Two members of the Class of 2025, Benedict Ballman and Rui Huang, have been chosen for the 11th cohort of the highly selective Schwarzman Scholars international graduate fellowship program.
The Schwarzman Scholars program focuses on tackling the world’s greatest challenges and “redefining global leadership for the 21st century.” Scholars from universities around the world join for a one-year master’s in global affairs at Beijing’s Tsinghua University.
Benedict Ballman, BS’25, a Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholar, majored in public policy. While at Vanderbilt, he founded Tomorrow in Focus, a nonprofit that uses generative AI animation to help drive policy development at intergovernmental institutions like UNESCO and UNICEF. He and a team of Vanderbilt students created a film that premiered at the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the Dubai Future Forum.
During the fellowship, Ballman said he will study China’s AI frameworks to develop AI-intellectual property policies that support creatives such as himself.
Rui Huang, BS’25, graduated with a double major in economics and cognitive studies. While at Vanderbilt, he was president of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, a nonprofit student organization dedicated to fostering Chinese community and cultural exchange. Huang used his experience as a peer guide at the Center for Student Wellbeing and a research assistant in a lab focused on adolescent well-being to develop evidence-based interventions to improve youth mental health.
During his fellowship, Huang will focus on advancing culturally inclusive emotional resilience programs and promoting global mental health awareness.
“Benedict and Rui were chosen from an exceptionally competitive pool, and their selection into this distinguished cohort reflects the strength of their accomplishments and their capacity to lead thoughtfully on the global stage,” said C. Cybele Raver, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. “We are proud to see Vanderbilt represented by these remarkable young leaders.”
ABOUT THE SCHWARZMAN SCHOLARS
The Schwarzman Scholars program, in its 11th year. is modeled after the Rhodes Scholarship. It is designed to help students gain experience and knowledge to advance international collaboration.
Other Vanderbilt alumni who have completed the Schwarzman Scholars fellowship include Marc Chen, BA’17, Jacqueline Cox, BA’18, Phillip McGloin, BA’18, Bryan Stromer, BS’17, Aaron Niederman, BS’20, and Jia Li, BA’23.
