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South Surrey grad wins Rhodes Scholarship

$100,000 award means Semi alumna Katherine Reiss will study at Oxford University
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Semiahmoo Secondary alumna Katherine Reiss is a Rhodes Scholar. (Mount Allison University photo)

A South Surrey student studying on the East Coast is set to further her education in the U.K. next year, after being named a Rhodes Scholar.

According to an announcement posted by Mount Allison University in Sackville, N.B., Katherine Reiss was among just 11 students in Canada selected to receive the award.

Valued at more than $10,000, the scholarship covers post-graduate studies at England’s Oxford University. One hundred were awarded worldwide.

Reiss – a Semiahmoo Secondary alumna who won a $35,000-scholarship to Mount Allison in 2015 – is working towards an honours degree in chemistry at Mount Allison, conducting research on the properties of gold nanoparticles, the Nov. 26 announcement states.

She said in the announcement that she is drawn to a career that combines teaching and research.

“I want to help build people’s confidence in math,” Reiss said. “A lot of people dismiss their ability and assume math is something they can’t meaningfully pursue. It’s something I lacked confidence in myself, but I was fortunate to have some great mentors in this area.

“I hope I can pay this forward.”

According to a news release, the scholarships “call for and recognize a set of timeless virtues – intellectual excellence, strength of character, energy to strive, commitment to serve and instinct to lead.”



Tracy Holmes

About the Author: Tracy Holmes

Tracy Holmes has been a reporter with Peace Arch News since 1997.
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