UGA alumna Patricia Andrews Fearon was one of 36 Americans to be named a 2017 recipient of the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, which fully funds postgraduate study and research at the University of Cambridge in England.
Fearon is the seventh UGA student or alumnus to receive the scholarship, which was established by a gift from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, since it was first awarded in 2001.
“Patricia’s achievement reflects the excellent preparation our students receive to compete for the most prestigious international scholarships,” said UGA President Jere W. Morehead. “The University of Georgia is proud that she is carrying on our land-grant tradition of applying her education to improve the lives of others around the world.”
Fearon earned a bachelor’s degree in religion from the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication in 2009 before going on to earn a master’s degree in the study of religions from the University of Oxford.
As a journalist, she has traveled to more than 40 countries and worked with media outlets such as CNN and Time Inc. In addition, she worked with non-governmental organizations such as Room to Read and cycled across France for her documentary The Tour de Farm. In 2015 she joined the IC Thinking Research Team, through which she has collaborated on studies and intervention designs that tackle sectarianism, violent extremism and other forms of intergroup conflict.
“Patricia’s success in earning a Gates Cambridge Scholarship reflects well on her and the many faculty members who have educated and mentored her,” said Provost Pamela Whitten. “She has already accomplished so much since graduating from the University of Georgia, and this highly competitive honor underscores her extraordinary potential for the future.”
