U of A Student Receives Recognition From Udall Scholarship Foundation

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U of A honors junior Sophie Hill

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Sophie Hill, a University of Arkansas honors junior from Bentonville, has received an honorable mention from the Morris K. and Stewart L. Udall Scholarship Foundation. 

Hill is majoring in international and global studies, environmental studies and Middle East studies in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. She will become a member of the Udall Alumni Association, connecting her to a host of other scholars and honorable mention designees.

"I am very honored and excited to receive this recognition and support from the Udall Foundation for my future goals in sustainability," Hill said. "I intend to incorporate the great advice and ideals that have come from Stewart and Morris Udall into my future education and career. Their legacies in environmentalism and advocacy inspire me to address similar issues."

The Morris K. and Stewart L. Udall Scholarship Foundation awards 55 merit-based scholarships of up to $7,000 and 55 honorable mentions to college sophomores and juniors. Students must apply through a rigorous and limited nomination process on their own campuses prior to having their applications submitted to the foundation.

Once students are successfully nominated, they are reviewed by a 16-person independent selection committee composed of previous scholars, academics, and nationally competitive scholarship professionals on the basis of an applicant's commitment to a career in the environment, Native health care, or Tribal public policy; leadership potential; and academic accomplishments. 

"The Udall Scholarship competition is intense, and includes top students from across the country who are committed to careers in the environment or Native American public/health policy," said Jim Coleman, provost and senior vice chancellor for academic affairs. "That Ms. Hill has been recognized by the Udall Foundation speaks to her commitment to making a difference in sustainability and in environmental justice. She has a long history of engagement in our community and on our campus with issues that connect to both, and she will no doubt continue that engagement into her graduate work and her future career."

Sophie Hill has been active in many environmental organizations including vice president of Net Impact, president of the Student Sustainability Coalition, student representative on the University of Arkansas Sustainability Committee, and member of Audubon Arkansas, Razorback Food Recovery, and the PepsiCo Recycling Competition. She also served as the Zero Waste coordinator for the Office of Sustainability.

She is a Middle East Studies Scholar and has received the Sturgis Study Abroad Grant and the Honors College Study Abroad Grant as well. She was selected to be a participant in the Public Policy and International Studies Program Junior Summer Institute at Princeton earlier this year.  

An Honors College Research grant is currently funding a study with Marcia Shobe, professor of sociology, on food insecurity among Marshallese populations. Under the supervision of her honors thesis director, Ted Swedenburg, professor of anthropology, she will examine resource disparities in the Levant and the local government program and humanitarian aid organizations that provide relief for them. She later plans to pursue a joint degree of Master of Public Administration and Master of Arts in International Relations, with a concentration in environmental policy and administration with the intention that this will lead to work with the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Previous University of Arkansas Udall Scholars and recent Honorable Mentions include:

• John Lampson (HM – 2019 and 2018)
• Tanner Weber (HM – 2018)
• Billy Childress (HM – 2017)
• Elise Clote (Scholar – 2015)
• Michael Reinisch (Scholar – 2015)
• Andrea Love (Scholar – 2013)
• Mallory Scheurer (Scholar – 2012)
• Tory Hodges (Scholar – 2005)
• David Norris (Scholar – 2001)
• Grace Kostel (Scholar – 2000)
• Nicole Reed (Scholar – 1999)
• Ricky Pearce (Scholar – 1997)

University of Arkansas students who are interested in applying for competitive scholarships like the Morris K. and Stewart L. Udall Scholarship should contact the Office of Nationally Competitive Awards at awards@uark.edu.