Keriann Backus '07, a chemistry and Latin American studies concentrator, world traveler and community volunteer, was selected as a Rhodes Scholar this year. She is one of 32 students from across the nation and the only one from Brown to be selected.
Backus has had extensive experience in the field of chemistry. She participated in cancer research in New York last summer and has received many chemistry awards, including the Merck Prize for the highest scoring student in organic chemistry and the University's Pfizer Fellowship in organic chemistry.
Recipients of the Rhodes Scholarship, which was created in 1902 and pays for students from around the world to study at Oxford University in England, are chosen by various regional committees in the United States and around the world. Elliot Gerson, the American secretary of the Rhodes Trust, said committee members look for a variety of qualities when selecting Rhodes Scholars.
"Greatest weight is put on academic qualifications. We look for evidence of leadership, commitment to others and ambition to make a difference," Gerson said.
Backus said she decided last spring to apply for the Rhodes scholarship because she thought attending Oxford University "would be something very exciting."
Backus also cited the strength of the chemistry department at Oxford and her love of travel as reasons she decided to apply. "I love to travel, so here's a way I could travel and look at science in a different country," Backus said.
According to Gerson, scholars are chosen in a two-step process. Candidates must first be endorsed by their college or university. With this endorsement, they can apply to one of 16 regional districts. Selection committees in the districts then invite the 16 strongest candidates to an interview.
Approximately 1,500 students each year seek endorsement from their institutions. This year, 896 students were endorsed by their institutions.
Linda Dunleavy, associate dean of the College, said 18 students at Brown sought endorsement this year and 14 students received it. Dunleavy said these numbers have remained relatively constant over the years. Gerson said it is rare for Brown to have more than one Rhodes Scholar per year.
"I don't think I ever realized I had a really good chance. When you get to that level, it's such an arbitrary process in the end," Backus said. She described the announcement that she was selected as "unreal and shocking."
Dunleavy said she believed Backus would do well from the start. "She has the rare combination of humility and intelligence," Dunleavy said. "Keriann's personality is very unassuming - very smart and genuine."
Dunleavy said she believes Backus' excellence in chemistry, her various interests and her personality distinguished her from other candidates.
In addition to her academic work, Backus has been influenced by her experiences sailing around the world as a child. Backus' parents met through a mutual interest in sailing and worked for several years to save money for a voyage around the world. When Backus was seven years old, her parents took her family on a seven-year voyage from Seattle, traveling west across the Pacific and crossing the Eastern Hemisphere and the Atlantic Ocean to Maine.
"I saw so many different parts of the world, many countries that were very poor. It made me want to help them out," Backus said.
While on her sailing trip, Backus was home-schooled by her parents. "It was really good for me academically. I learned to be an independent student," she said.
Backus also attributed her interest in Latin American studies to her sailing expedition. "Because of my sailing trip, I have a very strong political awareness, especially in health policy," she said. Her interest in health policy contributed to her decision to study abroad in Ecuador last year.
Along with her many other activities, Backus has also helped train guide dogs for the blind. "When we came back from sailing, I really wanted a dog. Because my parents didn't know how long we would be in Seattle, they thought raising guide dogs for the blind would be a good idea," Backus said.
Backus is also part of Bike and Build, a group that bikes across the country to raise money and awareness for affordable housing. She is also the head of the Chemistry Departmental Undergraduate Group and plays bassoon for the orchestra.
Backus encourages students who wish to apply for the Rhodes Scholarship to "go for it."
"It's a really good process to learn a lot about yourself," she said.
Backus will pursue a doctorate in chemical biology at Oxford. She said she also wants to pursue her interest in Latin American issues but is not sure if she will do so academically. As for life after Oxford, Backus said she has considered becoming a professor.
