Former Mendham Valedictorian Earns Prestigious Marshall Scholarship

MENDHAM, NJ — The British government has announced the 40 recipients of the 2023 Marshall Scholarships, with one Mendham resident among them.

The new scholarship recipients will begin graduate studies at universities across the United Kingdom next year, coinciding with the scholarship's 70th anniversary.

Sarah Kane graduated as valedictorian of the class of 2019 from West Morris Mendham High School and went on to study physics with a concentration in astrophysics at the University of Pennsylvania. Her research interests include the structure and history of the Milky Way, and she is currently using machine learning to identify the Milky Way's oldest stars.

Kane, who is a legally blind astronomy student, says she is most interested in the intersection of science and disability advocacy.

During her time at university, Kane worked as an accessibility tester for the Space Telescope Science Institute and is a member of the Sonification World Chat. She is also the co-founder and co-host of the National Organization for Albinism and Hypopigmentation's STEM Connections.

Kane, as a Marshall Scholar, will pursue a PhD in Astrophysics at the University of Cambridge's Institute of Astronomy.

Marshall Scholarships were established in 1953 by an Act of Parliament to honor George C. Marshall, General of the Army, Secretary of State, and architect of the post-World War II Economic Recovery Program (ERP), better known as the Marshall Plan.

Marshall Scholarships have long been regarded as one of the most prestigious postgraduate awards available to students in the United States. Since the program's inception, over 2,200 people have received them.

More than 900 students applied for scholarships this year and only 40 were selected.

Previous Marshall Scholars now work on the United States Supreme Court, in local, state, and federal governments and played critical roles in the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This year's class includes accomplished authors, astrophysicists, human rights advocates and COVID-19 researchers, among others. Following their time in the UK, 85 percent of the 2023 class plans to pursue public service careers in the United States.