College senior Abigail Seldin - who co-curated an exhibit at the Penn Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology - was among the 32 American students awarded a Rhodes Scholarship yesterday.
Seldin plans to study anthropology at Oxford University.
"I'm really happy that this will bring more attention to my work with the Penn Museum," Seldin said. "In the future, I will use this experience to get involved in examining the politics of museums and the role of museums in civil societies."
Penn President Amy Gutmann praised Seldin for her accomplishments.
"We are all so proud of her, and so pleased that the Rhodes Scholarship program shares our absolute confidence in her future," she said. "This is bound to be a major milestone in a life that will be filled with milestones."
Seldin's research about the unknown history of the Lenape tribe - which was believed to have left Pennsylvania more than 200 years ago - was integral to her work on the exhibit, "Fulfilling a Prophecy: The Past and Present of the Lenape in Pennsylvania," which opened at the museum in September.
The Lenape exhibit "is as brilliantly original as is Abby herself," Gutmann said. "She is not only creative, industrious and forward-looking, she also cares deeply about giving voice to those who history has silenced."
Seldin's ties to Penn's Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships as a University Scholar helped establish her as a candidate for the scholarship.
Although CURF generally pre-selects incoming freshmen, Seldin felt her background qualified her for the program and applied after her freshman year.
In her junior year, CURF director Harriet Joseph encouraged Seldin to apply for the Rhodes Scholarship.
Joseph "was instrumental in making this a success," Seldin said. "I never thought it'd be possible to win something like this."
And Joseph was not surprised Seldin won the scholarship.
"Abby is a sensational young woman who is incredibly smart, mature and always helping younger students," she said.
Although Seldin is considering a career as a museum curator, she is more than just an anthropology major.
A Florida native, she says that she is a Jacksonville Jaguars fan and almost considered culinary school because of her love of baking.
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