Tayler Ulmer, a junior from Chicago, Illinois is to be awarded the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Kemi Oyewole, a current senior was the College’s first recipient last year. Each Truman Scholar receives up to $30,000 for graduate study, according to the Truman Scholarship’s website. This year, Ulmer was one of two students from an HBCU selected among more than 650 well-qualified applicants nationwide.
“Being a first-generation student the scholarship is important and special to me,” Ulmer says. “Just the idea of having the opportunity to attend graduate school is amazing. I’m honored to be selected as a recipient and welcomed into a family of other recipients who have all been inviting.”
Ulmer is a double major in International Studies, Anthropology and Sociology, and is also the founder of the founder of My Brother’s Keeper mentorship program, and chartering member of Girls Going Global. She hopes to use the scholarship to help her develop into a scholar, leader, and public servant. In the future, she wants to become a sociology professor, and hopes to use cross-cultural tools while teaching abroad to improve the lives of students.
Ulmer was selected as one of sixty students in the U.S. based on her strong record of public service and desire to be a change agent. Because of her commitment to earn an advanced degree, she will receive financial support for graduate school, leadership training, and fellowship as she continues her journey in making a difference in public service.
Many Truman Scholars go on to serve in public office, as public defenders, leaders of non-profit-organization, or educators.