MIT student Megan Yamoah named Rhodes Scholar

Megan Yamoah, from Davis, California, is a senior majoring in physics and electrical engineering. The daughter of immigrants from Ghana and Thailand, she seeks to expand on her engineering background to tackle questions involving technology and international development. At Oxford, she will pursue an MPhil in economics to acquire knowledge in development economics and study how innovation can positively impact emerging economies.

A Goldwater Scholar with several first-author publications and a patent to her name, Yamoah has focused on the cutting edge of quantum computing. As a high school student, she conducted research in the Goldhaber-Gordon Laboratory at Stanford University. Since her freshman year at MIT, she has been assisting Professor William Oliver in the Engineering Quantum Systems Group in the Research Laboratory of Electronics. She also did a summer research internship in the Q Circuits Group at the École Normale Supérieure de Lyon. This past summer, Yamoah attended workshops for the MIT Regional Acceleration Program (REAP) where she connected with diverse stakeholders from around the world on developing initiatives for spurring innovation.

As president of the MIT chapter of the Society of Physics Students, Yamoah worked to develop a physics department statement of values, the first of its kind at MIT. She is an executive board member of Undergraduate Women in Physics and has served multiple roles in the Society of Women Engineers. As a project committee member for MIT Design for America, Yamoah organized workshops for teams creating technology-based solutions for local challenges such as food insecurity.

Ole Miss student Arielle Hudson named Rhodes Scholar

An Ole Miss senior is making history as the university’s first African-American female Rhodes Scholar.

Arielle Hudson is an education major at Ole Miss and in late November was chosen as one of 32 candidates from across the US to participate in the prestigious global program at the University of Oxford in the UK.

Hudson said she’s still stunned that she’s a Rhodes Scholar. Hudson becomes Ole Miss’ 27th Rhodes Scholar and the university’s first African-American woman to receive the honor.

“To be the first African-American woman, it shows how much progress is being made not only in Mississippi but also within our world,” she said.

Hudson is a second-generation Ole Miss student, studying secondary English Education. She’ll head to the University of Oxford for two years to earn dual master’s degrees and then return to Mississippi to teach for five years, as part of her undergraduate scholarship requirement.

Arielle Hudson graduates from Ole Miss in May, and she’ll head over to the UK to begin her studies in Oxford in fall 2020.

A Record Year for African American Rhodes Scholars

(L to R) Cameron D. Clarke, Aryn A. Frazier, Christian E. Nattiel, Olivia A. Klevorn, Aaron C. Robertson, Ahmed M. Ahmed, and Cailyn L. Moore

The Rhodes Trust does not publicize the race or ethnicity of scholarship winners. But according to the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education it appears that this year seven of the 32 Rhodes winners are African Americans. This is the most African American Rhodes Scholars in history.

Following are brief biographies of the African American winners.

Cameron D. Clarke is a senior at Howard University in Washington, D.C. He is the fourth Howard student to win a Rhodes Scholarship. Clarke is majoring in community health education and biology. He is the news editor of the student newspaper at Howard and serves as an intern for the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology at the U.S. House of Representatives. Clarke plans to study for a master’s degree in primary health care at Oxford.

Aryn A. Frazier is a senior at the University of Virginia, where she is double majoring in politics and African American and African studies. Frazier is president of the Black Student Alliance at the university. Frazier, a resident of Laurel, Maryland, plans to study for a master’s degree in comparative politics at Oxford.

Christian E. Nattiel from Madeira Beach, Florida, is a senior at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. At West Point, Nattiel is double-majoring in mathematical sciences and philosophy and is a member of the academy’s handball team. At Oxford, Nattiel will study for master’s degrees in comparative social policy and public policy.

Olivia A. Klevorn is a senior at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. A native of Chicago, Klevorn is majoring in anthropology. At Yale, Klevorn is the director of the Heritage Theatre Ensemble and president of a student-run poetry association. She will study for a Ph.D. in socio-legal studies at Oxford.

Aaron C. Robertson of Redford, Michigan, is a senior at Princeton University in New Jersey. He is majoring in Italian and focuses his research on Afro-Italian literature. At Princeton, he is the co-editor-in-chief of the Nassau Literary Review. Robertson plans to pursue a master’s degree in modern languages at Oxford.

Ahmed M. Ahmed is a biology major at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. He is a resident of Rochester, Minnesota. His research is focused on the development of new synthetic strategies for producing polymers. He is the son of immigrants from Somalia. Ahmed will study for a master’s degree in organic and medical chemistry at Oxford.

Cailyn L. Moore is a member of the football team at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. A resident of Carson, California, Moore is majoring in economics at TCU. He was raised in poverty and was homeless. His father was convicted to a life sentence for murder. Moore is the founder of an organization of student athletes who encourage children from disadvantaged groups to attend college. He will study public policy as a Rhodes Scholar.

[SOURCE]

Meet Cameron Clarke: Howard University's Fourth Rhodes Scholar

Howard University President Frederick announces another Rhodes Scholar to add to its legacy of producing Rhodes Scholarship recipients.

Cameron Clarke has been selected as one of 32 students nationwide to receive the prestigious 2017 Rhodes Scholarship.  Clarke is a double biology and community health major from Jersey City, New Jersey, living in Richmond, Virginia.

When he first enrolled at Howard University in the fall of 2013, Clarke arrived on campus as a high achiever with 42 advanced placement credits.  Clarke’s mother played an instrumental role in encouraging him to attend the University.

“I was hesitant at first because I didn’t want to look like I was following my older brother to college, who is a 2016 graduate of Howard,” said Clarke.  “My mom was the one who persuaded me to even visit.  It wasn’t until I arrived on campus for the Weekend at Mecca that I realized how much black intelligence was on this campus.  Some of the smartest, most dynamic people I had ever met were here in the same place.”

It was that moment that reassured Clarke that he was at the right place to take advantage of the numerous scholastic and research opportunities the University offered.

As a researcher at Howard University’s W. Montague Cobb Research Laboratory that maintains a national repository for African-American skeletal remains, Clarke has assisted in developing a database to combine information for the Cobb collection and the New York City African Burial Ground.

“Howard’s secret is that it has as many, if not more opportunities than a lot of Ivy League schools,” said Clarke.  “You have a lot of professors within your departments who will allow you to conduct independent research and gain publication experience as an undergraduate, which is amazing for both graduate school applications and your own intellectual development.”

With multiple research experiences already to his credit, Clarke has participated in faculty-led research at Bahir Dar University in Ethiopia through a Howard-National Science Foundation grant, in addition to studying at Columbia University’s School of Public Health.  This summer, Clarke conducted research at the National Institutes of Health’s Center for Cancer Research, as an Amgen Scholar.  Currently he works as an intern in the U.S. House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, conducting science policy research for members and staff.

“This is definitely a great opportunity,” said Clarke.  “I’m ecstatic to receive this honor, and to have the chance to study primary health care and public health.”                                            

After graduating from Howard next summer, Clarke will undergo a two-year program at the University of Oxford in England.  Ultimately, Clarke plans on going to medical school, working in public health policy and doing clinical research.

“We are extremely proud of Mr. Clarke's accomplishment,” said President Frederick.  “Mr. Clarke's academic pursuits will lead to solutions in the broader society that are needed ever more so today. Cameron is the epitome of Howard University's gift of solutions to the world.”

The Rhodes Scholarship program is designed to provide special educational opportunities for future world leaders over a two-year period at Oxford University in England.  Only 32 scholars (two from each of the 16 U.S. districts) are selected annually, based on scholastic achievement, leadership ability, strength of character and physical vigor among other qualifications.  Once admitted to Oxford University, Rhodes Scholars have the opportunity to read for the Oxford B.A. in any of a number of subjects or may be admitted to read for a higher degree. In some cases, study is extended to a third year.

“We are excited to add Mr. Clarke to our Rhodes Scholarship-caliber of students. He will be our fourth Rhodes Scholar that now includes scholars such as Mark Alleyne (1986), Carla Peterman (1999), and Marianna Ofosu (2003),” said President Frederick.

Media contact:

Assistant Director, Media Relations

Anthony Owens

anthony.owens@howard.edu

(202) 870-9208

5 African Americans Named Rhodes Scholars

[SOURCE] Every year the Rhodes Trust awards exceptional postgraduate students with a scholarship to pursue studies in all fields at the prestigious University of Oxford, the oldest university in the English-speaking world. The competition for the coveted honor is tough, but this year, five of the 32 scholarships awarded to Americans went to African-Americans.

The five talented students are:

Robert A. Fisher (pictured far left): A senior at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga majoring in political science, Fisher, who is also his school’s student body president, has managed to maintain a perfect academic record. He plans on pursuing a Master’s in comparative social policy.

Rachel Harmon (pictured second from left): The Champaign, Ill., resident attends Cornell University and is in her senior year. Majoring in industrial and labor relations, Harmon plans on getting her Master’s in social policy.

Ridwan Y. Hassen (pictured third from left): In his last year at Dartmouth College majoring in computer science with an emphasis on neuroscience, Hassen’s parents are Somalian and Ethiopian refugees. The young member of his school’s Endurance Racing Team plans on furthering his studies by obtaining a Master’s in public policy.

Tayo A. Sanders (pictured second from right): Sanders, who is a University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire senior who is majoring in Materials Science, is no stranger to scholarships. He is the recipient of the prestigious Goldwater Scholarship and has already done research at the University of Strasbourg in France. Sanders wants to obtain a Ph.D. also on materials science at Oxford.

Sarah E. Yermina (pictured far right): As a Princeton University senior majoring in sociology, Yermina wants to enter the two-year Master’s program in politics at Oxford then pursue a J.D./Ph.D. to become a law professor.