Sophie Slaughter, a junior double majoring in history and women’s and gender studies, has been named a finalist for the Truman Scholarship, a nationally competitive fellowship that funds graduate study for students pursuing careers as public service leaders.
They will interview for the scholarship on April 7 in Washington.
A native of Culloden, Slaughter sees a future where everyone has what they need to live safe, healthy and self-directed lives — and they believe public service is the best way to champion that ideal.
“At the core of my advocacy is a belief that all people deserve care and community and it’s this insistence on well-being that pushes me toward abolition feminism,” they said. “It imagines futures where violence is prevented or mediated in ways that repair relationships rather than seek revenge. The things that abolition feminism asks of us are hard — it’s not easy to look squarely at the pain we cause others or admit that we’ve neglected the well-being of our community members. But it’s this work that’s going to bring about a world in which our neighbors and ourselves are cared for.”
As a student, Slaughter is pursuing their purpose in public service by volunteering with the Appalachian Prison Book Project through their pen pal program and new, on-campus student extension as well as an internship with the West Virginia Innocence Project at the WVU College of Law, a project that aims to free people who are in prison for crimes they did not commit.
“Public service, and policy work more specifically, allows us to operate both in the present moment and in the future,” Slaughter said. “While I don’t think we can legislate our way out of the prison industrial complex, we can use those existing avenues to begin the work of preventing people from going in, helping people get out and defunding carceral facilities.
The Honors College student currently serves as the president of two organizations — the Eta Chapter of Iota Iota Iota, the Women’s and Gender Studies Honors Society at WVU, and the Appalachian Advocacy Network, an organization that encourages young people to get involved in political advocacy in West Virginia.
Slaughter is one of 201 students selected as finalists from 743 nominations. They are one of two finalists from West Virginia. Support for this application was provided by the WVU ASPIRE Office, which helps students pursue nationally competitive scholarships.
The Truman Foundation was established by Congress in 1975 as a living memorial to President Harry S. Truman. The Truman Scholarship aims to honor his legacy through supporting and inspiring the next generation of public service leaders. Scholarships are awarded to college juniors who demonstrate exceptional leadership and a commitment to public service, whether in government, nonprofit work, education, advocacy or other public sectors. Scholars receive up to $30,000 toward graduate studies, professional development opportunities and access to a national network of Truman Scholars.