All four of Yale's applicants for Harry S. Truman Scholarships this year won the prestigious awards, giving Yale the most 2001 Truman Scholars among the nation's colleges and universities.
Earlier this year, Yale also boasted the highest number of U.S. Rhodes Scholarship winners.
The four Yale College juniors who were selected as Truman Scholars -- Melissa B. Felder, Jennifer H. Nou, Alan E. Schoenfeld and Sara J. Sternberg -- were among 79 students representing 51 colleges nationwide to win the coveted awards in recognition of their work in the public sector. They were chosen from 592 candidates nominated by 303 institutions across the country. Schools may nominate a maximum of four students for the award each year.
Winners are selected for their leadership potential, intellectual ability and likelihood of "making a difference." Recipients must be U.S. citizens, have outstanding communication skills, be in the top quarter of their class and be committed to careers in government or the not-for-profit sector.
Truman Scholarships provide $30,000 -- $3,000 for senior year and $27,000 for two or three years of graduate study. Scholars also receive priority admission and supplemental financial aid at some premier graduate institutions, leadership training, career and graduate school counseling, and special internship opportunities within the federal government.
All selected scholars will assemble on May 20 for a week-long leadership development program at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri, and receive their awards in a special ceremony at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, on May 27.
Profiles of Yale's winning students follow:
Melissa B. Felder, from New York, began studying American Sign Language at Gallaudet University for the Deaf. Hearing-impaired herself, she is currently pursuing an independent course of study in American Sign Language, hoping to attain fluency in order to assist her in her goals of becoming a deaf and disabled advocate and lawyer. She serves on the Yale Provost's Advisory Committee on Disabilities, and is a former coordinator of the Yale Women's Center. A women's and gender studies and history double major, her interests lie in the historical analysis of social movements.
Jennifer H. Nou, from Minnesota, is the outreach coordinator of the Yale Women's Center as well as the founder and coordinator of a New Haven service group dealing with domestic violence. She is also vice president of the Yale Mock Trial Association and a member of Phi Beta Kappa. As a double major in economics and political science, she has focused on political theory and welfare issues. Last summer, she worked at the American Embassy in Seoul, Korea, and has spent her summers in public service and learning.
Alan E. Schoenfeld, from New York, is following in the footsteps of his parents and sister -- all teachers in New York City public schools. He dedicated himself to improving public education in America's cities. For the past two and a half years, he worked with Project SAT/Future Bound, which prepared New Haven high school students for the Scholastic Aptitude Test and the college application process. He recently finished his term as editor-in-chief of The New Journal, a 33-year-old magazine about Yale and New Haven, and he works with a clinic escorting program at the local women's health services clinic and a General Equivalency Diploma preparation program at the community correctional center.
Sara J. Sternberg, from Connecticut, spent much of her time working to improve the child welfare system. She interned in the Child Protection Department of the Connecticut attorney general's office as well as in the Child Welfare office of New York City's public advocate. For the past two years, she was a court-appointed special monitor for children in placement, investigating each case and ultimately making recommendations about the residential placement and services for the child involved. In addition to being involved in a number of other urban issues, she is working at the New Haven Housing Authority and is serving on the Ward 1 Democratic Committee in New Haven. Ultimately, Sternberg hopes to use a law degree to help make the child welfare system a more supportive system that emphasizes a preventative approach.
Congress established the Harry S. Truman Foundation in 1975 as the federal memorial to the 33rd U.S. president. The foundation awards scholarships for college students to attend graduate school in preparation for careers in government or elsewhere in public service. The foundation's activities are supported by a special trust fund in the U.S. Treasury. Since the first awards were made in 1977, 2,089 Truman Scholars have been selected.
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