July 15, 2010
UW undergraduates selected for prestigious Morris K. Udall Scholarship
The past accomplishments and future promise of University of Washington undergraduates Geoffrey Morgan and Audrey Djunaedi are being recognized with scholarships from the Morris K. Udall Foundation.
From a pool of 537 candidates nominated by 256 colleges and universities, seniors Geoffrey Morgan and Audrey Djunaedi were selected Udall Scholars. Each scholarship provides up to $5,000 for the Scholar’s junior or senior year. The Foundation selected 80 students from 63 colleges and universities as Udall Scholars.
Udall scholarships are awarded to students based on their commitment to careers in the environment, health care or tribal public policy; leadership potential; and academic achievement. Since 2001, 12 UW undergraduates have been named Udall Scholars and four earned honorable mention.
Geoffrey Morgan, Senior
Majors: Civil and Environmental Engineering and International Studies
Hometown: Maple Valley, WA
Additional honors/awards include: UW Honors Student, Mary Gates Scholar, Rieser Fellowship, Shigemura Award, William Gerberding Scholar, Sterling and Gene Munro Public Service Fellowship
Geoffrey Morgan was born and raised on a farm in a small town outside of Seattle called Hobart. An Honors student at the University of Washington, Morgan discovered that he wanted to “get out, explore, and help people around the world. To do this, I decided to major in civil and environmental engineering and international studies.” While studying abroad in Chengdu, China, he conducted an independent undergraduate research project in two Yi minority villages on the recent NGO water projects that had been built. He analyzed them to see the effects they had on the villagers’ way of life. Morgan also analyzed the factors that enabled the project’s success. To culminate his research, he designed and built a water project that supplied 36 homes and a primary school with potable water. He remains in contact with the village and is part of an organization that raises money to send students to school beyond primary school as well as pay for teachers and other school necessities. Morgan was studying in Sichuan Province, China, when the 2008 earthquake struck. Instead of returning home, he and a fellow undergraduate started a relief effort to get school supplies and aid to kids in the area.
Audrey Djunaedi, Senior
Majors: Oceanography and Aquatic and Fishery Sciences
As a freshman, Audrey Djunaedi intended to double degree in music and engineering before her curiosity about the marine world inspired her to double major in fisheries and oceanography instead. She is currently involved with the Environmental Alternative Spring Break program at the UW, where undergraduates develop and teach an interactive, inquiry-based curriculum to elementary and middle school classrooms in Brewster and La Push, WA, learning from the students and communities they visit. Djunaedi enjoys exploring the outdoors, biking, spending quality time with her violin, volunteering, and hearing stories about people. (Content from the Udall Foundation web site.)
About the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships, and Awards
The Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards helps UW undergraduates develop the tools and personal insights necessary to match their goals with local and national merit-based scholarship opportunities. National scholarship opportunities include the Fulbright, Goldwater, Marshall, Rhodes, Truman scholarships and many others. The office is part of the Center for Experiential Learning in Undergraduate Academic Affairs.
About the Morris K. Udall Foundation Undergraduate Scholarship
The Morris K. Udall Foundation is an independent federal agency that was created by Congress in 1992 to honor Congressman Udall’s legacy of public service. Congressman Udall served in the House of Representatives for three decades, a career distinguished by civility, integrity and consensus. His love for the environment resulted in numerous pieces of legislation, chief among them the Alaska Lands Act of 1980, which doubled the size of the national park system and tripled our national wilderness. Congressman Udall also championed the rights of Native Americans and Alaska Natives, using his leadership in Congress to strengthen tribal self-governance. The Foundation’s education programs are supported by a trust fund in the U.S. Treasury and contributions from the private sector. The Udall Foundation also includes the U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution, which assists in resolving conflicts related to the environment, public lands, and natural resources.