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Mitman
Tapped as Marshall Scholar
Mclean Student Will Pursue Master’s In Physics
November 26, 2003 --
Fourth-year student Kurt Elliott Mitman will pursue
a master’s degree in
physics at Oxford University in Oxford, England, for the next two years, after
being named U.Va.’s sixth Marshall Scholar.
“I
was so ecstatic, I yelled out loud in University Hall,” Mitman,
21, said
after being told he had won. “This is an affirmation of four years of
academic work and research.”
Mitman,
from McLean, spent his third year studying natural sciences
at Pembroke College at the University of Cambridge,
England. He is a Harrison Award winner,
Goldwater Scholar, Lawn resident, Echols Scholar and member of the University
Guides. He is also involved in the International Relations Organization at
U.Va.
In
addition, Mitman has done research in the fields of neuroscience,
economics and physics, and he has three publications in
circulation.
“It is a high academic honor to be a part of this community of scholars,” Mitman
said. “This is an incredible opportunity.”
Mitman’s eventual goal is to earn a Ph.D. in physics, and while he enjoys
research, he said he wants to be a teacher.
“We
are thrilled to have Kurt win a Marshall Scholarship,” said
Nicole Hurd, assistant dean and director of the Center for
Undergraduate Excellence. “He
has done extraordinary work both inside the classroom and with the
larger community. Whether it is his research with the Harrison
award or his leadership
with the
International Relations Organization, his commitment to learning and
sharing knowledge is inspiring.”
Mitman
was born at the U.Va. Medical Center while his parents were
graduate students at the University. They both
work for the State Department
now.
Each
year, hundreds of America’s brightest students compete
for the up to 40 awards given annually by the Marshall Scholarship
committee.
The scholarship
funds two years of study at any university in the United Kingdom.
The
Marshall Scholarship, which celebrates its 50th anniversary
this year, is funded by the British government in honor of U.S.
General
George C.
Marshall, who crafted the plan to rebuild Europe after World
War II. William Gwym won
U.Va.’s
first Marshall Scholarship in 1954, soon after the program’s
inception.
Contact:
Matt Kelly, (434) 924-7291
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