Press Release: 2023 Truman Scholars

PRESS RELEASE: Embargoed for release at 2:00 PM ET, Wednesday, April 12, 2023.

WASHINGTON, DC – The Board of Trustees of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation announced today the 62 exceptional college students from 60 U.S. colleges and universities selected as 2023 Truman Scholars. The Truman Scholarship is the premier graduate scholarship for aspiring public service leaders in the United States.

“We have confidence that these 62 new Trumans will meet their generation's challenges together," says Dr. Terry Babcock-Lumish, the Foundation’s Executive Secretary and a 1996 Truman Scholar from Pennsylvania. “Selected from across America, the 2023 Truman Scholars reflect our country as innovative, purposeful, patriotic problem-solvers, never shying away from a challenge.”

Highlights of our 2023 class include:

  • Six institutions have a Truman Scholar for the first time – Georgia College and State University, Jackson State University, Longwood University, San Diego State University, University of Dallas, and Youngstown State University.
  • Two institutions have multiple Truman Scholars – University of Minnesota and University of South Dakota.
  • 33 (52%) Scholars attend public universities.
  • 19 (31%) Scholars attend private research universities.
  • 8 (13%) Scholars attend private liberal arts colleges.
  • 2 (4%) Scholars attend service academies.

Read the full list and biographies of our 2023 Truman Scholars here.

Truman Scholars demonstrate outstanding leadership potential, a commitment to a career in government or the nonprofit sector, and academic excellence. Each Truman Scholar receives funding for graduate studies, leadership training, career counseling, and special internship and fellowship opportunities within the federal government.

The 62 new Truman Scholars were selected from 705 candidates nominated by 275 colleges and universities. They were recommended by seventeen independent selection panels based on the finalists’ academic success and leadership accomplishments, as well as their likelihood of becoming public service leaders. Regional selection panels met and included distinguished civic leaders, elected officials, university presidents, federal judges, and past Truman Scholarship winners.

Established by Congress in 1975 as the living memorial to President Harry S. Truman and national monument to public service, the Truman Scholarship carries the legacy of our 33rd President by supporting and inspiring the next generation of public service leaders. When approached by a bipartisan group of admirers near the end of his life, President Truman embodied this commitment to the future of public service by asking Congress to create a living memorial devoted to this purpose, rather than a traditional brick-and-mortar monument. For almost a half-century, the Truman Foundation has fulfilled that mission: inspiring and supporting Americans from diverse backgrounds to public service.

Now, the 62 awardees join a community of 3,504 Truman Scholars named since the first awards in 1977. Prominent Truman Scholars  in government service  include United States Supreme Court Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch (1987), Senator Chris Coons (1983), Representative Ted Deutch (1986), Representative Dusty Johnson (1998), Representative Andy Kim (2003), Representative Tom Malinowski (1985), Representative Greg Stanton (1990), White House Domestic Policy Advisor Susan Rice (1984), National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan (1997), former Arizona Governor and Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano (1977), former Secretary of Education John King (1995), and Fair Fight founder Stacey Abrams (1994). 

Join the conversation online using the hashtag #Truman23. Follow the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation on Facebook @TrumanScholarship, Twitter @TrumanApp, and Instagram @TrumanFoundation.

 

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PRESS/MEDIA INQUIRIES:


Dr. Terry Babcock-Lumish

Executive Secretary

terrybl@truman.gov