EDITOR�S NOTE: A high resolution photo of Phelps is available electronically from Pam Jahnke at (517)432-0304 or jahnkep@msu.edu
Contact: Ron Fisher, Honors College: (517) 355-2326 fisherr1@msu.edu; or Meredith Mescher, University Relations: (517) 432-0305, mescherm@msu.edu
3/30/2006
EAST LANSING, Mich. � With a passion for protecting the environment and educating others about conservation, Jacob Phelps, a junior from White Lake, Mich. (by way of Escazu, Costa Rica), has been selected as a 2006 Truman Scholar, making him the 14th Truman Scholar from Michigan State University.
It also was recently announced that Phelps has been chosen as one of 80 students nationwide to be named a 2006 Udall Scholar. He also was a 2005 Udall Scholarship recipient.
The Morris K. Udall Foundation awards scholarships of up to $5,000 to juniors and seniors in environment-related fields and to American Indian and Alaska Natives in fields related to health care and tribal policy.
Phelps currently is an intern with the nongovernmental organization Community Conservation in La Democracia, Belize. He is working with residents of a rural community to create a group that promotes local involvement in conservation and to create local employment opportunities through ecotourism.
Phelps is majoring in environmental studies in the Lyman Briggs School of Science in the College of Natural Science and art history in the College of Arts and Letters. He also is a member of the MSU Honors College.
So how did Phelps find out he�d been awarded a Truman Scholarship? A trip to the U.S. Embassy in Belize was arranged, and MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon phoned to notify him that he had been selected.
�Jacob is very deserving of the Truman Scholarship, and this award really speaks to his abilities not only as an exceptional student, but as someone who wants to make a significant contribution to the field of environmental conservation. The research opportunities that Jacob has had are instrumental in his selection and will serve him well in his future academic and professional pursuits,� said Ron Fisher, dean of the Honors College.
Phelps plans to pursue a master of science upon graduating from MSU. His career plans involve working for an environmental conservation agency where he would manage international conservation and development projects.
Born of American parents and raised in Costa Rica, Phelps has traveled the world educating others about the importance of environmental conservation.
He has conducted his own lecture series in the United States and Canada aimed at botanical hobbyists to promote their involvement in conservation efforts. His particular area of botanical expertise is orchids.
While working at Canada�s Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton, Alberta, Phelps developed a permanent display that showcases a realistic representation of a rainforest and provides visitors with information about tropical plants.
Phelps spent last spring semester in Thailand as an intern for the World Wide Fund for Nature where he worked on environmental education and wrote a report on the illegal trade in protected plants between Thailand, Laos and Myanmar.
At MSU, Phelps serves as associate curator of the university�s orchid collections. He also has been active in Students for Economic Justice, MTV�s Rock the Vote, MSU Extension�s 4H environmental education, the college swing dancing club State Swing Society, and as a volunteer in the presidential campaigns of Howard Dean and John Kerry.
The Harry S. Truman Scholarship is a merit-based grant award that provides up to $30,000 to undergraduate students with extensive records of public and community service, a commitment to careers in government or elsewhere in public service, and outstanding leadership potential and communication skills.
For more information on the Truman Scholarship, see http://www.truman.gov/.
For more information on the Udall Scholarship, see http://www.udall.gov/.
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