About Us
March 15, 2016
2016 Thomas J. Watson Fellowship Press Release
INTRODUCING THE 2016 WATSON FELLOWS
New York, New York (March 15th, 2016) – Continuing its tradition of expanding the vision and developing the potential of promising students, today the Watson Foundation announced its 48th class of Thomas J. Watson Fellows. The Watson provides a year of unparalleled international exploration for select graduating college seniors in any field.
This year's class comes from eight countries and 21 states. They'll traverse 67 countries exploring topics ranging from climate change to incarceration; from technological empowerment to forced migration; from car culture to ethnoentomology. "This is a remarkable group," said Chris Kasabach, Executive Director of the Watson Foundation. "Each fellow has taken a deep, organic interest, and turned it into a bold, global through line."
Watson awardees come from select private liberal arts colleges and universities across the United States. From the program's 40 partner institutions, 152 finalists were nominated to compete on the national level from which 40 Fellows were selected. Fellows will receive $30,000 for twelve-months of travel, college loan assistance as applicable, and a health insurance allowance.
About the Watson Foundation
In 1961 the Foundation was established as a charitable trust by Mrs. Jeannette K. Watson in honor of her late husband, Thomas J. Watson, the founder of IBM. In 1968, in recognition of Mr. and Mrs. Watson's long-standing interest in education and world affairs, their children decided that the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship Program should constitute a major activity of the Foundation. In 2015, the Foundation structured as a public-facing foundation, unifying its program activities under Watson Foundation.
About the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship
Over 2,800 Watsons have been named since the Fellowship's founding in 1968. A Watson Year provides fellows with an opportunity to test their aspirations, abilities and perseverance through a personal project that is cultivated on an international scale. Watson Fellows have gone on to become international leaders in their fields including CEOs of major corporations, college presidents, Grammy winners, MacArthur grant recipients, Pulitzer Prize awardees, diplomats, artists, lawyers, doctors, faculty, journalists, and many renowned researchers and innovators.
2016 THOMAS J. WATSON FELLOWS
Natasha Allen Harvey Mudd
Lane Atmore Grinnell College
Daniel Bateyko Middlebury College
Chase Booth Grinnell College
Mercer Borris Swarthmore College
Jesse Bossingham Swarthmore College
Alyssa Brody Wellesley College
Aleksandra Burshteyn Amherst College
Ian Calaway Macalester College
Benjamin Clark Middlebury College
Kira Clingen Rice University
Gaela Dennison-Leonard Hamilton College
Harrison Goodall Pomona College
Alexandra Goss Pomona College
Tess Hamilton Bowdoin College
Noah Hamlish Wesleyan University
Galen Hecht College of the Atlantic
Laura Humes Macalester College
Moondil Jahan Berea College
Srilekha Jandhyala Pitzer College
Lara Johnson Rhodes College
Xzavier Killings Davidson College
Mariya Krutkova Haverford College
Lauren Lyons Sewanee: University of the South
Chando Mapoma Wesleyan University
Parwana Mohammad Colby College
Javon Mullings Wheaton College
Mishel Mussali Earlham College
Anna Nichols Pitzer College
Motlatsi Nkhahle Middlebury College
Alec Rotunda Davidson College
Vera Rudi Oberlin College
Kelsey Schober Bates College
Jessa Thurman Hendrix College
Erica Veazey Bates College
Anders Villalta Oberlin College
Htoo Wai Htet Union College
Benjamin Walker Amherst College
Benjamin Wesley Hamilton College
Rasha Younes Bryn Mawr College