Alum’s Commitment to Human Rights and Global Leadership Leads to Schwarzman Scholars
José Ginocchio Moraiz ‘23 has been using his creativity and advocacy to advance human rights since before he came to Trinity. An international student from Argentina, José attended United World College of the Adriatic before coming to Trinity as an anthropology and human rights major. As a teenager, he volunteered in humanitarian shelters for displaced populations and undertook leadership roles in civil society organizations. The breadth of his activities and depth of his commitment to disadvantaged communities has only grown since then. After working on human rights issues for the last couple of years, José applied for and was accepted to Schwarzman Scholars, a prestigious one-year, fully funded master’s degree program in global affairs at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China.
José will follow in the footsteps of Albert Ananyan ’24, who attended Schwarzman College last academic year, and Boran Cui ’22, who is in the program now. Trinity’s record of sending three alumni in a row to Schwarzman Scholars is extraordinary, given that 5,800 people applied this year for only 150 spots, making Schwarzman one of the most selective graduate fellowship programs in the world.
“It’s hard to put oneself through a very tough admissions process like the one for Schwarzman Scholars,” José expressed. “It really does test how much you believe in yourself in the face of such difficult odds. It took time for me to muster the courage to apply. And I must express my deepest gratitude not only to amazing Professors like Benjamin Carbonetti, Tim Landry and Shafqat Hussain but also to staff members like Mark Hughes and Gabby Nelson.”
As a Schwarzman Scholar, José will take classes on leadership, global affairs, and China taught by Tsinghua university faculty and faculty from globally recognized universities, with guest lectures from global thought leaders. Schwarzman Scholars’ announcement of the incoming class notes how, “Scholars gain unique exposure to China through mentoring, internships, and experiential learning. Additionally, career development is provided to help Scholars excel in various fields upon graduation.”
The program looks for young leaders who have a global perspective, who grasp the importance of understanding China, and who possess high intellect, character, and most importantly, demonstrated leadership. Mark Hughes, Associate Director of Grants and Fellowships, noted that, “José’s focus was always on human rights and making the world a better place.”
José’s relationship with Mr. Hughes began as a student and has continued for years after graduating. He reflected how, “During my time at Trinity I would often stop by the Grants Office to speak with Mark about career paths and two years after graduation I was still calling him for advice. When I told him that I had finally decided to apply to Schwarzman Scholars he connected me with Gabby Nelson, who previously guided me through the Projects for Peace awards. Together they gave me feedback on my first drafts, helped me prepare for the interview and most importantly, encouraged me every step of the way. It felt like having a team rooting for me!”
As an undergraduate, José co-founded an NGO that provides water infrastructure for communities impacted by climate change and co-authored a project of international cooperation with the European Commission to tackle child malnutrition in his home province of Salta, Argentina. As a filmmaker Jose depicted stories of resilience and the struggle for justice in countries like El Salvador, Bolivia and Argentina receiving a Projects for Peace award to support his efforts. Most recently, José worked on a case of environmental justice at an international level among many other projects. All of this work taught him how showing up, getting people together, and listening, even when each of these tasks alone is exceedingly difficult, are the foundation of the cooperation needed to tackle the most difficult human rights and climate issues we are facing.
José is looking forward to moving to Beijing next August: “I am beyond excited to learn about Chinese culture and to enter into dialogue with the other Scholars from around the globe. There has never been a more important time for transcultural dialogue and understanding.” And as for advice for current students and alumni interested in competitive fellowships, José offers, “I encourage every student considering these ambitious opportunities to appreciate and take advantage of all the care and follow through that Trinity pours into their students through its staff members.”
Students interested in Scharzman Scholars can contact Gabby Nelson, [email protected], and students interested in most other competitive fellowships can contact Mark Hughes, [email protected].
Cover photo: José conducting socio-environmental field research
