Two Students Named Finalists for Truman Scholarship

Two U of A students have been named finalists for the prestigious Harry S. Truman Scholarship, the nation’s premier graduate fellowship for aspiring public service leaders.

Jessica Doss, a junior from Little Rock, and Muskan Taori, a junior from Bentonville, were selected as finalists from a competitive national pool of candidates recognized for their academic excellence, leadership experience and commitment to careers in public service.

The Truman Scholarship provides up to $30,000 for graduate study, leadership training and special internship and fellowship opportunities within the federal government. For the 2026 competition, the foundation received 781 applications from 305 institutions.

Both U of A students will interview for the award on March 18 in Nashville, Tennessee. Doss and Taori are the only two to be selected from the state of Arkansas.

“University of Arkansas students are incredibly service-minded, and that is one of the reasons our students are so successful with the Truman program,” said Indrajeet Chaubey, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs. “Jessica Doss and Muskan Taori are excellent examples of this. They are both stellar students, but they give enormous amounts of their time to leading and serving others. They understand that leadership must be sustainable, and they work ambitiously to that end. I look forward to following their contributions to their communities and to the state in the years to come.”

Jessica Doss

Doss is pursuing dual honors B.S. degrees in chemistry and anthropology in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. A Bodenhamer Fellow and Arkansas Governor’s Distinguished Scholar, she plans to pursue an M.S. in health policy followed by an M.D., with the goal of shaping national health policy.

"I am honored to be selected as a Truman finalist representing the University of Arkansas,” Doss said. “This could not have been possible without the unyielding support of my mentors, advisers, professors, friends and family who have helped me navigate the application process. The Truman Fellowship would enable me to expand my expertise through a master’s program at the intersection of health policy, planning and financing. This process has helped me solidify my future aspirations as a physician-policymaker rooted in a deep responsibility to give back to the communities that shaped me."

Doss serves as co-chair of the U of A Blood Drive Committee, helping lead the largest single blood collection effort in Arkansas history. Under her leadership, the committee organized five campuswide drives in one year, collecting more than 1,300 units of blood and engaging more than 60 student volunteers.

She is also active in Associated Student Government, the Volunteer Action Center and undergraduate research. Beyond campus, she has volunteered with the American Red Cross and worked with community partners to expand access to Affordable Care Act enrollment information for DACA recipients.

Doss aspires to serve in a federal health policy role, ultimately seeking leadership within the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to address inequities in chronic disease care and rural health access.

Muskan Taori

Taori is pursuing an honors B.S. in biophysical chemistry with art history and medical humanities minors in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. She is a Sturgis Fellow as well as a National Merit Finalist.

"Receiving the Truman Scholarship would be an incredible step in my career, as it will directly enable me to develop a deeper understanding of my focus areas of environmental policy and energy research,” Taori said. “The experience so far has already been instrumental in developing my understanding of my career path, and I look forward to all that I will gain throughout the rest of the process."

A founder and current leader of Democracy Fellows, Taori spearheaded a campuswide civic engagement campaign during the 2024 election cycle that registered more than 150 new student voters and helped the university earn national recognition as a Voter Friendly Campus. She also serves in the Associated Student Government and as a student representative on the Undergraduate Council.

Taori’s public service extends beyond campus. She is a committee leader for Keep AR Natural, a citizen-led ballot initiative focused on environmental protections, and she has been actively involved in climate and energy policy advocacy across Arkansas.

She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in chemistry with a focus on environmental chemistry and ultimately work in federal science policy, including roles within the Environmental Protection Agency or as a science and technology policy fellow.

About U of A Truman Scholars: The U of A has produced 26 Truman Scholars, more than any other university in the Southeastern Conference. In 2002, the U of A was named a Truman Scholarship Honor Institution for student commitment to service and its record with the Truman Scholarship Program. Since 2012, 11 U of A students have been named Truman Scholars: 

• Anna Mathis, agricultural education, communications and leadership, 2023
• Coleman Warren, political science, 2021
• Samia Ismail, biomedical engineering, 2019
• Ryann Alonso, political science and communication, and Sam Harris, agricultural business, 2017
• Victoria Maloch, agricultural business, and Danielle Neighbour, civil engineering, 2016
• Grant Addison, history and political science, 2015
• Cicely Shannon, economics, 2014
• Nathan Coulter, political science, 2013
• Mike Norton, agricultural business and poultry science, 2012.

Fourteen students have also been selected as finalists in that time period.

U of A students who are interested in applying for the Truman Scholarship should contact the Office of Nationally Competitive Awards at awards@uark.edu or call the office at 479-575-8673.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $3 billion to Arkansas’ economy  through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.