RHS Student Receives 'Future Global Leader' Award

The World Affairs Forum is pleased to announce that Matthew Kelemen, a senior at Ridgefield High School, is the winner of the Future Global Leader Award for Fairfield County and the $10,000 Merit Scholarship for college. The award program is funded this year by Pitney Bowes, Inc. and Eni SpA.

Kelemen will be recognized at an award ceremony hosted by Pitney Bowes at their World Headquarters and held in conjunction with the World Affairs Forum’s Global Economic Trends Lecture.  The event will take place on Thursday evening, December 6th, and James Rickards, Author of Currency Wars:  The Making of the Next Global Crisis, will be the guest speaker.  His topic will be “The Global Economy and the Future of the International Monetary System”.

Kelemen is an outstanding student who has been active in his school community.  He is Co-President of Ridgefield High School’s Interact Club, an organization dedicated to raising community awareness about issues concerning human rights and people in need.  He has an impressive record of interest and activism in the area of international affairs. In particular, he has participated in and helped raise funds for programs dedicated to a variety of issues, including genocide, global health, microfinance and the Sudan.  Matthew also attended the Ivy Scholars Program and the Grand Strategy Program at Yale University.

The World Affairs Forum also announced that the first runner-up is Haley McCalpin, a senior at Greens Farms Academy.  She is an excellent student who is also active in her school and community.  In addition to her community activities and academic excellence, she has been involved in multiple international activities, including those related to sustainability and global health. She volunteered at Partners in Health and is co-President of her school’s Acumen Fund, an organization that invests in sustainable projects in developing countries.

The goal of the WAF’s Future Global Leader program is to help develop future leaders with the skills and qualities necessary to meet the challenges of the 21^st century.  “It is our privilege to work together with our funders and the county’s educators to encourage and reward these outstanding students in Fairfield County who have demonstrated leadership in understanding global issues and solving global problems,” said Marianne Drost, chair of the WAF Future Global Leader program.

George Paik, Chairman of the Board of the World Affairs Forum, noted said, “We are pleased to offer this innovative program to promote better understanding of international issues among high school students.  We believe it is all of our responsibility to encourage students of all ages to know more about the world in which we live and to become leaders in that world.  To this end, our Future Global Leaders Award and Scholarship, is a valuable and unique approach to promoting these goals.”

Kelemen, was chosen from the group of 28 Future Global Leaders from each of the participating high schools in Fairfield County.  These leaders were then eligible to compete for the $10,000 Merit Scholarship.  The principals at each high school selected their school’s future global leader based on criteria established by the World Affairs Forum. A WAF judging committee selected the merit scholarship winner and the runners-up based on the same criteria. 

The World Affairs Forum is a non-profit, non-partisan community organization dedicated to expanding understanding of global affairs and America’s role in the world. The World Affairs Forum is an affiliate of the World Affairs Councils of America.