W&M student named Harriman Fellow
(Williamsburg, Va.)—The Harriman Fellows Program Office at the College of William and Mary has announced the winners of the Pamela Harriman Foreign Service Fellowships for 2008. This year's Harriman Fellows are Andrew Blasi from the College of William and Mary, Matthew McGrath from Vanderbilt University and James Nadel from Tufts University. Blasi was selected to serve as the Harriman Fellow in the U.S. Embassy in London. McGrath will serve his fellowship in the U.S. Embassy in Paris, France; and Nadel in the Executive Office of the U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom.
Blasi, a rising junior at William and Mary, will double major in public policy and finance. He plans to attend the London School of Economics and Political Science next spring.
This past August, Blasi served as an intern for the U.S. House of Representatives' Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe in Washington, D.C. He is the author of a paper entitled "Hegemony in the Pacific: Australia's Rise to Regional Dominance" to be published in The Monitor: Journal of International Studies. In the near term Andrew chose to pursue a State Department internship in London in order to obtain a firsthand account of the diplomatic process.
"This assignment will prepare me for a much longer future with the State Department and significantly aid in my current and future study of international law and relations," says Blasi.
McGrath is a rising senior at Vanderbilt University and a graduate of Brookline High School in Brookline, Mass. His recent research, conducted with Vanderbilt's political science department, has focused on the political security of the Baltic region. After graduation McGrath will pursue a doctorate degree in political economy, public policy, or international relations before continuing a career in government.
"I feel that this internship is definitely a step in the right direction for me," says McGrath. "I aspire to work for my country to shape national and foreign policy and I expect that my assignment in Paris will be an excellent learning experience for this long-term goal."
Nadel, a rising senior at Tufts University, graduated from Burlington High School in Vermont. He is a double major, studying international relations and French. After graduation he plans to perform several years of public service before seeking a master's or a law degree.
"This summer's assignment in the State Department's Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization will make a unique contribution to my personal academic and to my relevant student activities during senior year," says Nadel, "and will clearly provide the first step in exploring, and successfully pursuing, a career in service of American foreign policy."
The Harriman Foreign Service Fellowships are a national fellowship program for college students honoring the late U.S. Ambassador to France, Pamela Harriman. The fellowships are sponsored by the College of William and Mary in conjunction with the U.S. Department of State. The fellowships provide funds for three students from U.S. colleges to serve in the American embassies in Paris and London and in the Office of the Secretary of State in Washington, D.C.
