For more information on the All-USA College Academic Team check out www.usatoday.com/life/academic/intro.htm

Ben Hood

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — USA Today announced its 2002 All-USA College Academic Team today, which included University of Arkansas senior Ben Hood as a First Team selection and senior Jared Henderson as an honorable mention.

"I am proud to be named to a USA Today academic team and to join the ranks of former UA students such as Warwick Sabin and Anna Terry," Hood said. "With the USA Today (award), I know that the U of A has prepared me well enough to compete with the nation's best students, and for that, I am eternally grateful."

Top students are recognized by the USA Today All-USA College Academic Team each year, and Hood is the first UA student to make the first team. Thousands apply each year, and it is quite an honor to be selected as one of the top 100 scholars. Students are chosen based on their grades, awards, activities, leadership roles and public service.

"What a milestone achievement for Ben Hood and the University of Arkansas," said UA Chancellor John A. White. "To be selected to the USA Today All-USA College Academic Team is such a commendable achievement in itself, not to mention being placed on the First Team. He hit the ground running as a freshman and hasn't let up since. Ben is an extraordinary person; he is sharp, he is curious, he makes connections across disciplines and he is tireless. We are very fortunate that he chose to attend the University of Arkansas."

Hood is the son of Ted and Melinda Hood of Salem Community near Benton. He will receive two degrees in May, one in computer science engineering and an honors degree in physics from the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

"I am very pleased, but actually not surprised, that Ben made the All-College team," said Claud Lacy, professor of physics in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences and Hood's astronomy mentor. "He is the most impressive undergraduate student I have ever had the pleasure to mentor. He is leading so many projects on the campus and beyond that I think he probably doesn't have any time to sleep. We are fortunate to have such a dynamic student on our campus."

Henderson is the son of Dennis and Rebecca Henderson of Springdale. He will receive his honors degree in May in physics and has already received a job offer from one of the Rhodes Scholarship panelists. Henderson was a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship last fall, and when interviewing for the scholarship, one of the panelists was so impressed with him, he was offered a job after graduation.

"Though Jared did not receive the Rhodes Scholarship, the story had a very happy ending. Jared was one of only two graduating seniors in the country to be hired by that particular corporation this year," said Suzanne McCray, Office of Post-Graduate Fellowships director. "We tell our students that the benefits of applying for national scholarships reaches far beyond winning or losing, and Jared's experience makes that clear. Jared is an academically stellar student who also has a strong sense of community responsibility. He will represent the University of Arkansas well in the years to come."

Rhodes Scholarships provide two or three years of study at the University of Oxford in England. The Will of Cecil Rhodes, British philanthropist and colonial pioneer created the Rhodes Scholarships, oldest of the international study awards available to American students, in 1902. They are chosen in a three-stage process. First, their college or university must endorse candidates. Committees of Selection in each of the 50 states then nominate candidates who are interviewed by District Selection Committees in eight regions of the United States.

Applicants are chosen on the basis of the criteria set down in the Will of Cecil Rhodes. These criteria are high academic achievement, integrity of character, a spirit of unselfishness, respect for others, potential for leadership and physical vigor. These basic characteristics are directed at fulfilling Mr. Rhodes's hopes that the Rhodes Scholars would make an effective and positive contribution throughout the world. As he wrote, Rhodes Scholars should "esteem the performance of public duties as their highest aim."

Henderson also worked for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration through an internship from his NASA Academy Research Scholarship at Goddard Space Flight.

Hood is the only UA student to ever twice win the nationally competitive Tylenol Scholarship. Since last April, he was one of three UA students selected as a Barry Goldwater Scholar for his outstanding accomplishment in physics and engineering; was one of only 40 students nationwide to receive a Marshall Scholarship; and in November he was a Harry S. Truman Scholarship finalist.

"Ben has certainly had a great year," McCray said. "First as one of 40 Marshall Scholars and now as one of twenty outstanding undergraduates on the USA Today All-College Academic First Team, he has clearly demonstrated that he is as competitive as any student at any university in this country. I suspect that we will continue to read about his accomplishments in the years to come."

The Tylenol Scholarship awards 10 $10,000 scholarships and 150 $1,000 scholarships for higher education to students who demonstrate leadership in community activities and school activities and who intend to major in areas that will lead to careers in health-related fields.

The Marshall Scholarships were established in 1953 as a British gesture of thanks to the people of the United States for the assistance received after the Second World War under the Marshall Plan. Financed by the British Government, the Scholarships provide an opportunity for American students, who have demonstrated academic excellence and leadership potential, to continue their studies for two or three years at a British University. Long regarded as one of the highest undergraduate accolades, the Marshall Scholarships cover tuition costs, books, travel and living expenses while in the United Kingdom.

Hood was the sixth University of Arkansas student to receive the Marshall Scholarship. Previous recipients include John Edie, History, 1960; Lisa Pruett, Journalism, 1989; Charles King, History, 1990; Warwick Sabin, Political Science, 1998; and Megan Ceronsky, International Relations, 2001.

Though the prize money is small compared to many national scholarships, the Goldwater Fellowship remains one of the most prestigious and competitive awards available to undergraduates. To qualify for a Goldwater Fellowship, applicants typically hold a GPA of 3.9 or higher and must be entering their junior or senior years in college. Furthermore, the scholarship committee looks for prior involvement in research or experience working in a lab environment.

Each recipient receives $7,500 per year for tuition, books and room and board - a gift that enables them to devote other funds to individual research projects in zoology and biochemistry. According to the Goldwater Foundation, scholars are selected for their outstanding academic records and their commitment to pursue careers in the disciplines of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering.

The Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation - the federal memorial to our thirty-third President - awards merit-based $30,000 scholarships to college students who plan to pursue careers in government or elsewhere in public service, and wish to attend graduate or professional school to help prepare for their careers. Truman Scholars participate in leadership development programs and have special opportunities for internships and employment with the federal

government. Scholars are eligible to receive $3,000 for the senior year of undergraduate education and $27,000 for graduate studies.

Since 1990, the University of Arkansas has had several students recognized in the USA Today competition. Last year, senior zoology major Michael Berumen was honored as an honorable mention.

Past All-USA College Academic Second Team selection Warwick Sabin received the Truman and the Marshall Scholarships and received an MPHIL degree from Oxford University. 2000 All-USA College Academic Second Team selection Angie Maxwell, was also selected as a Truman and is in her second year of graduate school at the University of Texas.

UA students who have received recognition as an honorable mention have gone on to amazing careers. Joanna Long Claus (Little Rock) now has a doctorate in chemistry from MIT. Nam Le (Ft. Smith, Northside), a Barry Goldwater Scholar, is in the medical/doctoral program at Washington University. Amy Drake (Rogers) is now in a medical program at Johns Hopkins

University. Jason Reed, an honorable mention in 2000 and a Barry Goldwater Scholar and Department of Defense Fellowship recipient, is in the doctoral program in mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley. Anna Terry (Ft. Smith, Southside) was selected as a Rhodes Scholar this year and will study the history of medicine next year at Oxford University.

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