Senior to use scholarship as career launching pad

Senior
to use scholarship as career launching pad
…………………………………………………………………

BY ELLEN CHANG
Rice News Staff

Rice University
senior Laura Gardner has a lot of goals for the future.
She wants to pursue a Ph.D. in Victorian literature and
one day become an English professor, and she also wants
to learn about the book publishing trade.

The English
and French major will take major steps toward achieving
those goals during the two years she will spend studying
abroad. Gardner was one of 40 students chosen nationally
to receive the Marshall Scholarship to study for a degree
in Britain.
Gardner will be studying for a master’s degree in London
studies from Birkbeck College at the University of London.
She will examine the formation of London from architectural,
historical and social perspectives. In her second year,
she will study for a master’s in English with a concentration
in literary biography at King’s College London at the
University of London.

Gardner said
she hopes to gain a thorough understanding of London’s
history, especially relating to the London book trade. She
hopes studying abroad will help her future plans of pursuing
a doctorate in Victorian literature.

“One of
the best parts about the Marshall is that I can spend two
years living in British culture and exploring more of the
country,” she said. “I’m thrilled to have
won this award. I had a fabulous time studying abroad last
year and know that the next two years will be even more
exciting.”

The two-year
Marshall Scholarships were founded by an act of parliament
in 1953 to commemorate the humane ideals of the European
Recovery Program, which also is known as the Marshall Plan.
American students are chosen to receive the scholarships
by eight regional committees. The program allows students
to gain an understanding and appreciation of British values
and the British way of life.

Gardner currently
is the student director of the university’s Women’s
Resource Center, which coordinates educational and social
activities and programs to increase awareness of issues
facing women. She also is part of the Rice Undergraduate
Scholars Program and is working on a project on fallen women
in Victorian culture. Robert Patten, the Lynette S. Autrey
Professor in Humanities and Gardner’s senior project
adviser, said she stood out as a sophomore in his survey
of British literature course with her instinct for the appropriate
feature of a text to focus on.

“She’s
disciplined, thorough, insightful and self-directed,”
he said. “She is both creative and very careful in
her research, here and in England. She radiates life and
energy and joy and good humor. Clearly that combination
of scholarly excellence and personal magnetism worked on
the Marshall selectors.”

After graduation,
Gardner will be working for W.W. Norton and Co., a publishing
company, during the summer before heading to Britain.

“I do wish
to become an English professor someday, but I’m also
interested in learning more about the publishing industry,”
she said. “I liked the British academic system and
loved the city. This way I can find out more about a great
city while living amid its stimulating atmosphere.”