Pitt Junior, East Liberty Native Named 2006 Truman Scholar

PITTSBURGH-University of Pittsburgh Honors College junior Adam Iddriss, a double major in bioengineering and chemistry, has been named a 2006 Harry S. Truman Scholarship winner for his outstanding academic and leadership abilities. The scholarship was announced by Secretary Madeleine K. Albright, president of The Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation. Pitt is the only public university in Pennsylvania to win a Truman.

Pitt's 10th Truman winner, Iddriss, an East Liberty native, is one of 75 students from 63 U.S. colleges and universities to be chosen as a 2006 Truman Scholar. The recipients were selected from 243 finalists from 156 institutions across the country.

"In virtually every discipline, the University of Pittsburgh is attracting and educating outstanding undergraduates whose records of high academic achievement are complemented by equally impressive records of leadership and service," said Pitt Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg. "Adam is one such student, and we are enormously proud of him. We also applaud Pitt's Honors College for inspiring and supporting individual student success."

"The Truman is the national leadership and service award for undergraduates, and Adam is the perfect recipient," said Alec Stewart, Honors College dean and Truman faculty representative. "He is intellectually mature, socially committed, and proven in service-oriented leadership. Adam has been a compelling role model and successful student advocate. The Truman Foundation couldn't have chosen better."

Iddriss' work as a mentor and role model is evident in his commitment to various organizations. Iddriss is president of Pitt's Pre-Medical Organization for Minority Students (POMS). Under his leadership, POMS organized Pitt's first blood drive to promote minority donations. As the service and technology chair for FOCUS, Facilitating Opportunities and Climate for Underrepresented Students, Iddriss mentors freshman minority students and coordinates service projects. He also serves as a mentor and tutor for the College After-School Mentoring Team, which works with at-risk high school students in math and science. From 2003 to 2005, he was a student recruiter and mentor on the Freshman Engineering Leadership Team, mentoring freshman engineers and designing workshops on global issues.

In addition, Iddriss is the founder and president of Engineers for a Sustainable World, which creates and helps fund service projects in developing nations. This summer, Iddriss will spend two months in Tanzania with the Engineering World Health Summer Institute, offered through Duke University.

Iddriss' long-term goals are to pursue M.D. and Ph.D. degrees and to work as a bioengineer and physician dedicated to patient care, biomedical research in tissue engineering, and advocacy work for minorities in science. Upon completing his education, Iddriss would like to join the Peace Corps and serve in Ghana, offering clinical services and establishing an HIV/AIDS education program.

Congress established the Truman Scholarship in 1975 in memory of the 33rd U.S. president as a highly competitive, merit-based federal award to college juniors who wish to attend graduate or professional school in preparation for careers in government, the nonprofit sector, or elsewhere in public service. The scholarships will benefit this year's 75 winners who will pursue graduate studies in the United States or abroad in a wide variety of fields.

Award recipients also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Truman Scholars Leadership Week May 14-21 at William Jewell College in Liberty, Mo., and the awards ceremony May 21 at the Harry S. Truman Library in Independence, Mo.

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