Watson Fellowship

Applicants must participate in the campus review process to be considered for a nomination. The campus review committee can nominate up to four graduating seniors for the Watson Fellowship each year. 

Steps of the campus review process:

1. Meet with Dr. Jess Hernandez, Director for Fellowships and Grants, well in advance of the campus deadline, to discuss your interest in the Watson Fellowship. First years, sophomores, and juniors are highly encouraged to meet with Dr. Hernandez as soon as they learn of the fellowship opportunity. You can schedule an appointment with Dr. Hernandez on Handshake (select 'Fellowships and Grants', and any meeting with 'Jess Hernandez'), or via email.
2. Complete your application on the Watson portal by the campus deadline. The campus committee will review all applications and invite 6-10 applicants to an interview.
3. Participate in a 25-minute interview with the campus committee. Following the interviews, the committee will select the up to four nominees. Each nominee will be paired with a faculty committee member who will serve as their mentor and help each applicant refine their application materials. 
4. Finalize your application materials and upload them to the Watson portal. Dr. Hernandez and Jenny Stratton, Administrative Assistant in Fellowships & Grants, will conduct a final proofread of your application materials, then direct you to hit 'Submit' on the portal.
5. Lastly, Dr. Hernandez will prepare a college endorsement letter that will be added to your application.

All nominees are interviewed in-person at Whitman by a member of the Watson national selection committee. Interviews are one hour in length and occur sometime between November and February. 

Total of 54 Recipients between 1971 and 2025

• 2025  
  • Kenzie Bay '25: Community Empowerment Through Emergency Care
• 2023
  • Katie Jose '23: Understanding Traditional Medicine
  • Annie Means '22: Women of the Blue Economy: Lessons in Leadership and Advocacy
• 2022 
  • Sylvia Adome '22: Spaces for African Artists in the Diaspora and Africa
• 2021
  • Liam Voorhees '21: Chasing Questions in the Seams of Rivers
• 2020
  • Cameron Conner '20: Community Organizing and Self Governance
  • Evangelos Sarantinos '20: Rare Disease and the World’s Caregivers
• 2019
  • Cello Lockwood '19: Economics and Environment in the Equine World
• 2018
  • Zuhra Amini '18: Restless Endeavors: Diasporic Cultural Production
  • Devin Reese '18: Confronting Entropy: Elder Care in an Aging World
• 2017
  • Nina Finley '17: One Health: The Human Impacts of Emerging Wildlife Diseases
  • Sam Perkins '17: The Language of Wildfire: Collisions of Nature, Society and Uncertainty
• 2015
  • Victoria (Tory) Davidson '15: To Build a Home: Theatre and the Refugee Experience
• 2013
  • Lian Caspi '13: Lyrical Healing: Music Therapy Across Cultural Song Lines
• 2012
  • Zach Duffy '12: Recovering a Lost Generation: How Nations Help Unemployed Youth into the Workforce
• 2011
  • Ross Eustis '11: Speaking Transnational Dialects of Jazz
• 2010 
  • Seth Bergeson '10: Kids at Play: A Cross-Cultural Exploration of Games and Childhood
  • Nadim Damluji '10: Following Tintin’s Footsteps: Reconciling the Charm of Hergé’s Racism
• 2009
  • Aisha Fukushima '09: Rhythms, Rhymes and Raptivism: The Globalization of Hip-Hop Activism
• 2008
  • Erik Andersen '08: Re-Presenting the Absent: Memorials and Historical Memory
  • Joseph Bornstein '08: Encountering Activism: Philosophies and Strategies of Environmental Justice
  • Adrian (Teal) Greyhavens '08: Moving Pictures Around the World
• 2006
  • Jena Griswold '06: Salsa: “Spicing Up” the International Dance Scene
• 2004
  • Sarahlee Lawrence '04: Rafting and River Conservation on the World's Biggest, Wildest Water
• 2003
  • Rachel Smith '03: Seasons of Fire: Exploring Wildfire Suppression and Forest Conservation
  • Scott Whinfrey '03: Classical Frontiers of Working Cowboys in a Post-modern World
• 2002
  • Toby Campbell '02: The Musical Community
• 2001
  • Taha Ebrahimi '01: In Search of Woman: Unveiling Her Stories
• 2000
  • Erin Beery '00: The Role of Women as Seen Through Dance
• 1999
  • Daniel Meyers '99: Uillean Pipes in Irish Traditional Music
  • Haroon Ullah '99: The Culture of Futbol
• 1998
  • Jill Winder '98: Avant-Garde Renaissance: Eastern European Art and Political Culture
• 1997
  • Kinoka Ogsbury '97: Weaving as Communication
  • David Sprunger '97: The Broth That Makes the Noodles Swim
  • Amanda Walker '97: Theatrical Combat
• 1996
  • Jayson Beaster-Jones '95: Musicians and Jam Sessions
  • Chris DeBenedetti '96: From Village to Brewery: Beermaking Techniques
  • Katherine Deumling '96: Food, Culture and Identity
  • Jon Lambert '96: The Japanese Tea Ceremony and Related Arts
• 1981
  • Markus Ursin '81: Tile Stove Masonry
• 1980
  • C. Grady Walker '80: The Evolution of Darwin's Theory
• 1979
  • Charles Alexander '78: Exploration and Research of the Mackenzie River
• 1978
  • Patricia (Jorgenson) Troxel '78: Cultural and Artistic Heritage of the Medieval Pilgrimage Route
  • Susan K. Wierenga '78: Practices of Falconry
• 1977
  • Andrew Dappen '76: Programs of Outdoor Areas of Recreation and Development
  • Robert Winkler '77: The Craft and Tradition of Watch-making
• 1976
  • Roberta S. Podbielancik-Norman '76: Zoological Garden Design
  • Mark Ralston '76: Altitudinal/Latitudinal Life Zone Comparisons
• 1975
  • Gordon Rubard '75: Oil Development and Its Effect on Local Communities
• 1974
  • Betty Eidemiller '74: Convergent Evolution in Small Animals
• 1972
  • Clifford Brown '72: A Study of Salvadore Allende
  • Wayne Tilson '72: Health Care of Children
• 1971
  • Cleve Larson '71
  • Michael (Johnson) Sonnleitner '71: Innovations in Non-violent Action

On March 5, 2025, Whitman alumni and Watson Fellows Katie Jose ‘23, Annie Means ’22, and Cameron Conner ‘20 presented short narratives of their experiences abroad and answered questions from the community in a discussion facilitated by David Sprunger ’97, Watson Fellow and Director of Institutional and Learning Technology at Whitman.