Boston Scholars and Alumni Awarded Prestigious Fellowships

Posse Scholars and alumni from Boston have been awarded a record-breaking number of fellowships this year. Five Scholars received the Gilman International Scholarship, which supports students in study or internships abroad. Posse Boston alumni have been recognized by the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation’s Career Enhancement Fellowship, and the Ford Foundation Fellowship, among other awards and opportunities.

Posse alumni Jaemin Woo (Hamilton College) and Jose Valera (Bucknell University) were each awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. The highly coveted opportunity is awarded annually to exceptional students pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees in the natural, social, and engineering sciences.

“The NSF fellowship will support my doctoral studies in economics at Brown University.”

“The NSF fellowship will support my doctoral studies in economics at Brown University, where I will focus on studying the relationships between culture, institutions, and economic outcomes,” says Jaemin. “One of my projects will study the determinants of our altruistic behaviors and their effects on our preferences for redistribution. My Posse mentor at Hamilton, Ann Owen—who greatly influenced me to pursue a Ph.D. in economics—encouraged me to apply for this fellowship.”

Lillian Mengesha, a Bryn Mawr Posse alumna, was recently awarded the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation’s Career Enhancement Fellowship.

“I’ve known about the Institute for Citizens and Scholars for a long time, especially through the networks I created during my time as a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow at Bryn Mawr,” says Lillian. She is currently the Fletcher Foundation Assistant Professor of Dramatic Literature at Tufts University, where she teaches and researches topics related to performance theory, critical Indigenous studies, and gender and sexuality studies.

Career-enhancing achievements and awards give Posse Scholars and alumni unique, hands-on experiences in their respective fields, opening up new doors to future growth. Posse initiatives like the Career Program and Graduate + Fellowships Program, in addition to college campus resources, work to identify well-matched opportunities for students and graduates alike.