Amar Bakshi, currently a joint concentrator in Social Studies and Visual & Environmental Studies at Harvard is the recipient of the Truman Scholar Award. Dr. Madeleine K. Albright, president of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, announced that 75 students from 65 US colleges and universities have been selected as 2005 Truman Scholars. They were elected by nineteen independent selection panels on the basis of leadership potential, intellectual ability, and likelihood of 'making a difference.

Amar crafted his own curriculum focusing on arts in education and

community development. He founded city public arts projects and

publications in DC and Boston, painted commissioned murals, co-directed

nationally screened videos, and worked extensively with youth in

addressing pressing social issues through arts. Last year, Amar founded

Aina Arts (www.AinaArts.org), an international nonprofit that

integrates local artists into underprivileged schools. Amar worked

directly with over 200 children in India and was featured in national

newspapers and television. Amar is expanding Aina to Zimbabwe this

year. He intends to develop the organization while pursuing a joint

Ed.M/MPP in international education.

Honored and delighted to have received the Truman Scholarship, Amar says  “ I am, focusing on how the arts can be used to empower communities to achieve individual and social change.  My academic interests include examining the theories and practices of arts education, the structure of the current education system, and the role of education in international development".

"Last year I founded a group called Aina Arts (www.AinaArts.org) that
links local artists with underprivileged rural schools in the villages
neighboring Mussoorie, India to enliven curricula and encourage girls
and minorities to speak out in class".

"I have also researched the Asian American Diaspora in the US, focusing
on its financial and social remittances to their countries of origin. 
In a world where new technologies are increasing the flow of people and
ideas across borders, I am especially interested in how conversation
through the arts can provide a way of coming to intercultural
understanding despite linguistic barriers".

The 75 Scholars were selected from among 602 candidates nominated by 299 colleges and universities. Each selection panel interviewed Finalists from a 3 - 4 state region and generally elected one Scholar from each state and one or two at-large Scholars from the region. Each panel typically included a university president, a federal judge, a distinguished public servant, and a past Truman Scholarship winner.

Each Scholarship provides $30,000 for graduate study. Scholars also receive priority admission and supplemental financial aid at some premier graduate institutions, leadership training, career and graduate school counseling, and special internship opportunities within the federal government. Recipients must be US citizens, have outstanding leadership potential and communication skills, be in the top quarter of their class, and be committed to careers in government or the not-for-profit sector.

The Truman Scholarship Foundation was established by Congress in 1975 as the federal memorial to our thirty-third President. The Foundation awards scholarships for college students to attend graduate school in preparation for careers in government or elsewhere in public service. The activities of the Foundation are supported by a special trust fund in the US Treasury. There have been 2,405 Truman Scholars elected since the first awards were made in 1977.

The 2005 Truman Scholars will assemble May 15 for a week-long leadership development program at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri, and receive their awards in a special ceremony at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, on May 22, 2005. For a listing of the 2005 Scholars and more information on the Foundation, see www.truman.gov.

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