Soros Fellowship Awarded to Eugene Rusyn ’17
Eugene Rusyn ’17 has been named a Paul & Daisy Soros New American Fellow for 2015. Rusyn is among the 30 new Fellows who were selected from more than 1,200 applicants. The fellowships are awarded to immigrants or the children of immigrants to support their graduate study at any university in the United States.
Eugene Rusyn was born in Kiev, in the former Soviet Union to a Russian mother and a Carpatho-Ruthenian father. His family immigrated to the United States when he was four, leaving behind family and friends—many of whom he would not see again for decades. They settled in New Jersey, hoping for a life of greater freedom and opportunity.
Rusyn pursued his bachelor’s degree in history at New York University, which he completed summa cum laude. While there, Rusyn’s interests expanded to include philosophy and the law. He was particularly interested in concepts of national belonging.
His studies turned toward nationalism and the ways emerging transnational organizations try to foster community among diverse populations while guaranteeing basic rights. During this time, Rusyn worked with professor Tony Judt on the completion of several books and articles published in The New York Times and The New York Review of Books. He also worked as an associate editor on legal journals focusing on international and constitutional law. When Rusyn was 23, he became a naturalized United States citizen.
At Yale Law School, Rusyn is focusing on international, constitutional, and environmental law.
The 2015 class of fellows includes researchers, mathematicians, writers, scientists, translators, musicians, entrepreneurs, and future doctors and lawyers, as well as the first-ever Paul & Daisy Soros Fellow in the field of nursing. They hail from China, Vietnam, Iran, Nigeria, Somalia, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Albania, Ukraine, Morocco, El Salvador, Mexico, Colombia, Libya, Poland, Russia, Peru, Israel, Oman, Brazil, and the United States. The Fellows come from 23 undergraduate institutions and will attend a total of 14 graduate schools.
The Fellowship Program for New Americans was established by Hungarian immigrants Paul and Daisy Soros in 1997 as a way to “give back” to the country that had afforded them and their children great opportunities. Each Fellow will receive tuition and stipend assistance of up to $90,000 in support of graduate education in the United States.
