On January 29, Princeton seniors Sukaina Shivji ’26 and Laura Zhang ’26 were named winners of the Daniel M. Sachs Class of 1960 Graduating Scholarship. One of the most prestigious honors at Princeton, the scholarship provides two Princeton seniors interested in public service with the opportunity to study, work, or travel abroad after graduation.
There are three variations of the Sachs scholarships: the Sachs Worcester, the Sachs Global, and the Sachs at Princeton. The latter of the three sponsors a Worcester College graduate to study for a year at the Princeton Graduate School.
Next academic year, Oxford student Andriychenko Leonenko, recipient of the Sachs at Princeton scholarship, will study computer science and environmental studies at Princeton while pursuing the SPIA graduate policy certificate in science, technology and environmental policy.
Shivji was awarded the Sachs Global Scholarship, which she will use to pursue an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree in Public Health in Disasters, a program that involves travel to Spain, Sweden, and Cyprus. Zhang was awarded the Sachs Scholarship at Worcester College, which guarantees two years of funding specifically at the University of Oxford.
Shivji, who is from Staten Island, N.Y., reflected on her excitement upon being named a Sachs Scholar.
“It was honestly such an amazing moment, because it felt very rewarding to hear from a group of people that they believed in me as a person, as well as the vision that I have for the world,” Shivji said in an interview with The Daily Princetonian.
Shivji is a molecular biology major pursuing minors in global health and health policy. Her senior thesis addresses applying gene-editing technology CRISPR on fruit flies, particularly in the embryonic stage of development. She explained that there are some genetic similarities between humans and fruit flies, making the applications and findings particularly useful.
“I'm using CRISPR to explore what that process is like,” Shivji said.
“If I started to remove certain RNAs in that process, what would happen to the egg development process?”
In her career, Shivji hopes to help build a more accessible medical system.
“I really envision a world in which everyone has access to health care in an equitable way and a very patient-centered way,” she told the ‘Prince.’
On campus, Shivji serves as director for Camp Kesem Princeton, an organization that supports children whose parents have cancer. Previously, she also worked with the Princeton Entrepreneurship Club and as a Peer Representative for the Sexual Harassment/Assault Advising, Resources and Education (SHARE) Office.
“All of the things that I have done have been very focused on listening to people and really ensuring that people’s experiences are heard,” Shivji said.
One of her mentors, Professor of the Practice at the School of Public and International Affairs Heather Howard, described Shivji’s promise “as both a scholar and health care practitioner.”
“I know [Shivji] is passionate about studying global health in the disaster context, and excited about a program that combines those inquiries in universities across three countries,” Howard wrote to the ‘Prince.’
“I can think of few students more genuinely prepared — and better suited — for a career in public health and a focus on underserved populations,” she added.
Zhang, from Sydney, Australia, is pursuing a major in the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. She plans to use the fellowship for two one-year Master’s programs at the University of Oxford — one in refugee and forced migration studies and one in criminology and criminal justice.
After her fellowship, she plans to attend Harvard Law School, to which she has been admitted through its Junior Deferral Program. After law school, Zhang hopes to pursue a career focusing on immigration and refugee advocacy.
Zhang noted how the Sachs Scholarship differs from similar programs, like the Rhodes Scholarship, to which she also applied. “The distinguishing thing between these, even though they have very similar outcomes, is that Sachs really focuses on public service,” she said.
She also noted the Sachs Scholarship’s unique selection process — all interviews are conducted by past Sachs Scholars.
“The people interviewing you care about the public good, and they’re just evaluating you based on your passion, mainly for public service and public interest,” Zhang told the ‘Prince.’
In her sophomore year, Zhang was inspired to pursue immigration studies after taking “Violence,” an anthropology class taught by Onur Günay GS ’17. In her final paper, she wrote about offshore immigration detention centers in Nauru and in Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island.
“I had never felt that proud of an essay because it was so painful and so hard for me to write,” she told the ‘Prince.’
Zhang added that her path has not been linear.
“I didn’t continuously win to get to this position … I tried out for KoKo Pops my freshman year, and I got rejected at the audition in the first round, and I couldn’t even do the dance, and everybody was watching me.”
Zhang also encouraged students to be “bold and daring” and pursue the path of public service.
“We just need people like that in the world. And if you have the passion for it, and if you’re willing to do it, you definitely should.”
Toby Chang is a staff News writer from Prescott, Ariz. He can be reached at toby.chang[at]princeton.edu.
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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