The Potential Within: My Transformation as a Watson Fellow

DPS Mathura Road, New Delhi, India, 2011

There's a part of my life that I've held close to my chest, a transformative and deeply personal story. I'm a Thomas J. Watson Fellow, a title I've often hesitated to share openly, not out of shame but a complex blend of modesty, reverence for the experience, and irrational fear. But today, as I'm heading to Bowdoin College for a returning fellows conference, I feel encouraged to share more about this chapter of my life. If you’re interested in knowing the details, you're in the right place

The summer of 2010 marked the beginning of my Watson Fellowship. I received $30,000 in funding to explore “Educational Prosperity in Four Cultures.” This sent 21-year-old me, who had never left the country before, on a 12-month international journey to Australia, South Africa, Finland, and India. My goal was to experience schools making innovative strides despite a challenging environment or history. How do Austrian elementary schools address bullying? How do South African schools address race post-apartheid? How does India ensure women and girls are afforded the same opportunities as boys? And lastly, why is Finland always the shining example of educational innovation and success? I even stopped in Germany to see two high school friends abroad then. 

Sammi Moores, Nathan Thomas, and Joëlle Storet. Berlin, Germany, 2011.

Receiving the Watson Fellowship in 2010 was a watershed moment for me. As I embarked on my project focusing on educational systems globally, I soon found myself in the esteemed company of some names you may know, like Julie Taymor, director & writer of the Tony Award-winning stage adaptation of "The Lion King," Gloria Borger, Chief Political Analyst, CNN, and Kai Bird who wrote the book “American Prometheus” which the blockbuster Oppenheimer film is based on. And 3,000 other fellows who are, business leaders, community organizers, diplomats, Emmy-, Grammy-, MacArthur-, Oscar- and Pulitzer-prize-winning recipients, lawyers, social advocates, and more.

Precisely ten years after my Watson year concluded, in the height of COVID-19, Watson called. I was invited to sit on the selection committee responsible for awarding nearly $2,000,000 in fellowships.  The fellowship is poetic in this way. I still do not know why exactly I was selected as a Fellow all those years ago. 

If you Google, the best criteria you will find is a graduating senior from one of the 41 participating colleges with “unusual promise.”

That’s it. The campus advisor at the respective colleges knows much more about Watson, and as the newest member of their nomination committee, I started to understand exactly what Watson is looking for; it’s a privilege to see the potential in future fellows that the Foundation saw in me.

The inspiration for this post? I’m writing this on American Airlines 3630 on my way to Bowdoin College in Maine for the 2023 Returning Fellows Conference. I finally get to meet the three classes of nearly 100 fellows I helped select - and hear all about their year. I except the gamut of emotions over the next four days because I remember the roller coaster of re-assimilation. You’re never the same after a year of independent travel, and it takes hard work and community to grow from the life you left behind. 

Returning Fellows Conference. Bowdoin College, August 2023

Looking back at the decade since that transformative year in 2010, the Watson Fellowship's impact on my life is apparent in every step I've taken. From the selection committee to the returning fellows' conference, these opportunities have allowed me to rekindle the excitement, connect with peers, and open up about a part of my life that I rarely share. It's a humbling realization, one that fills me with gratitude.