McNair Scholar wins prestigious
Truman Fellowship for graduate study

Simone Delerme of Wilmington is UD's latest winner of a prestigious Truman Fellowship, a $30,000 merit-based award to be used for graduate study. Delerme is a junior simultaneously working toward a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's degree in liberal studies.

Sixty-four students from 54 U.S. colleges and universities were selected for the honor from 590 nominees. Academically inclined from an early age, Delerme credits her parents, Carol and Joe Delerme of Wilmington, with making her academic dreams possible.

"My family has been very supportive even if at times they haven't understood what I felt I had to do," the first-generation college student said. Lately, that has included supporting her desires to conduct street interviews in East Harlem, N.Y., and study for a semester at the University of Havana in Cuba.

Joe, a retired computer database manager, and Carol, a pharmaceutical sales representative, urged their daughter to become a lawyer or an engineer, Delerme said. Her goal of becoming a college professor is a little unsettling for them.

"They wanted me to go to college for four years and come out with the concrete skills to get a specific job," she said. "The things I want to do are new for them, but they are always very encouraging. I'm so blessed that way. Because the Hispanic community does not have a tradition of higher education, many families hold their young women back. My parents have always been open to new ideas."

The Hispanic community, locally and globally, is Delerme's passion and something she promotes in ways large and small. Whether it is bonding with three other UD students to start a chapter of a national Hispanic service sorority, volunteering at Wilmington's Latin American Community Center or delivering a paper at an international conference in Puerto Rico, her goal of celebrating Hispanic identity and culture remains the same.

Initially disappointed that UD did not offer a major in Caribbean studies, Delerme sought out individual professors with Hispanic specialties and asked them to sponsor her in independent study. When they agreed, she was able to put together her own minor in Latin American studies. When she learned that UD's Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program would allow her to pursue study in an area of her choice, she put together a second academic plan to pursue her interest in Caribbean studies and ethnic identity.

"Initially, my interest in the Hispanic community started as a sort of search for self," she explained. Although she excelled as a student at Padua Academy in Wilmington, she longed for classes and discussions about her Hispanic heritage, a desire made stronger by the school's public service graduation requirement, which she fulfilled by volunteering at the Latin American Community Center. She's continued her volunteer work while at UD and has been a driving force in opening new possibilities for Hispanic students at UD.

President David P. Roselle wrote in his letter of nomination to the Truman Foundation, "Simone has assessed our institutional needs for improvement by careful analysis, patiently laid the necessary groundwork for a starting place, drawn together people who, without her initiative, would not have met one another or could actually be in conflict, and institutionalized change.

"The improvements she has already made in the University community will enrich our common life long after Simone herself has graduated."

Maria Palacas, director of the McNair Scholars Program at UD and a personal mentor to Delerme, wrote in her recommendation letter, "As a volunteer intern at the Latin American Community Center, Simone gives freely of her time and service, taking clients to court to help them understand legal proceedings, educating youth about opportunities afforded by higher education and assisting immigrants who struggle to acclimate to American life.... Simone continues to develop and implement policies that affect the everyday lives of Hispanics in Wilmington, Del. She has worked diligently to establish and sustain the Youth Empowerment Task Force, a task force designed to encourage and empower youth through the processes of intellectual, social and emotional development, including awareness of the benefits of higher education."

Delerme's other UD activities include working as an Americorps Mentor for the Louis Redding Junior Scholars Program, where she helps high school students interested in law and social justice conduct research; working as a peer tutor in the Honors Writing Fellows Program; and serving as the student representative for the Delaware State TRIO Organization, which oversees the McNair Scholars Program and other U.S. Department of Education initiatives for underrepresented and/or underprivileged students.

The Truman Scholarship Foundation recognizes college juniors with exceptional leadership potential who are committed to careers in government, the nonprofit or advocacy sectors, education or elsewhere in the public service and provides them with financial support for graduate study, and leadership training.

For more information on the Truman Scholarship Foundation, visit [http://www.truman.gov/].

BETH THOMAS