U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today named 44 Jacob K. Javits fellows to pursue graduate study in selected fields within the arts, humanities, and social sciences. Selected from 899 applicants, fellows are chosen on the basis of superior academic achievement, financial need, and exceptional promise.

"The Jacob K. Javits fellows are among America's best and the brightest," Spellings said. "I look forward to their contributions in fields from English to economics, and from playwriting to public policy."

Fellows were selected by panels of academic scholars appointed by the Jacob K. Javits Fellowship Board, which is comprised of distinguished scholars appointed by the Secretary of Education. The Board established the following academic fields for this year's competition:

• Arts fields — creative writing, music performance, music theory, music composition, music literature, studio arts, television, film, cinematography, theatre arts, playwriting, screenwriting, acting, and dance.

• Humanities fields — art history, archeology, area studies, classics, comparative literature, English language and literature, folklore, folk life, foreign languages and literature, less commonly taught languages, history, linguistics, philosophy, religion, speech, rhetoric, and debate.

• Social Sciences fields — anthropology, communications and media, criminology, economics, ethnic and cultural studies, geography, political science, psychology, public policy and administration, and sociology.

The fellowship consists of a maximum stipend amount of $30,000, not to exceed the fellow's financial need, and an institutional payment of $12,981, accepted by the institution of higher education in lieu of all tuition and fees for the fellow. In total, the Department is awarding $1,891,164 for the 44 students.

According to program rules, 20 percent of the 44 fellowships were awarded in the arts, 20 percent in the social sciences, and 60 percent in the humanities.

A Javits fellowship may be renewed annually for up to four years. In addition to the 44 new fellowships announced today, 176 students who attend 62 colleges and universities are continuing Javits fellows.

Note to editors: Following is a list of new Javits fellows, alphabetical by the fellow's home state, and includes the field of study and institution he or she will be attending.

AR

• Arkadelphia—Leah Webb-Halperin, University of Wisconsin-Madison, American history
• Little Rock—Nicholas Salazar, Yale University, classics

CA

• Encino—John Hawley, New York University, art history
• Los Angeles—Angela Jordan, UCLA, theater arts, playwriting, screenwriting, acting and dance
• Los Angeles—Ana Muniz, UCLA, sociology
• Oakland—Jennifer Schradie, UC Berkeley, sociology
• Ojai—Allison (Kendra) Greene, University of Iowa, creative writing
• Orange—Catherine Nguyen, UCLA, comparative literature
• Scotts Valley—Katrina Chamberlain, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, studio arts (including photography)
• Westlake Village—Tristan Inagaki, UCLA, psychology

CT

• New Haven—Scott Andresen, Yale University, studio arts (including photography)

DC

• Washington—Dahlia Butler, Hollins University, theater arts, playwriting, screenwriting, acting and dance

FL

• Indialantic—Randolphe Browne, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, American history
• Tallahassee—Daniel Gough, University of Chicago, music performance, theory, composition and literature

IL

• Champaign—Alexandra Tipei, Indiana University, non-American history
• Chicago—Faith Kares, Northwestern University, anthropology
• Chicago—Celeste McNamara, Northwestern University, non-American history
• Niles—Megan Paustian, Rutgers, The State University, English language and literature
• Waukegan—Mary Kiolbasa, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, creative writing

IN

• Brownstown—Mohammed Rafiq, Yale University, English language and literature

KY

• Louisville—Susan Ellison, Brown University, anthropology

MA

• Brookline—Mitchell Verter, New School for Social Research, philosophy
• Cambridge—Ben Gebre-Medhin, University of California Berkeley, sociology
• Ma Milton—Margaret Butterfield, Harvard University, religion

MD

• Boyds—Jong Sun Lee, Maryland Institute College of Art, studio arts (including photography)

NC

• Ahoskie—Meredith Brown, University of Rochester, psychology
• Bath—Joel Davenport, Columbia University, television, film, and cinematography
• Durham—Jason Staples, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, religion

NE

• Lincoln—Francie Streich, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, economics

NJ

• Lawrenceville—Sasha-Mae Eccleston, University of California Berkeley, classics

NM

• Albuquerque—Eric Garcia, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, studio arts (including photography)

NY

• Annandale on Hudson—Oraib Toukan, Bard College, studio arts (including photography)
• Brooklyn—Tennessee Jones, Hunter College, creative writing
• New York—Daisy Rosenblum, University of California Santa Barbara, linguistics

OH

• Columbus—Laura Herbert, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, foreign languages and literature
• Massillon—Meghan Henning, Emory University, religion

OR

• Corvallis—Heather Brink-Roby, Harvard University, English language and literature

PA

• Bryn Mawr—Ezra Tessler, Columbia University, American history

PR

• Guaynabo—Carmen Oquendo-Villar, New York University, television, film, and cinematography

TX

• Dallas—Johnathan Lawley, Southern Methodist University, studio arts (including photography)

UK

• London—Jonathan Stewart, Columbia University, television, film, and cinematography

VA

• Arlington—Julia Stephens, Harvard University, non-American history

VT

• Bennington—Katie Martin, Smith College, theater arts, playwriting, screenwriting, acting, and dance

WI

• Greendale—Amir Moosavi, New York University, less commonly taught languages

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