Kellogg students named as Siebel Scholars

10/9/2008 - Five Kellogg School of Management students were honored as Siebel Scholars for 2008-2009. The second-year students are: Smruti Behera, Edward Colburn, Anneliese Gerland, Allana Jackson and Justin Ward.

The prestigious national award honors the five top students at each of 10 leading U.S. graduate business and computer science universities. Recipients receive $25,000 for tuition and other educational expenses during their final year of study.

The deans of each school select candidates based upon academic merit and leadership. The Kellogg students now join the ranks of more than 450 scholars nationwide who have been honored since the award was created in 2000 by Siebel Systems founder Tom Siebel.

The Siebel Scholar Program seeks to create a community of leaders who will make important social contributions.

Each of the Kellogg recipients demonstrated outstanding commitment inside and outside the classroom. Along with maintaining exceptional academic performance, the students have balanced their studies with leadership pursuits in other arenas, including education, healthcare and nonprofit work.

The students said they were honored by the high-profile recognition.

“I was thrilled that the deans selected me to receive this generous scholarship,” Ward said. “I hope to use my second year to continue to give back to the Kellogg community.” After graduation, he plans to pursue a career in private equity.

Jackson, who previously was a founding member of Impact Atlanta, a nonprofit consulting organization started by Bain & Company, said she looks forward to using the skills gained at Kellogg. While pursuing her Kellogg MBA, she is also working as a teaching assistant for Northwestern University’s undergraduate program, lending her insights to a course on nonprofit issues. In addition, she spent the summer working with Kenyan-based nonprofit, One Acre Fund, which was launched by Kellogg graduate Andrew Youn ’06.

“It’s exciting to be a part of the diverse and accomplished community of Siebel Scholars throughout the country,” Jackson said. “Long term, I plan to pursue a nonprofit career in either international development or education where I’m confident that the skills and the network I’ve gained at Kellogg will be invaluable.”

Similarly, the other Kellogg scholars expressed a desire to make strong contributions in their areas of expertise. Colburn said he intends to pursue his passion of fostering education reform, while Behera said he looks to make an impact on the Kellogg School’s finance brand in his final year, working with classmates to organize a world-class finance conference at Kellogg. Gerland hopes to use her Kellogg education to gain a position with a hospital or healthcare consulting firm.

The Kellogg winners will meet with fellow Siebel Scholars and alumni at the annual Siebel Scholars Conference, which will be held Oct. 17-19 at the Kellogg School’s James L. Allen Center.