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Pitzer College Student State Finalist for Rhodes Scholarship

Claremont, Calif. (Nov. 13, 2001) –  Pitzer College senior Siobhan O'Hara of 
Anchorage, Alaska, will be interviewed in early December as the Alaska state finalist for 
the Rhodes Scholarship.
Based on her excellent academic record and leadership, O'Hara was nominated by 
Pitzer College in October for the Rhodes Scholarship, the oldest and most prestigious 
international fellowship in the world. 
O'Hara is a double major in art and environmental studies at Pitzer College. 
O'Hara, who served as captain of the highly successful Claremont women's rugby team, 
also undertook an external studies program in Venezuela.  If selected, Siobhan plans to 
pursue a Master of Studies degree in the history of art and visual culture at Oxford.
"Pitzer does not nominate very many students for the Rhodes Scholarship, but 
those students we do nominate tend to do very well in the Rhodes competition," said 
Nigel Boyle, associate professor of political studies and the Rhodes Trust institutional 
representative for Pitzer.
Pitzer's last successful Rhodes nominee was Juan DeLara of Upland, Calif., who 
graduated in 1997. 
"In addition to our 1997 winner, we have had several students make it to the state 
and regional finals, which is a tremendous achievement," Boyle noted.  "Our students 
tend to stand out from the crowd by having done something unusual: an interesting 
combination of majors; study abroad in Katmandu or Gaberone rather than Paris or 
Florence; or service on the Faculty Executive Committee."
Pitzer also has nominated O'Hara for the Marshall Scholarship (for two years of 
study at a British university) and the Mitchell Scholarship (for two years of study at an 
Irish university).
The Rhodes Scholarships were initiated after the death of British imperialist and 
business magnate Cecil Rhodes in 1902, and bring outstanding students from many 
countries around the world to Oxford. The first American Scholars were elected in 1904. 
Each year, 32 Rhodes Scholars are selected from the United States to study at Oxford 
University.
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Founded in 1963, Pitzer College is a nationally ranked undergraduate college of the 
liberal arts and sciences.  A member of The Claremont Colleges, Pitzer offers a 
distinctive approach to a liberal education by linking intellectual inquiry with 
interdisciplinary studies, cultural immersion, social responsibility and community 
involvement.