UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS STUDENT RECEIVES $24,000 SCHOLARSHIP

See www.uark.edu/admin/fellows

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - University of Arkansas senior Kathleen Blankenship of Fayetteville has been named a James Madison Scholar, receiving a $24,000 Junior Fellowship for her future graduate work at the U of A, as well as $6,000 for summer study at Georgetown University.

Blankenship, a department Honors Scholar in history from Fulbright College, was one of only 14 students nationwide selected for the 2002-2003 academic year. She will be graduating this May and then plans to pursue a master of arts in teaching from the U of A. She will also attend the Summer Institute on the Constitution held at Georgetown University in 2003 to complete her constitutional course work with "The Foundations of American Constitutionalism."

"The James Madison Fellowship is a very special competition, rewarding talented, bright scholars who are committed to teaching at the secondary level," said Suzanne McCray, director of the Office of Post-Graduate Fellowships. "The quality of the many students who apply for this fiercely competitive fellowship proves that George Bernard Shaw was quite wrong.

Those who can, do teach. Kathleen Blankenship deserves to be one of the fourteen junior fellows selected from across the country. Her application was astute and heartfelt, and she had dazzling letters from faculty members Lynda Coon (History) and Mark Cory (European Studies). I hope my ten-year old will one day be lucky enough to have her as a teacher."

Junior Fellowships are awarded to students who are about to complete, or have recently completed, their undergraduate course of study and plan to begin graduate work on a full-time basis. Teachers already employed can also apply for senior fellowships to do graduate work.

The maximum award amount of $24,000 is pro-rated over the individual period of study, thus making the James Madison Fellowship the leading award for secondary-level teachers undertaking the study of the Constitution.

Fellowship payments cover the actual costs of tuition, required fees, books, and room and board but cannot exceed $12,000 per academic year.

"In the disciplines of history and political science, there is no more prestigious scholarship than the James Madison," said Randall Woods, dean of Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. "Ms. Blankenship 's honor adds to the growing prestige of Fulbright College and the University of Arkansas."

Fellows are encouraged to choose institutions, including the University of Arkansas, which offer courses that closely examine the origins and development of the U.S. Constitution, the evolution of political theory and constitutional law, and the effects of the Constitution on society and culture in the United States.

Blankenship said the MAT program at the U of A has a rigorous selection of social studies specific pedeagogy and education courses as well as a year-long internship in area schools. The curriculum concentrates on social studies education at the secondary level, preparing her for teaching American history and American government in a high school setting.

"The University of Arkansas offers many graduate level courses that will satisfy the constitutional study requirement," Blankenship said. "As a future teacher and current student, there are several teaching techniques, which I have observed and identified as being effective in secondary American history classrooms. Setting clear lesson objectives, making the lessons as concrete and meaningful as possible to the students and exhibiting enthusiasm for the material are just a few things teachers can do to increase student interest and success."

According to the foundation, the James Madison Fellowships were created to honor Madison's legacy and Madisonian principles by providing support for graduate study that focuses on the Constitution, gaining a deeper understanding of the principles of constitutional government, which they in turn transmit to their students. In this way, the James Madison Fellowships ensure that the spirit and practical wisdom of the Constitution will guide the actions of future generations of American citizens.

Blankenship is a recipient of the David W. Edwards Scholarship, 1998-2002, a competitive, academic scholarship covering tuition and books, which is awarded annually by the University of Arkansas' history department. She worked for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D. C., from May-July 2001, where she worked as a paid research intern in the Office of the Senior Historian, Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies. During her internship, she helped respond to requests from Congress, universities, the media and the general public, who were seeking information on the Holocaust or related subject. Blankenship also was a presenter at the Arkansas Conference for Holocaust Educators in November 2001, where she gave a two-hour presentation entitled "Recalled to Life: Gerda Klein-One Survivor's Aftermath."

"As an undergraduate, I was chosen to present along with accomplished authors, academics and Holocaust survivors," she said. "This first public speaking engagement was also my first opportunity to discuss Holacaust education in a conference setting."

Most recently, Blankenship was selected as a 2002 State Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) recipient, earning up to $2,900. The award goes to undergraduate students who are planning a research or artistic project for the coming year with a 3.0 GPA from any discipline. Blankenship 's award was for her project "Jasenovac: The Auschwitz of Croatia."

She has been a member of Gamma Beta Phi Community Service Honor Society since 1998, Golden Key Honor Society since 1999 and Young Democrats since 1999. She has been a member of the University German Club and is involved with the campus chapters of Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society and Delta Phi Alpha German Honor Society.