and universities, including the first ever from Clemson University in South Carolina.
That student is Louise Franke, a senior who has combined research in biochemistry labs with work in classical philosophy and American politics, and plans to read Politics, Philosophy and Economics when she goes to Oxford. She plans for a career in healthcare policy.
Other students to feature include Elvin N. Irihamye, a senior at Indiana University majoring in Neuroscience, who co-founded and is president of a charitable corporation using industry and academic partnerships to “strengthen the pipeline” of Black, Latinx and Native American talent into the work force.
Also with a heavy interest in racial equality is Sabah Sial, a senior Finance major at the University of Utah whose academic interests centre on racial disparities in banking and finance as well as white collar crime and money laundering.
The American cohort will join those chosen from 23 other jurisdictions including more than 60 countries around the world; over 100 Rhodes Scholars will be selected across the globe this year.
