Earlham Student Named Rhodes Scholar

(photo courtesy Earlham College)

A student at Earlham College has been chosen as a Rhodes Scholar as part of a new program from the Rhodes Trust. Hashem Abushama is one of three recipients of the scholarship in the inaugural Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine program.

Abushama is a Palestinian refugee currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Peace and Global Studies at Earlham with a minor in Economics. He will use the scholarship to attend the University of Oxford in England with the goal of earning Master’s degrees in Global Governance and Diplomacy and Refugee and Forced Migration Studies.

"Hashem is like so many of Earlham’s students, who are very bright, very active, and very concerned with the world around us," said Earlham Academic Dean Greg Mahler. "He has been a real leader on campus, and in my eyes is exactly the kind of student that the Rhodes Scholarship is seeking to recognize. He is clearly someone who is going to continue to be a leader in life. We at Earlham are delighted that his skills and his accomplishments have been recognized, and we wish him the very best as he moves forward in life."

The college says Abushama hopes to establish community outreach centers focusing on political education at refugee camps.

"From my refugee camp, Arroub, to Earlham to Oxford, and every place in between and beyond, I have been blessed with people who have helped shape who I am," said Abushama. "I hope that I will continue this legacy of breaking through ceilings so that kids in my refugee camp and beyond are empowered."

Abushama is the third student from Earlham and the first Palestinian to become a Rhodes Scholar. Last week, the Rhodes Trust announced its 2017 class of American Rhodes Scholars, which included two students from the University of Notre Dame and one from Indiana University.