Leanne K.M. Ho, a graduate of Troy High School in Fullerton, was recently named a Rhodes Scholar, one of the most prestigious honors in higher education.
Leanne, currently a senior at the University of Oklahoma majoring in English Literary and Cultural Studies, will have all expenses paid for two or three years of graduate study at the University of Oxford in England. Thirty-two students nationally were named Rhodes Scholars.
Leanne graduated from Troy High in 2016 and is a resident of Orange. At Oklahoma, the student’s academic research focuses on the impact of storytelling on social distancing from LGBTQ people. Leanne is a campus leader in incorporating transgender, intersex, and non-binary people into conversations about reproductive health and have advocated for increased resources and opportunities for transgender and gender non-conforming students.
The Rhodes Scholarship Program is often described as the “oldest and best-known award for international study, and arguably the most famous academic award available to American college graduates.” The program was created in 1902 by the Will of Cecil Rhodes. Leanne was selected out of more than 2,900 applicants through a rigorous selection process that included a series of interviews and other academic and community service criteria.
Previous Rhodes Scholars include former President Bill Clinton, current U.S. Senator Corey Booker, former L.A. Ram Pat Haden, former U.S. Senator and NBA star Bill Bradley and current presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg.