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| Robertson Scholar Nick Anderson (right) and Gustavo, a handyman at a small residential school in Argentina, lay adobe cement to restore the school’s greenhouse. Today, the building is filled with growing vegetables that help improve and diversify the students’ nutrition. |
Making the Difference
Robertson Scholars
Fierce Rivalry Plus Unmatched Collaboration Equals a Willing Combination
By Hope Baptiste
Imagine being a Tar Heel living in the gothic spires of Duke University— or a Blue Devil in powder Blue Heaven—on purpose. Now imagine loving every frenetic minute of it. For Robertson Scholars at UNC and Duke, there’s no need to imagine because that’s exactly who they are and what defines their unique collegiate experience. The celebrated rivalry between the schools only serves to heighten the passion that is a hallmark of the Robertson Scholars Program, which brings together talented and promising students from each campus who live at, learn from—and even love—both.
Robertson Scholars represent the best and brightest students from the U.S. and abroad who have demonstrated exceptional ability and extraordinary promise. One of the most generous and visionary merit scholarship programs in American higher education, the Robertson Scholars Program was created in 2000 through a $24 million gift from Julian Robertson, a 1955 graduate of UNC, and his wife Josie. Inspired by their sons, one of whom graduated from Duke in 1998 and another who graduated from UNC in 2001, the Robertsons wanted to encourage further collaboration between the two universities. This innovative program serves as a catalyst for increased collaboration between students, faculty and staff of the two schools. More than an investment in talented students, the Robertson Scholars Program aims to prepare citizens and leaders of an ever-increasing global society who will be ready to meet the unprecedented challenges of an interdependent world.
Their dual “citizenship” avails scholars of a wealth of opportunities at both UNC and Duke. Students take classes at each school, have access to the faculty and resources, immerse themselves in student life and campus culture, join clubs, conduct research with renowned faculty, live for a semester at the other campus, and also attend cultural and sporting events. More important, Robertson Scholars benefit immensely from the differences between these two prestigious universities, learn to recognize and appreciate their many similarities as well as learn a lot about themselves in the process.
The program also physically connects the campuses via the Robertson Scholars Program Express Bus, which makes the 30-minute trek up and down Tobacco Road between UNC and Duke carrying scholars as well as other students, faculty or staff to the other campus. Robertson Scholar Nick Anderson, a UNC student, says he’s gone up and down the highway on the bus too many times to count, but true to the tenets of the Robertson Scholars Program, he has learned to make the most of every minute. “I’ve learned to take advantage of the bus ride. I call home, read the newspaper or prepare for class,” he said. “I’ve also met a lot of interesting people on the bus. In fact, I’d guess the majority of people who use the bus are not affiliated with the Robertson scholarship—they are students who have decided to take a class at the other school or professors and employees who work at one of the schools but live in the other town.”
Academics keep Anderson busy, but the program also ensures that scholars stay connected and focused through group activities such as leadership retreats and intellectual dinners where they can share their experiences, perspectives and future plans. Summer enrichment opportunities have taken Anderson, a native New Englander, to the coal fields of rural Kentucky, a small school at the foot of the Andes Mountains in Argentina, the Chilean countryside as well as downtown Durham—all in the name of service. “I have learned to be adaptable to new cultures … to become a part of them and appreciate them quickly,” he said. “Living in the coal fields of rural Kentucky was a huge change for me, but it became one of my favorite places.”
During the semester switch, scholars quite literally walk in their counterparts’ shoes. “Being a Tar Heel in Blue Devil country sure gives you perspective,” he said. “It helped me learn how to pull together teams of students across the two universities. My freshman year, I worked with three Duke students and another Carolina student to launch Rival Magazine, a publication that examines the UNC-Duke rivalry and educates students at each school about life and opportunities at the other. Now, more than 40 Duke and Carolina students who are not involved in the Robertson program work together to produce a single magazine. These are the sorts of success stories that would not have happened without the spark that the Robertson provides.”
Anderson also noted that he didn’t have to go far from his Carolina home to make a difference. “One of the most meaningful things I’ve been a part of during my college career has been the Durham Teacher Warehouse (www.crayons2calculators.org),” he said. “A Duke friend and I helped start a warehouse in downtown Durham that provides free school supplies to Durham teachers in needy classrooms. My passion for this cause was kindled freshman year after I visited E.K. Powe Elementary School as part of a project for a class at Duke. I talked to teachers who spent more than $500 out of pocket each year so their students could have markers and construction paper. I would never have known of this need without my Robertson tie to Duke. I feel a real bond to the Durham community, and it’s given me a reason to go into Durham, where I have met business and political leaders, visited elementary schools, and spent time downtown in the warehouse.”
Anderson is planning a career in public service. After pursuing a law degree, he hopes to devote his expertise to helping developing countries strengthen institutions that will enable grassroots economic growth. Having embraced fully the Robertson Scholarship Program philosophy of investing in future potential as well as documented achievement, he is challenging himself and his fellow scholars to reach that potential. “My hope is that someday I’ll have friends and fellow Robertson alumni who are doing incredible things in every field—medicine, non-profit, education, business, government and social entrepreneurship,” he said. “To the Robertson family and other donors, I would say: ‘Look at where these students are in 10 or 20 years and you’ll see how important your support has been not only to the future of every scholar, but also to the future of the society they are working to strengthen.’”
Stay tuned to see what the future holds for Anderson and his classmates. Chances are it’s something … extraordinary.
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