NEW: Brown Scores Four Students for Rhodes Scholarships

NEW: Brown Scores Four Students for Rhodes Scholarships

Elliot F. Gerson, American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust, today announced the names of the thirty-two American men and women chosen as Rhodes Scholars representing the United States. Rhodes Scholarships provide all expenses for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford in England, and may allow funding in some instances for four years. Mr. Gerson called the Rhodes Scholarships, "the oldest and best known award for international study, and arguably the most famous academic award available to American college graduates."

They were created in 1902 by the Will of Cecil Rhodes, British philanthropist and African colonial pioneer. The first class of American Rhodes Scholars entered Oxford in 1904; those elected will enter Oxford in October 2012.

The four Brown Rhode Scholars are:

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Emma F. LeBlanc, graduated from Brown in June with a B.A. in sociology. She is also pursuing a master of fine arts in fiction at Southern New Hampshire University where she is writing a novel. She now lives near Damascus, Syria, where she is doing research on Syria’s marginalized Bedouin community. She is an accomplished photographer with many public exhibitions and has published over 40 articles and photographs. At Oxford, Emma plans to do a doctorate in social and cultural anthropology.

David S. Poritz, is a senior at Brown majoring in anthropology and Latin American and Caribbean studies. A Truman Scholar, David started and maintains two organizations focused on the environmental effects of the oil industry on the lives of people in the Amazon. One developed a certification system for environmental and social standards and the other supports more rigorous environmental regulation. At Oxford, he plans to do the M.Phil. in Latin American studies.

Nabeel N. Gillani, is a senior at Brown majoring in applied mathematics and computer science. Nabeel has also served as a research assistant on a biotechnology project, as a Microsoft project manager, and is working now at Brown’s optimization lab on electricity restoration for disaster relief. He founded a Providence-based microfinance organization as well as an outreach program in the Providence public schools to help younger students learn math. At Oxford he plans to do the M.Sc. in computer science and the M.Sc. in education.

Brianna R. Doherty, is a senior at Brown where she will receive a B.Sc. in cognitive neuroscience. Much of her work there is to understand how autism spectrum disorders affect the ability of children to feel empathy to others. Brianna is also a painter, a DJ, and a dancer, and studied art history in Florence. She is a peer advisor and a leader of the Brown outdoor leadership program and a certified wilderness first responder. Brianna will do the M.Sc. in experimental psychology at Oxford.