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through Scholarships Beinecke Winner to Study Latin America in Graduate School F. Alberto Herrera of El Paso, Texas, a Brown junior majoring in Hispanic studies, has become Rice’s first winner of the prestigious Beinecke Scholarship in six years, and only the seventh in the university’s history. Beinecke Scholars are selected when they are juniors and receive $32,000 for graduate school in the humanities or social sciences. Rice may nominate one student for the Beinecke Scholarship each year, and Herrera was chosen from a very competitive group of applicants. Herrera plans to pursue a PhD in comparative literature and Latin American studies at the University of California at Berkeley, focusing on border literature and border identities. He studied abroad in northeastern Brazil in fall 2005, becoming interested in literatura de cordel cordel, a form of popular literature addressing political and social topics that are circulated in pamphlet form. At Rice, he has been a MellonMays Undergraduate Research Fellow, working with Professor Maarten van Delden. He is a native speaker of Spanish and is fluent in Portuguese. Two Seniors Named 2006 Watson Fellows Ellen Connors and Kim Swanson, who both graduated in May, have received fellowships from the Thomas J.
Watson Foundation to study abroad independently for one year. Connors, a music major, will study “How Melody Derives from Life Experience in the Circumpolar North.” She will travel to Mongolia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Norway, Iceland, and Canada to pursue her interest in folk-song traditions. Swanson, who majored in mathematical economic analysis, will travel to Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi, and Mozambique to research her project titled “Women, Microfinance, and the Division of Labor Within the Household.” The foundation awards up to 60 fellowships each year to students from 50 outstanding private colleges and universities, providing recipients with a $25,000 grant. Watson fellows are selected for their independence, integrity, responsibility, and maturity. Candidates’ academic records also are considered. Phi Beta Kappa Inductees Announced Seventy Rice students have demonstrated a level of commitment to excellence and a love of learning that qualified them for membership in Phi Beta Kappa. Election to Phi Beta Kappa is a significant honor recognizing outstanding achievement in the liberal arts and sciences. To be considered for membership, a student at Rice must have completed at least 90 semester hours in courses that reflect the
pursuit of learning for its own sake, rather than a focus on the development of particular professional skills. As an additional indication of intellectual breadth, at least 10 of these qualifying courses must be chosen from outside the division in which the student’s major lies. Travel Scholarships Announced Rice University’s Office of International Programs has announced the 2006 recipients of the following scholarships for international travel. Jue (Julie) Liaok, a senior, has been named the Kathryn Leebron Smyth Fellow and will investigate the educational conditions in rural China as a volunteer inspector for the Overseas China Education Foundation. Her project is a first step toward reaching her goal to be a leader in improvements in Chinese rural education. The Kathryn Leebron Smyth Travel Fellowship was established by President David W. Leebron and Y. Ping Sun in 2004 and provides support for an undergraduate student to participate in an international internship, international travel, study or research abroad, or other international program. Senior Sarah Simpson was selected for the Franz and Frances Brotzen Summer Travel Award, a unique scholarship that enables a student to investigate a personal passion in an international setting. It was established by the Brotzens, who are longtime
supporters of international travel. Franz Brotzen is professor emeritus in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science. For six weeks, Simpson will explore the modern architecture of Mexico and will “discover the spirit” of Luis Barragán by traveling throughout Mexico and visiting Barragán’s various designs. Alex Stoll, a junior, and senior Ting Wang were selected for the Darrell M. Whitley Summer Work Abroad Scholarship. This award is intended to assist undergraduate students with the travel costs associated with working abroad, whether in an internship or casual employment. The scholarship was established in 2000 by Darrell Whitley ’92, who worked in London through the British Universities North America Club when he was an undergraduate. Stoll has been accepted into the CDS International Summer Internship Program in Germany and will be participating in a one-month German language course in Frankfurt before completing a mechanical engineering internship. Wang has secured an investment banking internship at JP Morgan in Hong Kong. Wang’s internship is part of the highly competitive Sponsors for Educational Opportunity mentorship program for minority students.
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