Nieman News

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Feb. 5, 2002) — Four Harvard College sophomores will investigate the status of women at Harvard University through fellowships awarded by The Christopher J. Georges Fellowship Fund. The four women are all members of The Harvard Crimson staff.

Winners of the 2002 Georges Fellowship are: Lauren R. Dorgan of Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; Anne K. Kofol of New York City; Kathryn L. Rakoczy of Staten Island, N.Y.; and Catherine E. Shoichet of Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

“Though many women’s issues have been investigated (at Harvard),” the four said in their scholarship proposal, “these examinations only scratch the surface of a pervasive problem at Harvard, and in the academe at large.”

The project, to be published in The Harvard Crimson upon its completion, will look into four major areas: undergraduate life, female faculty, Radcliffe and women’s studies.

“There were several excellent proposals, and we are thrilled to award a fellowship to this most worthy project,” said Gigi Georges, chair of the fellowship fund’s board. “We hope and anticipate that when this project is completed, it will both be a significant work of journalism and an important source of discussion about the future status of women at Harvard.”

The fellowship covers a $1,000 award to each student and the printing costs to publish the project in The Crimson.

The Christopher J. Georges Fellowship Fund was established at Harvard and is awarded annually to enable young journalists to engage in research and writing that exemplifies Chris Georges’ commitment to in-depth reporting on issues of enduring social value in which stories document the human impact of public policy.

Chris Georges was executive editor of The Harvard Crimson and an honors graduate of Harvard College. Following graduation he joined the Wall Street Journal as a reporter. He died in1998 at age 33 from complications related to lupus. He worked in the Journal’s Washington Bureau, covering politics, economics and budget issues. His stories on the welfare system in 1997 were nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

The fellowship is administered by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. A selection committee appointed by the fellowship fund’s executive committee and the Nieman Foundation reviewed the proposals and selected the students to receive the award and carry out the project.

Below is more detail on the scholarship winners:

LAUREN R. DORGAN, (Quincy House) sophomore American history concentrator from Saratoga Springs. She has been a reporter and editor for The Crimson for the last two years, most recently covering Cambridge city government and politics. She is a graduate of the Emma Willard School, where she was editor-in-chief of The Clock, the school newspaper.

ANNE K. KOFOL, (Mather House) sophomore history and literature concentrator from New York City. As a reporter and editor for The Crimson, she has covered religion and student social life. She is also a member of the Harvard Model Congress. She is a graduate of The Chapin School, where she was involved in student government and was co-captain of the tennis team.

KATHRYN L. RAKOCZY, (Lowell House) sophomore social studies concentrator from Staten Island, N.Y. She was a part of The Crimson team that (that also included Catherine E. Shoichet) covered the Harvard presidential search and produced the scoop that Lawrence Summers was selected. Currently, she is covering the faculty. She is a graduate of Stuyvestant High School where she was captain of the women’s basketball and soccer teams.

CATHERINE E. SHOICHET, (Winthrop House) sophomore history and literature concentrator from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. Another member of the reporting team that covered the Harvard presidential search and produced the scoop that Lawrence Summers was selected, she now covers the Harvard University administration. She is also a violist for the Harvard Bach Society Orchestra. She is a graduate of Cranbrook Kingswood Upper School where she was editor-in-chief of the Crane-Clarion, the school newspaper.

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