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Undergraduate wins prestigious Truman Scholarship

April 10, 2006

When the university chancellor comes to visit one of your classes unannounced and calls you out by name, it makes for a nervous moment.

But for Julie Curti, a University of Wisconsin–Madison senior majoring in political science and geography, anxiety quickly turned to joy when Chancellor John D. Wiley announced in one of her political science classes that she was one of just 75 students nationally named as a Truman Scholar.

“It was really nice, and definitely surprising,” says Curti, of Plover, Wis. “It was a pretty special way to find out.”

The Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, established by Congress in 1975, awards $30,000 scholarships for college students to attend graduate school in preparation for careers in government or elsewhere in public service.

After being selected as a finalist, Curti was interviewed by a panel of judges at the Federal Reserve Bank in Chicago. Judging panels typically include university presidents, federal judges, other public servants and past scholarship winners.

“The interview was really rigorous. Basically, for 20 minutes, six experienced public policy professionals fired questions at me,” says Curti, who was judged on the basis of leadership potential, intellectual ability and the likelihood of “making a difference.”

Graham Wilson, chair of the Department of Political Science, says the scholarship recognizes Curti’s exceptional talents and leadership skills.

“Julie is a great student, and her winning this prestigious award brings honor to our university,” Wilson says.

As a sophomore, Curti interned for the Computer TakeBack Campaign, a national effort to pass electronics recycling legislation. She spent her junior year studying in Bonn, Germany, where she gained a strong appreciation for that nation’s progressive urban planning and environmental policies.

She hopes to use the scholarship to pursue dual master’s degrees in urban planning and public affairs. But before she plunges into graduate school, Curti plans to spend a year volunteering with Americorps.

“In the program, groups of eight to 10 young people travel through a region of the country working on public service projects that range from tutoring in inner cities to working in national parks and helping with disaster relief,” Curti says. “I think it would be a great experience and allow me to learn more about urban planning and public affairs on ground.”

Curti is the first UW–Madison student to be named a Truman Scholar since 2000 and the 12th since the program’s inception.