Texas State students earn record 16 P.E.O. International Peace Scholarships

A record 16 graduate students at Texas State University have been awarded the Philanthropic Educational Organization (P.E.O) International Peace Scholarship.

The P.E.O. International Peace Scholarship supports women from other countries who are studying at the graduate level in the United States and Canada. This year’s class of 16 exceeds the previous record of five, which was set in 2019.  

“I am beyond delighted that such an extraordinarily high number of female international graduate students have been selected for this award,” said Andrea Golato, dean of the Graduate College. “Their achievement represents not only the well-deserved support of an outstanding group of students at a time of great financial need, but also shines a light on these students’ excellent skills, hard work and steadfast commitment to their studies. Moreover, the award further highlights the good reputation of Texas State while showcasing the Graduate College’s support of students who are seeking external funding.”

The scholarship is based upon demonstrated need. The award, however, is not intended to cover all academic or personal expenses. The maximum amount awarded to a student is $12,500. Lesser amounts may be awarded according to individual needs.

“The whole process was eye-opening. I never thought applying for a scholarship like this would be such a journey to finding myself,” said Anna Streichhardt from Germany, who is pursuing her master’s in data analytics and information systems in the McCoy College of Business. “I found a lot of answers to the questions, ‘What do I want to do in five years? What do I want to do in 10 years?’ I had some vague ideas before, but now they’re pretty concrete. 

“That helped me with my own personal development,” she said. “I’m going to take a leap of faith and apply for my doctorate in health informatics after my master’s. I feel if I stop here, I’m missing an opportunity.”  

In preparing her application, Olufadeke “Fadeke” Adeniyi, a student from Nigeria pursuing her master’s in data analytics and information systems, said she realized that gender bias was a major issue in her home country, blocking women’s advancement. She said she hopes to be able to address that issue following the completion of her degree. 

“One of the things I think I would really like to do is organize seminars for junior management and accountants to help them know how to negotiate,” Adeniyi said. “I think I would love to do that, to empower them to know that sometimes we have gender bias because we don’t ask for what we want or need. [Women] should start by listing the things we’ve accomplished, so that during appraisals we can show what we contribute to the bottom line of the organization and be able to ask for what we want. At max, they could say no, but sometimes we don’t get a yes because we don’t even ask.”   

The 16 Texas State P.E.O. International Peace Scholarship recipients are:

• Olufadeke “Fadeke” Adeniyi, Nigeria, master’s, data analytics and information systems, McCoy College of Business
• Tanjina Ahmed, Bangladesh, doctoral, Materials Science, Engineering and Commercialization (MSEC), College of Science and Engineering
• Noushin Azami, Iran, doctoral, Computer Science, College of Science and Engineering
• Maria “Camila” Belduque Correa, Colombia, master’s, engineering, College of Science and Engineering
• Isha Desai, India, doctoral, MSEC, College of Science and Engineering 
• Blanca Estevez Posadas, Mexico, master’s, chemistry, College of Science and Engineering
• Dixizi Liu, China, master’s, engineering, College of Science and Engineering
• Shubha Malla, Nepal, doctoral, MSEC, College of Science and Engineering  
• Luise Noé, Germany, master’s, literature, College of Liberal Arts
• Sa Ra Park, Republic of Korea, master’s, music, College of Fine Arts and Communication
• Soma Sarker, Bangladesh, master’s, engineering, College of Science and Engineering
• Anna Streichhardt, Germany, master’s, data analytics and information systems, McCoy College of Business
• Gail Sylvester-Conrad, Trinidad & Tobago, master’s, educational technology, College of Education
• Veronika “Nika” Teiler, Russia, master’s, public health education and promotion, College of Education
• Mei Yang, China, doctoral, geographic information science, College of Liberal Arts
• Sneha Susan Varghese, India, master's, data analytics and information systems, Graduate College