Holy Cross Junior Awarded Prestigious Truman Scholarship

WORCESTER, Mass. – Katie Yue-Sum Li, a Holy Cross junior from Danvers, Mass., has been named a Harry S. Truman Scholar in a national competition. The prestigious scholarship, which provides $26,000 for the senior year of college and two or three years of graduate study, was awarded to 77 students nationwide this year.

Students selected plan to embark on a career in public service, whether in government, uniformed services, public-interest organizations, nongovernmental organizations, public-service oriented nonprofit institutions (such as those intended to help the needy or disadvantaged or to protect the environment), or educational institutions. Colleges and universities can nominate up to four students for the award each year. Important criteria are not only academic excellence, but also significant service and leadership that give confidence that the student will be an "agent for change" in their future career.

One of three Holy Cross nominees this year, Li is pursuing a self-designed major in Asian-American Studies, through the College’s Center for Interdisciplinary and Special Studies, and a concentration in Africana Studies. She has been highly visible on campus as a leader of A.S.I.A. (Asian Students in Action), a multicultural peer educator, and an advocate for multiculturalism in the Student Government Association. Active in the Boston Chinatown community and the Los Angeles Asian-American community, she has developed a seamless integration of her academic and community interests. Li is one of the College’s Dana Scholars and a member of the highly selective Honors Program. She is studying this semester at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Li hopes to earn a Ph.D. in urban policy, and someday teach at the university level, while continuing her activism in urban neighborhoods.