뉴욕 출신 낸시 고(Nancy Ko, 20, 하버드대) 2017 로즈 장학생 선정

히브리어, 아랍어 능통...옥스포드대서 중동 역사 연구 계획

한국계 여학생 낸시 고(Nancy Ko, 20, 하버드대 4년)가 2017 로즈장학생(Rhodes Scholar) 32명 중 한명으로 선정됐다. 

스태튼아일랜드에서 제주도 이민자 가정(고대봉, 고연복)에서 태어나 브루클린 벤슨허스트로 이주해 성장했다. 낸시 고의 부모는 러시아계 유대인, 아랍계 이민자들이 몰려사는 동네에서 청과상회를 운영했다. 스타이브센트고교를 거쳐 하버드대에 조기전형으로 입학한 낸시 고는 김치를 먹으면서 유대어(히브리어)와 아랍어를 유창하게 구사한다. 옥스포드대학교에서 중동 근대사를 전공한 후 유대역사 교수를 희망하고 있다. 15살 때 아버지 고대봉씨가 뇌동맥질환으로 세상을 떠났다. 뜨개질과 달리기가 취미이다.

뉴욕 출신 로즈장학생은 낸시 고를 비롯, 마이아 실버(Maia Silber) , 사라 월처(Sarah Waltcher), 노아 렘닉(Noah Remnick) 등 4명이다. 2017 로즈 장학생엔 전국에서 약 900명이 지원했다. 로즈 장학생은 2-3년간 영국 옥스포드대에서 연구 비용을 받게 된다. 장학금은 연간 약 6만8000달러선이다. 

로즈 장학생은 영국의 자선사업가 세실 로즈(Cecil Rhodes)의 유언에 의해 설립된 로즈 장학재단(The Rhodes Trust)에서 매년 미국·독일·영연방 국가의 젊은이 85여명을 선발해 영국 옥스퍼드 대학교에서 무료로 공부할 기회를 주는 제도이다. 빌 클린턴 전 미 대통령, 빌 브래들리 전 상원의원, '타임'지 편집국장 월터 아이작슨, 페미니스트 학자 나오미 울프, 한국계 영화감독 그렉 박(Grg Pak), 코리 부커 전 뉴왁시장, 배우 미아 패로의 아들 로난 패로 등이 있다.

2017
RHODES SCHOLARS ANNOUNCED

 

WASHINGTON, DC/November 19, 2016 – Elliot F. Gerson, American Secretary of the

Rhodes Trust, today announced the names of the thirty-two American men and women chosen

as Rhodes Scholars representing the United States. Rhodes Scholarships provide all expenses for

two or three years of study at the University of Oxford in England and may allow funding in

some instances for four years. Mr. Gerson called the Rhodes Scholarships, "the oldest and best

known award for international study, and arguably the most famous academic award available to

American college graduates." They were created in 1902 by the Will of Cecil Rhodes, British

philanthropist and African colonial pioneer, and are provided in partnership with the Second

Century Founder, John McCall MacBain and other generous benefactors. The first class of

American Rhodes Scholars entered Oxford in 1904; those elected today will enter Oxford in

October 2017.

Rhodes Scholars are chosen in a two-stage process. First, applicants must be endorsed by their

college or university. This year approximately 2,500 students sought their institution’s

endorsement; 882 were endorsed by 311 different colleges and universities. Committees of

Selection in each of 16 U.S. districts then invite the strongest applicants to appear before them

Applicants are chosen on the basis of the criteria set down in the Will of Cecil Rhodes. These

criteria are first, academic excellence. This is a critical but only threshold condition. A Rhodes

Scholar should also have great personal energy, ambition for impact, and an ability to work with

others and to achieve one’s goals. In addition, a Rhodes Scholar should be committed to make a

strong difference for good in the world, be concerned for the welfare of others, and be conscious

of inequities. And finally, a Rhodes Scholar should show great promise of leadership. In short,

we seek outstanding young men and women of intellect, character, leadership and commitment

to service. Gerson said “these basic characteristics are directed at fulfilling Mr. Rhodes’s hopes

that the Rhodes Scholars would make an important and positive contribution throughout the

world. In Rhodes’s words, his Scholars should 'esteem the performance of public duties as their

highest aim.'"

Applicants in the United States may apply either through the state where they are legally

resident or where they have attended college for at least two years. The district committees met

separately, on Friday and Saturday, November 18 and 19 in cities across the country. Each

district committee made a final selection of two Rhodes Scholars from the candidates of the state

or states within the district. Two-hundred thirty applicants from 95 different colleges and

universities reached the final stage of the competition, including eight that had never before had

a student win a Rhodes Scholarship.

The thirty-two Rhodes Scholars chosen from the United States will join an international group

of Scholars chosen from eighteen other jurisdictions around the world. In addition to the thirtytwo

Americans, Scholars are also selected from Australia, Bermuda, Canada, China, the nations

of the Commonwealth Caribbean, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Jamaica, Kenya,

Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Southern Africa (South Africa, plus Botswana, Lesotho,

Malawi, Namibia and Swaziland), Syria/Jordan/Lebanon/Palestine, the United Arab Emirates,

Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Ninety-five Scholars will be selected worldwide this year, usually

including several who have attended American colleges and universities but who are not U.S.

citizens and who have applied through their home country.

With the elections announced today, 3,420 Americans have won Rhodes Scholarships,

representing 318 colleges and universities. Since 1976, women have been eligible to apply and

532 American women have now won the coveted scholarship. This year, women constituted

53% of the applicant pool—the first time in the history of the Rhodes Scholarships that more

women than men applied. Fifty-six percent of the finalists were women, and 18 of the winners

(56%), tying the record number from 1995. Nearly 2,000 American Rhodes Scholars are living

in all parts of the U.S. and abroad.

The value of the Rhodes Scholarship varies depending on the academic field and the

degree (B.A., master’s, doctoral) chosen. The Rhodes Trust pays all college and university fees,

provides a stipend to cover necessary expenses while in residence in Oxford as well as during

vacations, and transportation to and from England. The total value of the Scholarship averages

approximately US$68,000 per year, and up to as much as approximately US$250,000 for

Scholars who remain at Oxford for four years in certain departments.

The full list of the newly elected United States Rhodes Scholars, with the states from which they

were chosen, their home towns, and their American colleges or universities, follows. Brief

profiles follow the list.

American Rhodes Scholars-elect for 2017

(Subject to ratification by the Rhodes Trustees after acceptance by one of the colleges of Oxford University)

DISTRICT 1

Massachusetts

Joshua B. Pickar, Lexington, is in his final year at the University of Chicago Law School. He

graduated from The George Washington University, summa cum laude, with a double major in

international affairs and security policy in just two years. He speaks Russian, French and

Spanish, is learning German, Italian and Arabic, and plans a career in international law and

diplomacy. Josh has also studied in Japan, and worked in the office of then-Senator John

Kerry. He successfully advocated for an LGBT Iraqi refugee’s relocation to the United States

after he had been beaten by his family and exiled, and assisted the efforts of a deaf and mute

Honduran who had been tormented for his disabilities to gain American citizenship. At

Oxford, Josh will read for the M.Sc. in Global Governance and Diplomacy, followed by the

M.Sc. in Comparative Social Policy.

Massachusetts

Maia Silber, Cortlandt Manor, New York, is a senior at Harvard College, where she

concentrates in history and literature. She has won many leading prizes for her creative writing

as well as for her scholarship in English literature and American history. She is the chair of

the magazine of the Harvard Crimson, a writing tutor, and an investigative reporter who wrote

more than a dozen stories on drug addiction for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. She has also

written for the New York Times, Public Books, The Aperture Foundation, and Harvard Magazine.

Her work has helped urge public officials to make anti-overdose drugs more widely available.

She was also a research intern for Poetry in America. At Oxford, Maia plans to do the M.Phil.

in British and European History.

DISTRICT 2

New Hampshire

Sarah A. Waltcher, New York, New York, graduated from Dartmouth College in 2016 as

valedictorian. She is currently a Teaching Resident in sixth-grade science at Brooklyn Prospect

Charter School in New York City. An English major, she has taken her academic interests

into an array of community and activist projects, including non-profit organizations such as

Telling My Story and Breakthrough New York that bring teaching in the arts and literature to

underserved communities. Both her scholarly work and her work as a student activist at

Dartmouth have addressed issues including the environment, sexual violence, and race. Sarah

writes extensively and plans to pursue a degree in English at Oxford.

New Jersey

Laura A. Courchesne, Fair Haven, is a senior at the University of Georgia, where she majors

in economics and religion; she has a perfect academic record. She has conducted

destabilization, conflict, and peacekeeping research at Oxford, Princeton, and the U.S. Army

War College, has interned with the International Red Cross and at the Carter Center, and

has conducted fieldwork in Bali relating to terrorism. Combining perspectives from sociology,

anthropology, and organizational behavior, her thesis examines the impact of American drone

strikes on local communities in conflict zones. At Oxford, Laura plans to do the M.Sc. in

Social Anthropology, followed by the M.Sc. in Politics Research.

DISTRICT 3

New York

Nancy Ko, New York City, is a senior at Harvard College, where she concentrates in history

and Near Eastern languages and civilizations. The daughter of Korean immigrants, with

proficiency in both Hebrew and Arabic, as well as four additional languages, she is writing her

senior thesis on the political life of Jews in Iran during the Persian constitutional revolution of

1905. She is an organizer of Open Hillel, dedicated to promoting open discourse about Israel

and Palestine, and is one of the senior editors of the Harvard Undergraduate History Review. She

has won college and national awards in history, Jewish studies, and German language and

literature. She is also a skilled knitter and a marathoner. At Oxford, Nancy will do the M.Phil.

in Modern Middle Eastern Studies.

New York

Noah Remnick, New York City, graduated from Yale College in 2015 with a B.A. in History.

Since then, he has been a James Reston Fellow and reporter for the New York Times. He coauthored

the paper’s coverage of an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, provoking major

reforms in city inspection programs, and wrote an investigative article on persistent police

abuse of transgender people, prompting changes in police policy. While at Yale, he was editorin-chief

of The Politic, a staff writer for The Yale Herald, editor-in-chief of the Yale Historical

Review, and won many prizes for his writing. He is especially interested in issues of race and

urban politics. At Oxford, Noah intends to do an M.St. in American History and a Master of

Public Policy.

DISTRICT 4

Pennsylvania

Spencer D. Dunleavy, Philadelphia, is in his senior year at Harvard College, where he

concentrates in chemistry, with psychology as a secondary field. Spencer intends to pursue a

career in medicine, with a commitment to teaching and primary care; he attributes this

directly to his own family’s experience dealing with chronic illnesses. As Harvard’s Red Cross

director, he has taught CPR, first aid, and life support to more than one thousand people. He

founded a nonprofit organization, Raise Uganda Now, that has raised more than $30,000 for 

an orphanage. He is an avid intramural sports participant. At Oxford, he plans to read for an

M.Sc. in education, focusing on research design and methodology, and an M.Sc. by research

in Primary Health Care.

Pennsylvania

Meghan M. Shea, West Chester, is a senior at Stanford University, where she is majoring in

Environmental Systems Engineering. She is interested in biological oceanography, with a

focus on environmental DNA and microbial source tracking. Meghan has developed

innovative methods for water filtration and oil spill bioremediation, and has worked with

small-island developing states on climate change resiliency. Meghan plays in Stanford’s steel

pan drumming group and has volunteered for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. At Oxford,

Meghan will pursue an M.Phil. in Nature, Society, and Environmental Governance.

DISTRICT 5

Maryland/DC

Cameron D. Clarke, Richmond, Virginia, is a senior at Howard University, where he is a

double-major in community health education and biology. He is author of six publications

and lead author on five, and a certified EMT. As co-president of Howard’s chapter of the Peer

Health Exchange, he has worked tirelessly both at Howard and in local public and charter

schools as a health educator and peer leader. He is also a news editor of The Hilltop, Howard’s

student newspaper, and is currently a Congressional intern with the House Committee on

Science, Space, and Technology. In his career, he intends to combine biological anthropology,

public health, and medicine. At Oxford, he plans to read for the M.Sc. by research in Primary

Health Care.

Maryland/DC

Aryn A. Frazier, Laurel, is a senior at the University of Virginia, where she double-majors in

African-American and African Studies and the Honors Program of the Department of Politics.

Teachers and peers alike describe her as the most influential activist at the university. She

currently serves as president of the university’s Black Student Alliance, and has a long record

of political engagement with a range of organizations that includes Legal Aid Justice Center’s 

youth leadership program and multiple campaigns for elected office. She plans to read for the

M.Phil. in Comparative Politics at Oxford.

DISTRICT 6

Georgia

James C. Pavur, Atlanta, will graduate from Georgetown University in December with a BSFS

in science, technology, and international affairs. An inventor, his current project is to create a

sub-$100 computer-brain interface to help paralyzed and injured individuals type. He and

some friends collaborated to convert an abandoned physics laboratory into a workshop

dedicated to the development of new technologies. A junior member of Phi Beta Kappa, he

has won numerous awards at national hackathons, is a mentor for women coders, and is a

founding member of a creative writing club. He is especially interested in cyber policy. James

plans to do the D.Phil. in Cyber Security at Oxford.

South Carolina

Jory M. Fleming, Columbia, is a senior at the University of South Carolina, where he is

double-majoring in geography and marine science. He is interested in three-dimensional

mapping and data visualizations related to sea level rise, aquatic habitat, and underwater

archeology. Jory has worked on funded research projects for the National Oceanographic and

Atmospheric Administration, the National Park Service, and National Geographic. He has a

perfect academic record and has received numerous fellowships and awards, including the

Truman Scholarship and the Goldwater Scholarship. Jory’s extracurricular interests include

training service dogs, volunteering for a child literacy program, and church activities. At

Oxford, he will pursue an M.Phil. in Geography and the Environment.

DISTRICT 7

Florida

Lucinda M. Ford, St. Augustine, is in her final year at the United States Naval Academy,

where she majors in ocean engineering. During her time at the USNA, she has spent

significant time in both Singapore and Rwanda. She will take up a commission as a submarine 

officer upon graduation. 

Lucy sings in the Academy’s Women’s Glee Club, mentors young

people through the Arundel County Teen Court, and runs marathons, placing first in her age

group in the North Face Endurance Challenge. She plans to read for the M.Sc. in Nature,

Society, and Environmental Governance at Oxford.

Florida

Christian E. Nattiel, Madeira Beach, is a senior at the United States Military Academy, where

he is double-majoring in mathematical sciences and philosophy. He is interested in narratives

of struggle, social justice, and self-determination. Christian is president of the Cultural Affairs

Seminar, which champions diversity and inspires cadets through mentorship and tutoring.

He was awarded the Superintendent’s Award for Achievement, the Distinguished Cadet

Award, and the Black Engineer of the Year Award for Military Leadership. Christian is a

member of the men’s handball team. At Oxford, he will pursue an M.Sc. in Comparative

Social Policy, followed by the Master of Public Policy.

DISTRICT 8

Oklahoma

Kirk P. Smith, St. Louis, Missouri, is a senior at the University of Tulsa, where he majors in

mechanical engineering and is a Presidential Scholar. He has done clean energy research

there, at the Colorado School of Mines, and in Germany, where he investigated polymeric

solar thermal collectors. He is captain of the Tulsa Cross-Country Team, active in Big Brother

Big Sisters of Oklahoma, and built an electric car while in high school and an electric bicycle

while in college. Passionate about energy sustainability, at Oxford. Kirk plans to do a D.Phil.

in Engineering Science.

Texas

Mikaila V. Smith, Austin, will graduate next month from the University of Texas, where she

is a Presidential Scholar, with majors in social entrepreneurship and nonprofit management

and Chinese. Her research and career interests focus on international and long-term strategies

for refugee populations. She has done an environmental internship in Australia, U.S. State

Department-sponsored language study in China, and interned in a foreign policy think tank 

in Washington. 

She has been an active volunteer working with ranch animals, in a shelter for

victims of domestic violence, and with school-aged refugee children. She is also a certified yoga

teacher. Mikaila plans to begin her studies at Oxford with an M.Sc. in Refugee and Forced

Migration Studies, followed by an M.Sc. in Global Governance and Diplomacy.

DISTRICT 9

Indiana

Morgan K. Mohr, Bloomington, is a senior at Indiana University majoring in history and

political science. She is an avid campaigner for progressive issues and social justice, having

performed her first door-to-door canvassing campaign at age six. She has worked on a wide

array of local, state, and national political campaigns, including as director of operations for

John Hamilton’s mayoral campaign in Bloomington in 2015, and as a senior intern to the

Clinton Presidential campaign’s chief operating officer in 2016. At Indiana University,

Morgan founded two student groups committed to combatting injustice and volunteered with

Bloomington Planned Parenthood. She also interned at the U.S. Equal Employment

Opportunity Commission and at the White House in the Office of the First Lady. She will

pursue an M.Sc. in Comparative Social Policy at Oxford.

Indiana

Christa Grace Watkins, Milroy, is a senior at the University of Notre Dame majoring in

philosophy. She has gained national recognition for her work in sexual assault prevention,

legal and policy reform, and victim advocacy. Grace is a Truman Scholar and a member of

Notre Dame’s student government, where she founded the first support group for victims of

sexual violence. She serves as Chief Operating Officer and Head of Legal Affairs for Jubilee

Initiative for Financial Inclusion, a student-run organization that aims to replace predatory

payday lending with low-interest micro-loans and financial literacy classes. She also works with

a non-profit group building the first secondary school in the Jonglei State of South Sudan to

teach non-violence and entrepreneurship. She intends to pursue a D.Phil. in Socio-Legal

Studies at Oxford.

DISTRICT 10

Illinois

Olivia A. Klevorn, Chicago, is a senior at Yale College, where she majors in anthropology.

Active in the performing arts, she directs the Heritage Theatre Ensemble, which presents the

works of black artists, and is president of WORD, a student-run poetry association. Her

mother and grandmother were among the first African-Americans to move to Ferguson,

Missouri, when the city was virtually all white. Much of her academic work is focused on the

problem of disinvestment in low-income minority communities and the resultant inequality in

home ownership. At Oxford, Olivia intends to do a D.Phil. in Socio-Legal Studies.

Ohio

Pasquale S. Toscano, Kettering, is a senior at Washington and Lee University, where he is

majoring in English and Classics. He plans to embark on a career as a scholar of literature,

with a particular interest in literary reception. Pasquale was partially paralyzed in an accident

several years ago, and has developed a strong interest in studying disability in literature as he

worked on rebuilding his capacity to walk. His research has ranged across millennia and

considered, among other writers, the works of Virgil, John Milton, Phillis Wheatley, and

Marilynne Robinson. At Oxford, Pasquale intends to pursue one M.St. in Early Modern

English and a second M.St. in Classical Literature.

DISTRICT 11

Michigan

Aaron C. Robertson, Redford, is a senior at Princeton University, where he is majoring in

Italian. Aaron’s research focuses on transnationalism and linguistic exchange in Afro-Italian

literature. He is particularly interested in issues of authenticity, self-representation, and

translation in contemporary Afro-Italian biographies. Aaron serves as co-editor-in-chief of the

Nassau Literary Review and has written for the Detroit Metro Times and The Daily Princetonian.

He has also published a one-act play. Aaron was awarded the Gates Millennium Scholarship.

At Oxford, he will pursue an M.Phil. in Modern Languages.

Minnesota

Ahmed M. Ahmed, Rochester, is a senior at Cornell University majoring in biology. His

research in biochemistry has focused on the development of new synthetic strategies for

producing polymers. He has also performed laboratory work on the oncogenesis of the

Epstein-Barr virus and a study of brain plasticity at the University of Pennsylvania. Ahmed

serves as a student advisor in biology and a teaching assistant in biochemistry. In addition to

tutoring fellow students in organic and general chemistry, he mentors disadvantaged AfricanAmerican

students at Cornell, volunteered with Habitat for Humanity, and served with

Cornell’s Emergency Management Services. Ahmed is a first-generation Somali immigrant

whose family immigrated to the United States from a refugee camp in Kenya. He will pursue a

master’s degree in research in Organic and Medical Chemistry at Oxford.

DISTRICT 12

Arkansas

Lauren C. Jackson, Little Rock, is a senior at the University of Virginia, where she is majoring

in political and social thought. Lauren is interested in the intersection of media and

humanitarian policy, and has worked for CNN, the International Rescue Committee,

National Geographic, and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian

Affairs. She received a full merit scholarship the University of Virginia and a $20,000

Jefferson Public Citizens research grant to study post-genocidal PTSD in Rwanda. Lauren’s

extracurricular interests include cycling, hiking, graphic design, and photography. At Oxford,

she will pursue an M.Sc. in Global Governance and Diplomacy and an M.Sc. in Refugee and

Forced Migration Studies.

Kansas

Shegufta A. Huma, Bel Aire, is a senior at the University of Kansas, where she majors in

political science. A Bangladeshi immigrant and hijabi, she has served on the University Senate

since 2013, and was Vice President in 2015. She also founded the Imagine Coalition,

advocating for marginalized students, was president of the Muslim Student Association,

and served on the City of Lawrence Fair Housing Committee. She has won prizes for her

contributions to the University and for her scholarship in political science. She is fluent or

proficient in six languages, and was earlier recognized as one of the top 20 sophomores at the

University. She dreams “of restoring the United States’ role as a destination for vulnerable

people seeking refuge and solace for their suffering,” and is particularly dedicated to working

toward justice for Muslim immigrants. At Oxford, Shegufta plans to do the M.Sc. in Refugee

and Forced Migration Studies, followed by the Master of Public Policy.

DISTRICT 13

Colorado

Hannah K. Carrese, Colorado Springs, graduated from Yale University in May 2016, where

she majored in humanities. She studied classics, grand strategy, and statecraft in pursuit of her

focus on the nexus between political theory and human rights. Hannah has worked

extensively with refugees and victims of human trafficking in the United States and abroad.

She is currently on a fellowship in Mexico working on refugee and migration policy, and

working with an NGO, Sin Fronteras, helping to settle Central American refugees in Mexico,

and interviewing refugees and migrants in Mexico and the U.S. She is a classically trained

violinist and enjoys playing tennis, soccer, and hiking. At Oxford, Hannah will pursue an

M.Phil. in Politics.

South Dakota

Joshua Carter, Watertown, will graduate from Montana State University with dual degrees in

mechanical engineering and microbiology. His research has focused on the molecular

mechanisms of disease and the development of prosthetics, and he has authored several

articles in scientific journals, including Science. Josh serves as a volunteer with children with

disabilities at a local non-profit named Eagle Mount, leads the Bozeman Bike Kitchen that

builds bicycles for disadvantaged children, and is an avid outdoorsman and Eagle Scout. He

will pursue a master’s in Clinical Neuroscience at Oxford.

DISTRICT 14

Oregon

Pema M. McLaughlin, Portland, graduated from Reed College in May 2016, with a major in

religion. Raised in the Buddhist tradition, Pema’s thesis addressed whether traditional

Buddhist ritual and doctrine can serve the needs of modern Americans. Pema has also

conducted research on Daoism and on the role of women in the Nation of Islam. Pema is

proficient in Chinese and Tibetan, and intends to study Sanskrit. Pema volunteers for

Portland’s Books to Prisoners Program and the Children’s Book Bank. At Oxford, Pema will

pursue an M.Phil. in Buddhist Studies.

Washington

Anthony W. L. “Wilder” Wohns, Tacoma, graduated from Harvard University in 2016,

where he concentrated in human evolutionary biology, with computer science as a secondary

field; this year, he is reading for an M.A. in biological anthropology at the University of

Cambridge. Wilder runs avidly, cycles, and climbs mountains; he is also certified as a

Wilderness EMT. In addition, he plays the violin, is a black belt in taekwondo, speaks

Japanese proficiently, and has won prizes for his collections of books and maps. Wilder has a

strong interest in a research career working on computational genomics, which he ties to a

range of important issues in science, history, anthropology, and ethics; to this end, at Oxford,

he plans to read for a second bachelor’s degree in computer science and philosophy.

DISTRICT 15

Arizona

Oscar De Los Santos, Laveen, graduated from the University of Southern California in 2015

with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He is the son of Mexican immigrants. Oscar

graduated as a Truman Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa, with USC’s Order of the Laurel and Palm,

its highest honor, reserved for twenty undergraduates each year. The city council of Los

Angeles honored him as an emerging leader. He has served as an intern to the National

Economic Council and the House of Representatives, and worked as the youngest Florida

field organizer for the 2012 Obama campaign. Oscar is currently a lobbyist and manager of 

public policy for the Association of Arizona Food Banks, and in the 2015-16 academic year,

he taught English and social studies to sixth graders at the Champion South Mountain School

in Phoenix. He has a special interest in the theology of Reinhold Niebuhr; at Oxford, he plans

to read for a Master of Public Policy and an M.St. in Theology with a focus on Christian

ethics.

California-North

Alexis A. Doyle, Los Altos, is a senior at the University of Notre Dame, where she is doublemajoring

in biological sciences and international peace studies. She is interested in leveraging

partnerships and diverse viewpoints to generate better health outcomes. Alexis’s thesis focuses

on bipartisan approaches to evidence-based family planning in the United States. She has also

worked extensively in Guatemala on the prevention of parasitic infections, and led a team of

rural healthcare volunteers through the Appalachian Service Learning Program. Alexis’s

extracurricular activities include training guide dogs for the blind, long-distance running,

backpacking, and doing puzzles. At Oxford, Alexis will pursue the M.Sc. in Comparative

Social Policy.

DISTRICT 16

California - South

Nicole A. Mihelson, Fullerton, will graduate from Johns Hopkins University in December

2016, with a major in neuroscience. Her research focuses on the brain tumor glioblastoma

multiforme and the use of viruses for their tumor-fighting capacity. Nicole is also interested in

maternal mental health, childhood and adolescent nutrition, and social determinants of

health. Nicole has received numerous scholarships and research awards and has authored

multiple peer-reviewed publications. She is proficient in French, Hebrew, and Spanish. Her

extracurricular activities include salsa and merengue dancing, cooking, running, yoga, and

politics. At Oxford, Nicole will pursue a D.Phil. in Oncology.

California - South

Caylin L. Moore, Carson, is a senior at Texas Christian University majoring in economics.

He overcame poverty, homelessness, and an abusive father incarcerated on a life sentence 

for murder to become a campus leader and Division One football player at Marist and then

TCU. Caylin was selected to the Fulbright Summer Institute to study the trans-Atlantic slave

trade at University of Bristol and was chosen to attend the Public Policy and International

Affairs Junior Summer Institute at Princeton University. He is the founder and president of

“S.P.A.R.K.,” a youth outreach organization of student-athletes who encourage disadvantaged

children to attend college, as well as a volunteer for the Children’s Defense Fund. He will

pursue a Master of Public Policy at Oxford.