The Morehead-Cain Foundation, home of the first merit scholarship program in the U.S. and founded at the first public university in the country, is proud to announce its class of 2021.
This fall, Morehead-Cain will welcome to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 66 new Morehead-Cain Scholars from across North Carolina, the U.S. and the world. The class of 2021 includes:
- 37 scholars from North Carolina
- 29 scholars from outside North Carolina, including:
- 23 scholars from 15 different states.
- One scholar from the United Kingdom.
- Three scholars from Canada.
- One scholar from Albania.
- One scholar from Singapore.
The Morehead-Cain Scholarship covers all expenses for four years of undergraduate study at UNC-Chapel Hill. It also features a distinctive program of summer enrichment experiences designed to support students as they learn and grow. During the course of four summers, scholars will have opportunities to complete an outdoor leadership course, commit themselves to public service in the U.S. or abroad, conduct research at sites around the world and gain experience in private enterprise.
The Summer Enrichment Program is complemented by the Morehead-Cain Discovery Fund. Scholars are encouraged and receive financial support to more deeply explore their interests, whether those involve studying under celebrated artists, attending leadership retreats or obtaining wilderness first responder certification. From researching food and agriculture industries in Iceland to examining the impact of innovation and entrepreneurship in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, Morehead-Cain Scholars have the resources to pursue educational opportunities wherever they may find them.
As set out in the program’s founding documents, selection criteria for the Morehead-Cain are leadership, moral force of character, academic achievement and physical vigor. Morehead-Cain recipients are chosen solely on the basis of merit and accomplishment.
More than 200 Morehead-Cain Scholars study on campus, making outstanding contributions across the full range of University life. From student government to community service to the performing arts, Morehead-Cain Scholars play a prominent role in Carolina’s vibrant student community. For example, during the past 10 years, six student body presidents, four student attorneys general and four honor court chairs have all been Morehead-Cains.
Since 2000, 14 Morehead-Cain Scholars have won Rhodes Scholarships to England’s Oxford University, one of the world’s most competitive and prestigious awards for graduate study. Since the first Morehead Scholars graduated from Carolina in 1957, 31 of Carolina’s 34 Rhodes Scholars have been Morehead-Cain Scholars.
Morehead-Cains have accounted for 25 of the University’s 38 Luce Scholars and 19 of Carolina’s 30 Truman Scholars, among the nation’s most generous and distinguished awards for graduate study. Twenty-seven Morehead-Cain Scholars have won Fulbright Fellowships, three have won Gates Cambridge Scholarships for graduate study at the University of Cambridge in England and two Morehead-Cains were among the inaugural class of Schwarzman Scholars, an elite China-based graduate scholarship that enrolled its first students in 2016.
Read more about the Morehead-Cain Class of 2021 on the Morehead-Cain website.
Published April 28, 2017