The most recent selections for the George Mitchell Scholarship to study for a year in Ireland have been announced, and special congratulations are due to students from the universities of Alabama, Arizona, Auburn, Oklahoma, Minnesota, and the U.S. Naval Academy, the six public institutions with award winners for the class of 2014.  Each year, 11 or 12 scholars are chosen; this year, the number was 12.

Mitchell Scholarships fund study in Ireland at several prominent universities, including University College, Dublin, and Trinity College, Dublin.  The scholarships are announced in the year preceding the full academic year of study.  Therefore, the winners just announced in 2012 will begin study in 2013 and complete their work in 2014, thus making up the “class of 2014.”  In addition to paying for tuition and housing, the scholarship carries a stipend of $12,000.

Students from the following private colleges were also selected: Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, Princeton, Brown, Cambridge, and Washington University St. Louis.

Here are the public university winners for the class of 2014, listed by university.  (See also the cumulative list, by university, which follows).

Minnesota–Martin Chorzempa was raised in Bloomington, Minnesota, and in 2011 graduated summa cum laude in finance and international business from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota.  He will study economics at University College, Dublin.

Arizona–Emily Fritze,a native of Phoenix, Arizona, is a 2011 graduate of the University of Arizona with a degree in political science. She is currently a special assistant to the Under Secretary of Energy, working on renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. She will study Higher Education at the Dublin Institute of Technology.

Alabama–Sarah Johnson of Mesquite, Texas, will graduate from the University of Alabama in 2013 with a degree in mechanical engineering.  She is a Goldwater Scholar and plans to pursue a Ph.D.  She will study advanced mechanical engineering and Queen’s University Belfast.

Naval Academy–Jonathan Poole of Yarmouth, Maine, will graduate in 2013 from the US Naval Academy with a degree in applied mathematics.  He aims to increase educational and business opportunities in his home state, and eventually to become involved in politics there.  He will study International Public Policy and Diplomacy at University College Cork.

Auburn–Marian Royston will graduate from Auburn University with a major in history and a double minor in community and civic engagement and political science.  Royston’s long-term goal is to work on rural policy issues to expand social and economic opportunity for rural residents.  She will study Community Development at Learning at Queen’s University Belfast.

Oklahoma–Robin Tipps, a member of the Quapaw Tribe, was raised in Ardmore, Oklahoma. He will graduate in 2013 from the University of Oklahoma with a degree in sociology-criminology. His goal is to be a tribal attorney, and he hopes one day to be chairman of his tribe.   He will study Public Law at National University Ireland Galway.

Overall public university leaders in Mitchell awards, not counting service academies, are listed below:

Georgia, Indiana, Washington–3 each

Alabama, UC Berkeley, Georgia Tech, Maryland, Penn State–2 each

Arizona, Arkansas, Auburn, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Michigan State, Minnesota, Mississippi, Ohio U, Oregon UC Irvine, UCLA, UT Austin, Wisconsin–1 each