March 5, 1997
Smith Students Are Recipients of Prestigious Awards
Two Smith women, one a current student and one a recent alumna,
have received prestigious international awards: Joanna Slater
of Toronto, a senior at Smith, is the recipient of a Luce Scholarship,
and Angela Lwiindi Leila Hassan, a native of Zambia who graduated
from Smith in 1994, has been awarded a Rhodes Scholarship.
The Rhodes Scholarship, the oldest international fellowship,
provides for two years of study, sometimes renewable for a third
year, at Oxford University in England. The Luce Scholarships,
for outstanding young women and men who wish to have an intensive
experience in Asia and who would not, during the normal course
of their careers, expect to have such exposure, offers a year
of study, work and travel in East Asia.
One of the requirements for a successful applicant for a Luce
Scholarship is that she have "a clearly defined career interest
in a specific field." Slater's interest-and experience-is
exceptionally well-defined for someone who has not yet graduated
from college. Over the past several years, she has held summer
internships in the Canadian bureau of the Washington Post and
at Harper's magazine; last year, while spending the year in France
on Smith's junior year abroad program, she interned at the Paris
bureau of Newsweek; and, in the fall, having returned to Smith
for her senior year, she interned with the Daily Hampshire Gazette,
the daily newspaper in Northampton.
The Luce organization matches scholars to appropriate placements
in their area of interest. Slater expects to work at an English
language publication, perhaps in Hong Kong, Korea or Taiwan.
A comparative literature major at Smith, she has extensive ties
to the college; her grandmother, mother and aunt are all Smith
graduates.
Although Smith does not have current information about Hassan,
friends who have kept in touch with her say that, since graduation,
she has been a labor organizer in Hawaii, Chicago and, most recently,
in Miami. A sociology major at Smith, she is planning to get
her Ph. D. in development economics at Oxford, she told Smith
senior Yewande James of Guyana in a recent postcard message mailed
from Zimbabwe, where she is visiting family.
"These awards are an indication of the talent and intelligence
of Smith students, and a testament to the mentorship of outstanding
faculty. We are exceedingly proud of what Joanna Slater and Angela
Hassan have accomplished," said Smith College President
Ruth Simmons.
The Rhodes Scholarship, initiated in 1902, supports students
from 19 countries and five continents at Oxford. This year, 32
Rhodes Scholarships are held by United States citizens; only
one student from Zambia is a Rhodes Scholar. Students from Canada,
Australia, South Africa, Germany, India, New Zealand, Zimbabwe,
Bermuda, Hong Kong, Jamaica, Kenya, Malaysia, Malta, Pakistan,
Singapore and Uganda also have Rhodes Scholarships this year.
Both scholarships provide generous financial support for recipients
who are expected to present not only an outstanding academic
record but also evidence of significant potential for leadership
and accomplishment in the future.
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