About Us
March 15, 2018
Announcing the 50th Class of Thomas J. Watson Fellows
New York, New York (March 15th, 2018) – Continuing its tradition of expanding the vision and developing the potential of remarkable students, today the Watson Foundation announced its 50th Class of Thomas J. Watson Fellows. The Watson provides a year of unparalleled international discovery for select graduating college seniors in any discipline.
This year's class hails from 8 countries and 17 states. They'll travel to 67 countries exploring topics ranging from foster care to opera; from the Cambrian Explosion to human augmentation; from threatened big cat species to spoken word. “This year we celebrate a half century of investing in remarkable students and the vivid value that has been provided by the program over five decades. Watson Fellows have gone on to argue America’s most influential education legislation before the US Supreme Court, reinvent affordable housing, journalism, Broadway, contemporary music, computing and data science, and change how we think about the earth’s formation. The importance of investing in young leaders has only grown over the last fifty years and we are thrilled by the aspirations, courage and creativity of this landmark class,” said Chris Kasabach, Executive Director of the Watson Foundation.
Watson awardees come from private 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 and college loan assistance as needed.
About the Watson Foundation
In 1961, the Watson Foundation was created as a charitable trust in the name Thomas J. Watson Sr, best known for building IBM. Through one-of-a-kind programs, and over 100 global partnerships, the Foundation provides students with personal, professional and cultural opportunities that expand their vision, test and develop their potential, and build their confidence and perspective do so for others.
About the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship
Nearly 3000 Watson Fellows have been named since the inaugural class went abroad in 1969. 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 global leaders in their fields including CEOs of major corporations, college presidents, Emmy, Grammy and Oscar Award winners, Pulitzer Prize awardees, artists, diplomats, doctors, faculty, journalists, lawyers, politicians, researchers and inspiring influencers around the world.
2018 THOMAS J. WATSON FELLOWS
Nisreen Abo-Sido, Wellesley College
Lucrecia Aguilar, Rice University
Tosin Alliyu, Haverford College
Zuhra Amini, Whitman College
Jennifer Bitterly, Rhodes College
CJ Blair, Oberlin College
Elijah Cauley, Lawrence University
Benjamin Charo, Swarthmore College
Tina Chen, Middlebury College
Artis Curiskis, Grinnell College
Ellie Ellis, Pitzer College
Hans Han, Wellesley College
Rob Hefferon, Williams College
Theo Hooker, Colorado College
Carol Hundal, Wellesley College
Lam Huynh, Harvey Mudd College
Owen Janson, Haverford College
Benard Kibet, Colby College
Leo McElroy, Middlebury College
Lina Mihret, Scripps College
Thobeka Mnisi, Oberlin College
Kureem Nugent, Hamilton College
Isabel O'Malley, Hamilton College
Paula Ortiz, Hamilton College
Marquis Palmer, Hamilton College
Sierra Ponthier, Davidson College
Mohamed Ramy, Amherst College
Devin Reese, Whitman College
Keaohuana'oli Rivera-leong, University of Puget Sound
Wilmary Rodriguez, Bard College
Lucas Rosa, Wheaton College
Sunaina Sherchan, Berea College
Sanam Sheriff, Bryn Mawr College
Nomalanga Shields, Grinnell College
Emily Stanford, Oberlin College
Nevan Swanson, Bowdoin College
Madeline Sy, Scripps College
Fatoumta Sylla, Bryn Mawr College
Michelle Wang, California Institute of Technology
Elizabeth Zhou, Middlebury College