St. Mary’s College of Maryland student Samantha Peña ’28 has been selected as one of 100 rising college juniors nationwide for the prestigious Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship for Public Service. Peña, a double major in environmental studies and public policy, will join a national cohort of emerging public service leaders in the two-year leadership development and scholarship program created by President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, and Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky. As a Voyager, Peña’s public service focus is to provide access to fresh, whole foods and to green spaces in densely populated urban areas, particularly those with underserved populations.
Described on its website as a “transformational combination of barrier-reducing financial aid, an immersive work-travel experience, and a robust network of leaders and mentors,” the Voyager Scholarship is designed to “inspire, empower, and connect the next generation of leaders and equip them with the tools and resources they need to launch their careers in public service.”
The Voyager Scholarship provides 100 rising college juniors each year the following:
● Financial Aid: Up to $25,000 per year ("last dollar" funding) for junior and senior years to reduce debt;
● Self-Designed Summer Voyage Project: A $10,000 stipend and free Airbnb housing to design a summer work-travel experience between junior and senior years;
● Post-Graduation Travel: A $2,000 Airbnb travel credit every year for 10 years (totaling $20,000) to continue building global connections; and
● Networking: Access to a network of Voyager leaders, mentors, and peers, including an annual fall summit in Chicago, Illinois.
Peña’s selection as a Voyager fundamentally changes the way she will approach the rest of her undergraduate education at SMCM. “The Voyager Scholarship has given me the privilege of no longer worrying about tuition, allowing me to focus on my extracurricular activities and coursework,” she says. “I can pursue opportunities that interest me, such as the Green Systems internship, where I am working with the Sustainability Fellow to reduce food waste on campus by starting up and advocating for a campus-wide composting program.”
Peña learned about the opportunity when she was nominated by the SMCM political science and public policy department to apply. She was mentored in her application by the director of the College’s National Fellowships and Awards Office, Professor of English Jennifer Cognard-Black.
“To me, Samantha Peña is the epitome of what it means to be a public servant,” says Cognard-Black. “Already, she has served as an Eco Ambassador for Howard Ecoworks, helping to organize trash clean-ups in underserved areas, and also as an intern with the Office of Sustainability for the Kate Chandler Campus Community Farm, collaborating on improving composting systems.”
“As a Voyager recipient, Samantha will create a one-of-a-kind Summer Voyager project, through which she hopes to learn all she can about how to encourage urban agriculture through community gardens, farm stands, mobile markets, and fresh food meal kits,” Cognard-Black continues. “Eventually, Samantha intends to start her own NGO called Green Urban Living to further the practices and programs she learns as a Voyager. I am ecstatic she has received a Voyager Scholarship, which will enable her to do so much good in the world.”
