2003 Lakewood H.S. Grad Michelle Sikes Named Rhodes Scholar

[Jay Foran]

From cleveland.com's newswire....

Michelle Sikes of Lakewood was among 32 Americans selected as Rhodes Scholars for 2007. The scholarships, the oldest of the international study awards available to American students, provide two or three years of study at Oxford University in England. The term begins next October.

Sikes is a senior at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., where she’s captain of the school’s track and cross country teams and is majoring in mathematical economics with a minor in health policy and administration.

“As a runner, my goal is to qualify for the Olympics,â€Â￾ Sikes, an NCAA track and field All-American, said in a statement released by the university. “As a student, I want to use the Oxford education as a springboard into a career devoted to solving the health problems within disadvantaged populations.â€Â￾

During the summer, Sikes held an internship with the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research in Washington, where she researched various mathematical models that might increase the number of organ donors. She would like to work for the World Health Organization and design public health policy.

By The Associated Press and Mike Sangiacomo,

[Jay Foran]

To top of her week, Michelle was named 1st team All-American for her 15th place finish at the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships. Wow!