UMass Amherst Junior Michael Crowley Wins Udall Scholarship

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AMHERST, Mass. – Michael Crowley of Leominster, a junior in Commonwealth Honors College at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, has been selected to receive the highly competitive Udall Scholarship, an award that recognizes college sophomores and juniors for leadership, public service and commitment to issues related to Native American nations or the environment.

Crowley, who is studying integrated environmental education through the Bachelor’s Degree with Individualized Concentration (BDIC) program at UMass Amherst, is one of 50 students nationwide to receive up to $7,000 from the Morris K. and Stewart L. Udall Foundation. More than 500 applicants representing 200 colleges vied for the scholarship.

Crowley plans to work in the Massachusetts Community Compact Initiative to implement educational, environmental management and well-being initiatives. Previously, Crowley has worked as a forest and park supervisor at Moore State Park in Paxton, as a project leader at the Star Wildlife Sanctuary in Boylston, and as a naturalist teacher at Mass Audubon.

“Michael has also been accepted to the master’s program in public policy at UMass Amherst, and he will be attending the Udall Conference in Tucson, Arizona, to meet with other Udall scholars and interact with community leaders in environmental fields, tribal health care, and governance,” said Madalina Akli, director of the Office of National Scholarship Advisement at UMass Amherst.

The Udall Scholarship honors the legacies of former Arizona congressmen Morris and Stewart Udall, who worked to impact Native American self-governance and health care, as well as stewardship of public lands and natural resources. UMass Amherst’s most recent Udall Scholar was recognized in 2005.