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SEAN KIMBALL WINS 2003 PHI
KAPPA PHI GRADUATE FELLOWSHIP
Sean D. Kimball, a Summa Cum Laude graduating senior majoring in Political Science, has been named winner of a Phi Kappa Phi Graduate Fellowship, one of 52 awarded by the national honor society in 2003 to help finance up to $8000 of the first year of graduate study.As a member of Lock Haven University's chapter of The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, which chooses members from academically high-ranking juniors and seniors, Kimball was selected to represent the local chapter in the national competition. "Indeed, he ranks as the strongest student that I have worked with in my career," wrote LHU instructor Daniel Roberts in support of Kimball's Fellowship application. Kimball is Lock Haven's second national winner in the past five years. Competing in PKP's Northeast Region, the LHU senior is joined by 11 other national winners from that region, including students from Lycoming College, Villanova University, Carnegie Mellon University, the United States Naval Academy, and the University of Maryland. Before starting undergraduate studies in the United States, Kimball lived in Finland for 11 years, attending Finnish-language schools for grades 2-12. In addition to his regular course work at Lock Haven University, Kimball maintained the Honors Program website and moderated a series of campus and community forums on topics such as racism, alcoholism, criminal justice, and terrorism. After completing a summer 2002 internship on Comparative Political and Economic Systems at Georgetown University, Kimball began a fall internship at the Governor's Policy Office in Harrisburg. While working at the Office of the Governor, Kimball wrote a strategy paper explaining the content of the 2002 Farm Bill and how the legislation could be adapted to conditions in Pennsylvania. "As a sign of the Office's trust and confidence in Mr. Kimball," wrote LHU professor Dr. Lawrence Farley, " the Office assigned him to present their draft to the State Conservation Commission." In his application for the PKP Graduate Fellowship, the LHU senior wrote that his experience working for state government "validated my belief that individuals are in the galley of the ship controlling the forward momentum of society, while government is at the helm. My career goal is to create a more responsive government, where individuals are readily empowered to take action and change the norms guiding government, a possibility which is often lost in a turbulent sea of ideologies, propaganda and factions." During his internships, Kimball served as a volunteer in the Urban Oasis program in Washington, D.C., and the Harrisburg Capitol Area Greenbelt Association. Kimball's PKP Graduate Fellowship caps a list of numerous scholarships earned in his career at LHU, including a Presidential Honors Scholarship, Academic Honors Scholarship, and the Charles and Margaret Vonada Lock Haven University Foundation Scholarship for performance in Political Science, Economics and History. He also received a Phi Kappa Phi Honor Award and the College of Arts and Sciences Scholarly and Professional Excellence in the Major Field Award. After graduating from LHU in May, Kimball has been selected to participate in the Fund for American Studies summer 2003 program in Crete, where students from the U.S. and Middle East take classes and discuss regional conflicts. "He is without peer in his preparation and capacity for graduate study in international relations and related fields," says Dr. Stanley Berard, Assistant Professor of History, Political Science, and Economics at LHU. Kimball plans to enroll in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University where he will study for a Master of Arts in International Relations. Upon completion of graduate school, Kimball plans to join the Peace Corps, working as a conflict resolution consultant or government adviser on environmental problems. When he returns to the U.S., he anticipates career options either joining the Foreign Service, working for PA state government, or working for an intergovernmental organization, such as the United Nations. Kimball says, "In my career and my academic and community activities, I want to show that behind every government decision is an individual or group of people responsive to public opinion and alternative proposals. Once the majority of our citizens begin to view government an interactive arena and most importantly, eagerly participate in it, the path of progress will be clear."
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