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Home > News & Events > CLA Today Archive > Spring 2006 : Truman Scholars Do International Service

Truman Scholars Do International Service

What has big dreams and four legs, each one firmly planted in a different part of the world?

Answer: Two Truman scholars. And together, these two CLA students—who met as freshmen and have been close friends ever since—have urged each other on and have even launched a nonprofit organization that connects volunteers with NGOs, especially in Africa.

The Truman Scholarship is awarded each year to approximately 75 college juniors nationwide who are committed to careers in public service. Truman Scholars must have outstanding academic records, demonstrated leadership skills and a history of engagement in community service, government, or political activism. The scholarship provides up to $30,000 for graduate or professional school, and carries a service commitment.

Rebecca Mitchell, a biology, society, and environment major who grew up in Chippewa Falls, Wis., plans to earn a combined doctorate and master's degree in public health and pursue a career in international health care and health policy. Her volunteer experiences last summer at a clinic and orphanage in Nakuru, Kenya, inspired her to focus on health issues in Africa, particularly those affecting women.

“I’ve seen the devastating consequences of lack of health care for women, including prenatal care,” says Mitchell. “And I’ve seen how hard they struggle for dignity and survival against unbelievably harsh conditions.”

“You will meet few 21-year-olds who possess the compassion, intellectual abilities, and leadership qualities that Rebecca does,” says Leonard Muyelele, principal of the Kenyan Pistis Academy and Orphanage, where Mitchell volunteered. “You will meet even fewer still who are already actively using these skills to better the lives of others every day and inspiring so many along the way to do the same.”

Joseph Walla, a summa candidate in political science from Edina, Minn., intends to earn a master's degree in public policy with a focus on international affairs. He will defer his graduate education, however, in order to complete a professional internship in Asia for the 2006–07 year as a recipient of another prestigious award, the Henry Luce Foundation Scholarship.

Walla, who interned with the State Department in Rome, is interested in developing creative solutions to entrenched conflicts. For his summa thesis, he is researching how water scarcity in the Middle East perpetuates the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and how increasing its supply could reinvigorate negotiations. In those rare moments when he's not buried in projects, Walla immerses himself in Jiu Jitsu, snowboarding, and traveling.

Political science professor Martin Sampson has high praise for Walla. “For many years, I have thought the United States needs to find subtle ways to change the atmospherics of the Israeli-Palestinian dispute without relying on face-to-face negotiations or changes in leadership on either side,” Sampson says. “Joseph Walla has found such an idea, one that had never occurred to me. I cannot recall being as fascinated by a student's original idea on a very complex policy issue as I am by [his proposal for the Truman Scholarship].”

Seven University of Minnesota–Twin Cities students have been awarded Truman Scholarships since 2000; 19 have won since the scholarship was established by an act of Congress in 1975.