Ellicott City Student Named American Rhodes Scholar For 2018

ELLICOTT CITY, MD — An Ellicott City woman has earned the distinction of being an American Rhodes Scholar. Naomi T. Mburu, who is a chemical engineering major at UMBC, is the university's first student to receive the prestigious scholarship. She is also a graduate of Mt. Hebron High School in Ellicott City.

Created in 1902 by the Will of Cecil Rhodes, a British philanthropist and African colonial pioneer, the scholarship provides all expenses for two to three years of study at the University of Oxford.

“As a Rhodes Scholar, I will be completing a Ph.D. in engineering science and likely conducting my research under Dr. Peter Ireland to work on heat transfer applications for nuclear fusion reactors," Mburu said in a statement through UMBC.

She will begin her studies at Oxford in fall 2018.

In the U.S., only 32 students were selected for the American Rhodes Scholarship from a pool of 866.

"This year's selections — independently elected by 16 committees around the country meeting simultaneously— reflect the rich diversity of America," Elliot F. Gerson, American secretary of the Rhodes Trust, said in a press release.

"It includes, among others, ten African-Americans, the most ever elected in a U.S. Rhodes class; African and Asian immigrants; other Asian, Muslim, and Latino Americans; an Alaskan Native (Aleut); a transgender man, the second self-acknowledged transgender Rhodes Scholar after Pema McLaughlin was elected last year; and four from colleges that have never before elected Rhodes Scholars in the 115 years of the United States Rhodes Scholarships (Hunter College, CUNY; Temple University; the University of Alaska Anchorage; and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County," Gerson said. "They plan to study a wide range of fields across the social sciences, biological and medical sciences, physical sciences and mathematics, and the humanities."

Applicants are selected on the basis of academic excellence but that is only describe as a threshold condition. Scholars should also have "great personal energy, ambition for impact and should be committed to make a difference in the world" among other things.

Those who have worked with Mburu have noted her for her leadership in the field of nuclear energy.

“What is particularly striking about Naomi is that she is accomplished in doing high-level scientific research, has a sophisticated grasp of issues related to nuclear energy, and is thoroughly committed to becoming a leader and a role model for other young scientists in her field,” UMBC's Director of Undergraduate Research and Nationally Competitive Scholarships April Householder said in a statement. “It is truly rare to find this combination of intellectual virtuosity and attention to detail, along with the ability to bridge different disciplines and a true desire to give back to others.”

Mburu and 31 other Americans will join an international group of scholars chosen from 64 different countries at Oxford.

>>>You can see the full list of American scholars here.

— By Patch editors Feroze Dhanoa, Deb Belt and Elizabeth Janney

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