Trent University Student is a 2011 Rhodes Scholarship Finalist

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Economics and business administration student interviewed for international scholarship

Friday, December 10, 2010, Peterborough

Trent University is proud to share that fourth-year student David Geraldo Frazer, was formally interviewed this fall and named one of six finalists for the coveted Commonwealth Caribbean constituency of the Rhodes scholarship, one of the world’s most prestigious scholarships.

Mr. Frazer noted the support of the Trent International Program (TIP) and Dr. Mike Allcott who took time to help Mr. Frazer prepare for his interview for the scholarship. “TIP is very good at making students feel comfortable. I’ve never felt alone here, even though I’m away from home.”

Having been encouraged to apply by Trent’s 2010 Ashley Fellow, Dr. Don Markwell, warden of Rhodes House at Oxford, Mr. Frazer completed the comprehensive Rhodes scholarship application in September. He was surprised and ecstatic to be announced as a finalist. During the process he engaged with previous Rhodes scholars, the governor general of Barbados, and many notable intellectuals, including Sir Ronald Sanders, former senior Caribbean ambassador and famous international consultant and writer.

In November, Mr. Frazer travelled to Barbados with three other finalists to formally interview for the coveted prize, which covers all university and college fees at the University of Oxford, a personal stipend and airfare. It is the most recognized and prestigious international post-graduate scholarship program of its kind, and recognizes exceptional and well-rounded academics.

“David has been an outstanding leadership student at Trent who also has a strong reputation for his service in the Peterborough community”, says Dr. Allcott.  “It’s been a great pleasure to see him grow and learn in the Trent context, and to know that the global citizenship to which he has risen won the attention of the Rhodes committee in the Caribbean.” 

When Cecil Rhodes created the scholarship, he intended it to be awarded to people with a commitment to leadership and service that would promote international understanding and Mr. Frazer is no exception. He is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Undergraduate Studies at Trent, finance coordinator for the World Affairs Colloquium, co-host of the Trent Radio show Convergence and founder of the Trent Prevention Initiative. Mr. Frazer is an outstanding role model and self-proclaimed activist, passionate about engaging with issues affecting his homeland, The Bahamas.

Since 2007, Mr. Frazer has led an HIV/AIDS prevention organization in Bahamas, raising $11,000, spending his summers organizing up to 60 volunteers to raise prevention awareness. In January 2011 his first book, In the Red: the Culture of Aids in the Bahamas, will be published. He spent the summer of 2010 in Washington, DC, as an intern with the Embassy of Bahamas, writing a paper on energy security and supply in the Caribbean Basin for an annual Caribbean conference. He plans to continue initiating change after completing his education in the area of international relations.

The Rhodes Scholarships, the oldest international fellowships, were initiated after the death of Cecil Rhodes in 1902, and bring outstanding students from many countries around the world to the University of Oxford. The first American Scholars entered Oxford in 1904.

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For more information, please contact: David Frazer, Trent University student, (705) 977-0608, davidfrazer@trentu.ca