ONIS Newsletter, January 2021

Publication Date
Friday, January 29, 2021

The ONIS newsletter is a semi-monthly record of news concerning applications for nationally and internationally competitive scholarships, primarily for undergraduates and primarily for the Twin Cities campus of the University of Minnesota. If you would like to have a copy emailed directly to you, please send a request to natschol@umn.edu. Follow ONIS on Twitter (@natscholUMTC) for the latest news and updates.

Minnesota’s Missing Marshall Scholar 

by Jen-chou “Cliff” Liu, Ph.D. candidate in English and Fulbright Scholar

If you stop by the Undergraduate Awards column along Scholars Walk, you will find three students recognized as Marshall Scholars: Annamarie Daley (1980), Susan Hough (1983) and Letisha Morgan (2000). Marshall Scholarships recognize 40 of the top students in the United States with two years of graduate study at British universities. Daley, Hough, Morgan, and Katie Lee—who turned down a Marshall to accept a Rhodes Scholarship in 2007—completed graduate degrees in economics, physics, race relations and biochemistry. But in the ONIS archive is a spreadsheet with the word “Recipient” noted in the column for the year 1964. No other information survives in our files or those we inherited, nor do the Marshall Commission’s online records go back to 1964. However, ONIS graduate fellow Cliff Liu put his research skills to work with newspaper archives and other sources to identify and provide this introduction to our missing scholar, Janna Thompson.

The referenced media source is missing and needs to be re-embedded.

Born in Faribault, Minnesota, Janna Thompson earned her B.A. at the University of Minnesota and became a Marshall Scholar in 1964 to study philosophy at Oxford University. On the then gender-segregated campus of Oxford, she became close friends with fellow Marshall Scholars Caroline Hibbard, Lydia Fakundiny, and Simone Reagor, who later became professors of history and English. After completing her master’s degree at Oxford, Thompson taught philosophy at Manchester University for four years before moving to Melbourne, Australia. She first taught at Monash University and then at La Trobe University, where she is now a professorial fellow.

As a philosopher, Thompson adopts a practical approach to philosophy, treating it as neither an intellectual game nor a search for the meaning of life. “If I ever believed that philosophy was a game,” she writes, “I would give it up. I would also give it up if I thought it was about the meaning of life. I don’t think life has a meaning. My interest in philosophy has always had a practical edge, which is why I gravitated to ethics and political philosophy after all the epistemology, logic and philosophy of language that I did in the early part of my career.” Her first book, Justice and World Order: A Philosophical Inquiry (1992), investigates the historical injustice to Aboriginal Australians, Native Americans, and African-Americans enslaved in the US. It was one of the first systematic studies of historical obligations, and she has published three more books on injustice, reparation, and ethics, including Taking Responsibility for the Past: Reparation and Historical Justice (2002). 

Contact ONIS is you are interested in applying for a Marshall Scholarship. The deadline to apply for a nomination to begin study in fall or 2022 is April 1.

Approaching Scholarship Deadlines

Scholarships with a campus deadline listed are ONIS priority scholarships with require a university nomination process. Students must consult with ONIS and submit a preliminary application for these awards. Scholarships with only a national deadline listed are ONIS supported scholarships. Students may apply directly for these awards, but ONIS is willing to support them with writing support and strategic advice.

Hollings Scholarship (Sophomores): $19K toward undergraduate educational expenses and a paid summer internship for students in marine biology, atmospheric science, water resources, environmental education and other areas related to the work of NOAA. Deadline: January 31 (national)

Foreign Affairs Information Technology Fellowship (Sophomores and seniors): $75K toward undergraduate or graduate educational expenses and two summer internships with the State Department for students in degree programs related to information technology. Deadline: February 1 (national)

Astronaut Scholarship (Sophomores and juniors):  $15K toward undergraduate educational expenses, a trip to ASF Innovators Expo, and professional mentoring for students in Science, Engineering or Mathematics. Deadline: February 8, 2021 (campus)

Katherine Sullivan Scholarship (Seniors*): Up to $15K toward the expenses of one year of immersive study abroad.  *Recipients must maintain undergraduate status during the tenure of the scholarship. Students who will have completed four years of undergraduate education will need to consult with an academic advisor about the feasibility and consequences of delaying graduation. Deadline: February 8, 2021 (campus)

NIH Undergraduate Scholarship (Students): Up to $20K/year and paid research training at NIH labs for students with exceptional financial need and interests in biomedical, behavioral, or health-related social science research. Deadline: March 17 (national)

Truman Scholarship (Sophomores): $30K for graduate education in a relevant field for students committed to careers in public service. Successful applicants will have demonstrated leadership skills and a substantial record of public service. Deadline: April 1 (campus)

Churchill Scholarship (Juniors, Seniors): All expenses for a one-year Masters degree in a STEM field at Cambridge University in 2022-23. The University may nominate two students with outstanding academic records and innovative research experience. Deadline: April 1 (campus)

Rhodes Scholarship (Juniors, Seniors): All expenses for two years of graduate studies in any discipline at the University of Oxford starting in fall 2022. Successful applicants will have outstanding academic records, demonstrated leadership skills, energy and commitment to serve the world’s needs, and a clearly articulated plan for study at Oxford. Deadline: April 1 (campus)

Marshall Scholarship (Juniors, Seniors): All expenses for two years of graduate studies in any discipline at one or more British universities starting in fall 2022. Successful applicants will have outstanding academic records, notable scholarly accomplishments, leadership experience, and a distinct rationale for studying in Britain. Deadline: April 1 (campus)