Hamilton Scholar Wins Truman
Update (October 2023) : Dewayne Martin, now a fourth year at Hamilton College, is Posse Miami’s first ever Truman Scholar, and the second-ever student — Posse or otherwise — from Hamilton College to win this prestigious award. Dewayne joins six other Posse alumni from across Posse nation to be selected for the program, which provides funding for graduate school. Named for President Harry Truman, the Truman Scholarship is meant to foster education in public affairs and is among the most competitive fellowships of its kind. Dewayne plans to use his Truman to study law and education at Harvard.
Dewayne Martin, a public policy major and history minor at Hamilton College, is spending his junior year studying abroad in England at the University of Oxford, Worcester College. Dewayne’s courseload includes classes on 20th century African American literature, organizational behavior and strategic marketing, and theories of justice and post-colonialism.
The opportunity to spend a semester overseas was made possible by a scholarship from the Fund for Education Abroad, which supports students who are underrepresented among the U.S. study abroad population.
"Getting to study in England and be immersed in another culture is amazing," says Dwayne. "I plan to use my time at Oxford to explore the possibility of a career in academia and to meet with activists and political players to learn as much as I can about different approaches to organizing."
“It has been an amazing community. If you need help, it's there.”
From as far back as he can remember, Dewayne has cared about social justice. In both middle school and high school, he started debate teams, which he saw as vehicles for community engagement.
“I used debate to lead and encourage others to contemplate how we reshape and create our own solutions to the issues in our communities,” Dewayne says.
During his senior year of high school, he founded Youth Education Coalition (YEC). Guided by the core values of awareness, action, and accountability, the nonprofit worked to give voice to Miami-area students on matters related to the school board.
As a college student, Dewayne has continued to grow as an organizer. He has co-led reproductive freedom protests on campus, participated in student government as a class representative and vice chair of residential life and served on the safety committee, where he advocated for additional parking.
As Dewayne continues his studies overseas, he recognizes the important role his Posse cohort, professors and administrators at Hamilton have played in his success.
“It has been an amazing community,” he says. “If you need help, it’s there.”
Dewayne will return to Hamilton for his senior year and is expected to graduate in 2024.
