Diplomacy Student Wins Prestigious National Award
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
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The Pickering Fellowship Program is among the U.S. government's most prestigious awards
for undergraduate students. It is aimed at preparing promising young scholars for
a career in the State Department's Foreign Service Corps. Schwegman was named one
of forty finalists out of nearly 1,000 applicants.
Seton Hall's Fellowships Advisor, Dr. James J. Kimble, said that Schwegman has built
a career of academic and personal excellence, both in high school and at Seton Hall.
"Dianna was her high school's valedictorian, and she carries a 3.973 GPA here at SHU,"
he commented. "That academic record, her impressive service both on and off campus,
and her desire to represent the United States as a diplomat made for a very strong
candidacy," Kimble added.
Among a long list of accomplishments and service activities, Schwegman is active in
the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, the Undergraduate Diplomacy Student Association,
the Slavic Club, and the Whitehead Envoy. She is also a Diplomacy Mentor and Campus
Ministry Lector, and has interned with the U.S. Department of Commerce.
The fellowship helps cement Schwegman's dream of service in the diplomatic corps.
“Ever since I was little, she said recently, “I’ve known that I wanted to work for
the U.S. government, either for the Department of Defense or for the State Department.
I’ve always wanted to be part of something historic. To receive the Pickering Fellowship
is a wonderful honor not only for me, but also for my parents.”
The program, which this year honors just 20 students from across the nation, provides
funding for tuition, fees, books, and room and board for each Fellow's junior and
senior year of college, as well as for their first year of graduate school.
