By Susan Peterson

Gazette Staff

In July 1998, about 350 students from Bosnia to the Middle East will gather in Moscow as part of the Harvard Global Peace Project. The event was conceived by William Burke-White '98, who discussed the idea with former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev last October.

"I envisioned a forum which would bring together students from regions of civil strife and international conflict, to come up with new strategies for how to live together in the next millennium," said Burke-White, who is organizing the conference.

Burke-White's work on the Global Peace Project helped him earn a 1997 Truman Scholarship. He was one of three Harvard undergraduates chosen for the prestigious award; the others are Brian Blais '97 and Geoffrey Rapp '98.

The highly competitive merit award, which grants $30,000 to juniors and seniors who wish to pursue careers in the public sector, can be applied to a student's senior year and up to three years of graduate school.

This year, 69 students nationwide received the scholarship, the official federal memorial to the 33rd President of the United States. Scholars are selected on the basis of leadership skills, intellectual ability, and the potential for "making a difference."

Brian Blais

Blais, an economics concentrator from Lowell House, plans to pursue a joint master's degree in public administration and economics. He wants to focus on urban problems such as low-income housing and sub-par education, which he witnessed while growing up in his hometown of Woonsocket, R.I.

"I think the scholarship is a culmination of my Harvard experience," said Blais. "The scholarship affirms my commitment to public service and also allows me to attend graduate school."

At Harvard, Blais was the Harvard-Radcliffe Undergraduate Council treasurer and vice president from '94 to '96. He served on the Harvard International Relations Council as vice president and secretary, and he was a staff writer for the Harvard International Review.

Geoffrey Rapp

Rapp, an economics concentrator from Leverett House, plans to return to his native Hawaii to teach high school for a few years. He then hopes to pursue a graduate degree combining his interests in economics, policy issues, and education.

In his application, Rapp addressed multilingual education issues, which he experienced both as a resident of Hawaii and as a teacher one summer for immigrant children from Korea, Tonga, Samoa, and Vietnam.

"In a multicultural society, there is a need for leaders who foster communication and build communities among students and teachers of different racial and ethnic backgrounds," Rapp wrote.

At Harvard, he serves as chairman of the Institute of Politics Student Advisory Committee, is on the executive board of the Hawaii Club of Harvard, and is involved with the Undergraduate Teacher Education program. He also interned for U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI.) and for the Office of the Staff Secretary at the White House.

Rapp is grateful for the award, which will help him pursue graduate school.

"I got a lot of great help from the Fellowship Office and my senior tutor, Judy Murciano-Goroff," he said. "It is as much their achievement as it is mine."

William Burke-White

Burke-White, who is from Denver, Colo., and Exeter, N.H., plans to pursue a master's degree in international relations and a juris-doctorate in international law. The Leverett House resident is concentrating in American and Russian history and literature.

His activities at Harvard have included directing a 300-student international conference in Bangkok, Thailand, and coordinating a conference on globalization in Seoul, Korea, in May 1996, for the Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations. He also plays on the championship-winning varsity squash team.