Although Dalia Hochman learned last year that she had received a prestigious Harry S. Truman Scholarship that would help pay for graduate study, the Yale senior decided to defer continuing her formal education in favor of educating others.

Hochman, who is majoring in history and is a student in Yale's Teacher Preparation Program (see related story), was recently selected as one of Glamour Magazine's "Top Ten College Women of 1999," in part for her commitment to public education. The winners were chosen from more than 1,000 applicants in recognition of their superb academic and extracurricular achievement.

Hochman learned that she won the Glamour contest over the summer, while she was in South Africa on a Bates Traveling Fellowship. Although she went there to do research for her senior thesis on the topic of education under apartheid and knowledge as a tool for resistance, Hochman ended up being recruited by school administrators to teach American history to high school students.

A photographer for Glamour magazine who is a native of South Africa returned to his homeland to take the photos of Hochman that are featured in the October issue of the magazine naming the contest winners.

Also appearing in the issue as one of the nation's top 10 college women is Hochman's identical twin sister, Dafna, who is a senior at Harvard University and was cited by Glamour for her knowledge of and interest in world affairs, particularly Middle East politics.

"I got the news that we won when my sister e-mailed me in South Africa," says Hochman. "During my junior year, I was applying for any and every relevant scholarship, and suggesting different ones to my sister as well. While my main focus was on doing my work in South Africa, I have to admit that being picked by Glamour was sort of like the realization of every little girl's dream."

As a Glamour winner, the two Hochman sisters and eight other women chosen for the distinction were treated recently to a weekend in New York City, where they met an array of top female executives, entrepreneurs and others, including an ABC news correspondent and an up-and-coming filmmaker.

Each of the sisters, who are from Lexington, Massachusetts, was thrilled that the other had won the Glamour distinction. "Dafna is my biggest supporter, and when she does well, I feel that a part of me has succeeded, too," comments Hochman.

Their noncompetitive relationship changes a bit at Yale-Harvard football games, however, where they enjoy some sisterly -- and school -- rivalry. The two had resolved not to attend the same college, and while both sisters were interested in Yale, Hochman admits that she was fierce in her determination to be the one here. "Basically, we divided up a bunch of colleges and Yale was on my list," says Hochman. "When I came here to visit, I just loved it. So my sister went to Harvard by default."

On campus, Hochman has been involved in numerous Dwight Hall activities, including the Peace Games at Yale, which she directed last year. In addition, the Yale senior has served as public school intern at New Haven's Beecher School, where she helped coordinate the efforts of Yale volunteers, and has taught Hebrew to children at a school in Hamden for the past three years.

This year's Glamour winner says that every once in a while, someone asks why she wants to take on the hard work of being a teacher, which, she says, "is not viewed as a very glamorous job."

Her answer is, simply, that it is in the classroom that she can have the biggest impact on children's lives.

"Maybe I'm romantic about the American dream, but I really believe in the notion that education is the key to its achievement," says the future teacher. "I also think that educational reforms can go a long way toward solving some of society's most difficult problems."

After teaching for a few years, Hochman intends to use her Truman Scholarship for graduate study. She is interested in school reform and administration and social policy.

In the meantime, she's trying to make a difference in the lives of her students at Hillhouse High School, where she is a practice teacher this year. Hochman is teaching courses on American history and psychology, and devotes some of her spare time to helping students work on their college applications. Her evenings are filled planning lessons and correcting papers.

"I'm seeing for myself that teaching is very hard work," says Hochman. "At the end of the day, I'm tired; but it's a good kind of tired, knowing that I've contributed something valuable."

-- By Susan Gonzalez

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Glamour lauds senior for commitment to public education

Personalities overshadow issues in politics today, says journalist

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Students turn passion for education into teaching careers

Retrospective exhibit showcases works of British Pop artist

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