Honors Student Is the First at NJIT to Receive Prestigious Fellowship

Donald “Will” Andrews, NJIT’s first-ever recipient of the Humanity in Action Fellowship, attributes his selection for the distinguished summertime program to his choice of study at the university: industrial engineering.

“There probably weren’t that many engineers that applied … so that made my application stand out from the start — like, ‘hey, look, we have an engineer from Kentucky applying for this social sciences fellowship in Europe,’” said Andrews laughingly.

The second-year Albert Dorman Honors College (ADHC) scholar was scheduled to travel to Berlin for the June fellowship, which centers on diversity, human rights and citizenship around the world. He would have met with community leaders, politicians and activists and toured the city, all as part of an international group of 26 students from Germany, Greece, Bosnia, the United States and other countries. While an in-person experience may come at a later date, the fellowship has continued as planned, albeit virtually via Zoom during this time of COVID-19.

“It’s very disappointing to not be able to do it [in Berlin], but I am just glad that it is in a format that could be translated to online,” Andrews offered. “They’re very flexible with it and very determined to still give everyone a positive experience, even though the world has turned upside down.”

Established in 1997, Humanity in Action seeks to “foster democratic awareness and build bridges among communities through international educational programs for emerging leaders who share a strong commitment to social equity in their own communities, and beyond.” The organization has engaged more than 2,000 fellows and senior fellows to date, and partners with foundations, nonprofits, businesses and universities.

Through his fellowship, Andrews is examining democracy and pluralism in modern Germany in the context of the Holocaust. The program requires him to complete an individual “action project” that addresses the issues delved into during the fellowship.

“I think it was the focus on preserving the rights of those who historically would not have them, especially now,” Andrews remarked of what appealed to him about the opportunity. “We are in troubled times and this was even before COVID hit. There are people in unfortunate situations around the world, and there are different contexts for those bad situations.”

The application process for the fellowship entailed several short essays and a group Zoom interview. Andrews received valuable assistance in crafting these essays and practicing for the interview from Lorna Ronald, associate director of prestigious fellowships and Honors advising at ADHC.

“She really makes you think about … who you are, what you want. … She helps you find a path that fits you,” he said of Ronald.

Andrews was notified he had won the fellowship by email in early April. He was then at home in Lexington after NJIT moved classes online due to the pandemic, and elected to wait for his parents to finish their remote work so he could open the message with them by his side. “I was bouncing around for a while,” he remembered.  

There are people in unfortunate situations around the world, and there are different contexts for those bad situations.

As an industrial engineering student, Andrews has enjoyed learning the process of “looking at legal concerns, practical concerns, what guidelines say, what the requirements need,” and hopes to one day apply his studies to helping coordinate aid or development programs for the United Nations (he participated in Model U.N., a simulation of the U.N. General Assembly, in high school).

Now in the final days of his Humanity in Action Fellowship, he shares this advice for other students interested in pursuing similar prestigious opportunities: “I would say go for it. A lot of times, fellowships are geared toward liberal arts, humanities, social sciences subjects, and most people from NJIT are more STEM-focused. But there’re so many different facets of your personal education. … Even if you don’t get a fellowship, the application process itself is more than worth the extra time because it can really help you figure things out. … It will force you to get outside of your comfort zone.”

Other 2020 Scholarship and Fellowship Recipients

Andrews is one of many NJIT students recently awarded highly competitive fellowships and scholarships. Here they are:

Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship

Recognizes and supports undergraduate student researchers who plan STEM research careers.

-Sarah Abdelhamid 

-Sydney Sweet 

-Joseph Torsiello 

-Philip Zaleski

Boren Scholarship

Funds students to study less commonly taught languages in countries critical to U.S. national security.

-Micaela Quisbert Mendoza, alternate (South Korea)

Fulbright Grants

Enables graduates to carry out research, pursue master’s programs or teach English internationally.

-Daniel Meza, Fulbright Future Award (Australia)

-Matthew Cherrey, alternate, Fulbright Research Award (Germany)

German Academic Exchange Service Research Internships in Science and Engineering (DAAD-RISE)

Allows undergraduates in biology, chemistry, physics, earth sciences and engineering to work with research groups, universities and institutions across Germany during the summer.

-Lindsey Riggs

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program

Provides three years of support for graduate study that leads to a research-based master’s or doctoral STEM degree.

-Motolani Olarinre, honorable mention  

-Connor Robertson, honorable mention