Adelia Purcell ‘27 announced as 2026 Truman Scholar

Adelia Purcell ‘27 joins a distinguished network of young scholars recognized for their dedication to public service and leadership as William & Mary's 13th Truman Scholar.

Alton Coston, III ‘22 was the most recent William & Mary student to be named a Truman Scholar in 2022. 

The Harry S. Truman Foundation’s federal scholarship program provides up to $30,000 in funding for graduate studies in fields related to public service and is open to current college juniors.

“It's not only the ability to continue my education, but also to be connected with a community of people who are very passionate about public service as well, and just excited to make that kind of change in the world,” Purcell said. 

Clay Clemens, adjunct professor emeritus, became W&M’s first Truman Scholar in 1978 and mentored Purcell as she navigated the long application process.

“It was just very special to have someone walk me through the process like that,” Purcell said, who has taken two classes with Clemens as a government major.  

Purcell began the extensive application process in November. First, she had to apply to be nominated for the scholarship by a panel of W&M faculty. These faculty members review all the applications before narrowing down the pool and conducting mock interviews with applicants. 

“William & Mary can forward up to four nominations, and I was lucky enough to be one of those,” Purcell said. Purcell hesitated to even apply for the campus nomination, making her acceptance that much more rewarding.  

Purcell’s scholarship application to the national committee was submitted in early February. The application included writing a policy memo, which Purcell centered around “using American foreign assistance to prevent conflict-related sexual violence across the world.”  

As a confidential peer advocate at The Haven and the former education chair of Someone You Know, a peer-education group that focuses on sexual violence prevention and awareness, Purcell is passionate about advocacy surrounding conflict-related sexual violence.  

“It felt very natural for me to write my proposal on that. With conflict-related sexual violence, there's been a very strong focus among the international community to respond to it after the fact,” Purcell said. “The U.S. allocates foreign assistance to counseling services, medical services, legal services for survivors, and my proposal looked at how we can potentially use that same kind of funding to prevent it before it ever occurs.” 

Purcell’s studies in government and international human rights have also deepened her interest in the topic and influenced her policy proposal.  

“My COLL 150 was Gender-Based Violence in the State with Professor Lindsay Barna. That class got me interested in the intersection between sexual violence and my study of government. Then, last semester, I took Terror, Rights, and Memory in Latin America with Professor Betsy Konefal,” Purcell said. “For my capstone in that class, I did some research into a case out of Guatemala where they litigated conflict-related sexual violence and used reparations to prevent it moving forward.” 

Purcell credits W&M’s academic and campus culture with deepening her commitment to public service. 

“I think William & Mary is a great place to be for people who are interested in pursuing a career in public service. Not just our academics, but our community is full of people who have that public service mindset of using a career to help people, in whatever sector it may be,” Purcell said. 

While in Spain where she is currently studying abroad, Purcell learned that she was a finalist in late Februrary. With support from the Arts & Sciences Annual Fund, Purcell traveled to Boston in March for her final interview with a panel of Truman Scholars, where she met 13 other regional finalists.  

“They're all people who are very passionate about public service across fields and across spheres,” Purcell said.  

Reflecting on the experience, from her initial application to the final interview, Purcell emphasizes the role W&M has played in shaping her goals. Specifically, her research involvements with the Global Research Institute, under its director Mike Tierney and associate director David Trichler, and Cornelia Brackenridge Talbot Professor of Government Jaime Settle’s U.S. Subnational Democratic Erosion Event Database have been invaluable. 

“William & Mary really has instilled my passion for public service in a lot of ways and has fostered the ways that I think about the world. Being able to represent the community that has shaped me into the person that I am and the person that I want to become is really exciting,” Purcell said.