Oberlin College News & Features

Award-Winning Students Pursue Postgraduate Studies
2003-04 Fellowships, Grants, and Awards

July 7, 2004

Oberlin College graduates have long been the recipients of scholarships, grants, and fellowships to help with postgraduate studies. Many use the awards to pursue advanced degrees; others use the funding to pursue independent projects at home and abroad. Here are this year's additions to a proud Oberlin tradition.

JAVITS FELLOWSHIP—provides funding for four years of graduate study, as well as for conference attendance and summer research.

Javits Fellow (Kathleen) Cameron Wiggins '04, who majored in Russian and English, will pursue an MA and PhD in Russian literature next fall at either the University of California-Berkeley or the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is interning this summer at the Dostoevsky Literary Memorial Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, working with the documents and texts of Fyodor Dostoevsky.

WATSON FELLOWSHIP—provides a grant of $22,000 to college graduates of unusual promise for the purpose of engaging in a year of independent study and travel abroad following their graduation.

Watson Fellow Scott Ewart '04, an art history major from Newton, Massachusetts, will study architecture in Mali, Siberia, and Bangladesh to learn how the harsh environments have influenced the way people think about shelter and the strategies they have devised to make their regions habitable. "When I return to the U.S.," Ewart says, "I plan to apply to architecture schools and pursue a career in architecture and design."

Anthropology major Selina Morales '04 will travel to Mexico, Guatemala, India, and Brazil to explore the relationships between local food and storytelling. Her project, "Creole Cupboards: Improvisation and Strength in Local Kitchens," will investigate the way common histories have shaped oral tales and local foods.

MARSHALL SCHOLARSHIP—supports American students who have demonstrated academic excellence and leadership potential. This year more than 1,000 applicants vied for the coveted places, which are worth approximately $60,000 over two years of study at a university in the United Kingdom.

Chris Macklin '04, winner of Great Britain's 2004 Marshall Scholarship, is also one of two U.S. students selected this year to complete his doctorate at the National Institutes of Health (NIH); this is the first time the NIH has made this option available to Marshall winners. While in England, Macklin also plans to complete a master's degree in early music at York University.

FULBRIGHT GRANT—provides recipients with round-trip transportation, as well as funding for a full year of tuition and other related expenses.

Jill Lichtenwalner '04, winner of a 2004 Fulbright Grant, will spend the coming year studying 19th-century music history at the University of Bonn. Lichtenwalner, a percussion performance and music history major, will use the grant to explore comparisons between German and American approaches to music history. "Not only is Germany the birthplace of the music I want to study, it is the birthplace of musicology," says Lichtenwalner. "I'll be able to study German music in a traditionally German manner."

Fulbright Grant recipient Gabriel Cooper '04 will spend the coming year teaching English as a second language at the high-school level in Berlin. Cooper, who majored in German literature, also plans to investigate the relationships that exist between people from both sides of the formerly divided nation. "I want to find out if Germans still have preconceived notions of 'other' Germans," says Cooper. "It will be interesting to see what, if any, attitudes still exist this many years after the Berlin Wall coming down."

Jonathan Walton '04, winner of a 2004 Fulbright Grant, will spend the coming year at Nanjing University in China, studying the literature of the Taiping Rebellion era (1851-1864). Walton, who majored in East Asian studies, plans to compare Taiping literature to the writings of similar syncretic belief systems. He also plans to use his time in China to explore Oberlin's missionary past, as well as its strong connection to China.

German literature major Robin Ellis '04, also a recipient of a 2004 Fulbright Grant, will spend the coming year studying Germanic languages and literature at the Technische Universität Berlin.

COMPTON MENTOR FELLOWSHIP—promotes the creativity and commitment of graduating seniors to environmental and social issues, while providing guidance from a mentor within a similar field.

Eden Trenor '04 is returning to her hometown of Mukilteo, Washington, to start a local farmers market. The graduating senior recently received a $40,000 Compton Mentor Fellowship to fund the project, which she hopes will attract residents to Mukilteo's under-used downtown areas. "Mukilteo has changed for the worse in the past 22 years," Trenor says. "It's a bedroom community, with very little activity downtown. I hope that by creating a place to gather, we can generate a sense of community and build bridges between people." Trenor plans to remain in Mukilteo for the next three years to manage the market.

ANDREW W. MELLON FELLOWSHIP IN HUMANISTIC STUDIES—supports exceptionally promising students as they pursue advanced study in the disciplines of the humanities. The fellowship covers full graduate tuition and all required fees for the first year of graduate study, as well as a one-year stipend of $17,500.

Michael Gallope '04, a double-degree student who majored in piano performance and the visual arts, has been awarded an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship in Humanistic Studies. Gallope will enroll at New York University in the fall and begin working toward a PhD in musicology and ethnomusicology. "I'm thrilled to receive the Mellon," he says. "I want to write criticism that incorporates experimental music, complex music, and pop music in context with one other. This award will give me the extra year I need to focus on this type of writing."

Julia Irwin '04, who studied the history and philosophy of science, received an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship in Humanistic Studies. Irwin plans to pursue a PhD in the history of medicine and science at Yale University. "My education at Oberlin has been fabulous. Receiving the Mellon is a nice testament to what Oberlin has done for me in my four years here," Irwin says.

Lydia Barnett '03, who majored in history, was also awarded an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship in Humanistic Studies.