Scholarly Pair

The two newest recipients of the Alumni Endowed Undergraduate Scholarship have several things in common: an early passion for Duke, close family ties to the university, and residence in Florida. They are Trisha Lowe, from Cudjoe Key, and Taylor Hausburg, from Sarasota. The scholarship, established by the Duke Alumni Association in 1979, recognizes the academic, extracurricular, and personal achievements of children and grandchildren of Duke alumni who are accepted for undergraduate admission to Duke.

"I was attracted to Duke because of, well, everything," says Lowe. "I think the campus is beautiful, the academics are unmatched, the social life is worth mentioning, and it is really just an all-around amazing school for people who are interested in as many things as I am."

Lowe's grandparents on her father's side, Donald Lowe '46 and Emily Body Lowe '48, met at Duke and were married in Duke Chapel. "Since they live next door, I've pretty much grown up hearing all those amazing stories about Duke and what it was like there 'back in their day,' " she says.

Lowe says she took the hardest classes offered at her high school and also enrolled in classes at a local community college and online. Her range of extracurricular activities is equally impressive, including treasurer of the student council, public-relations officer for the investment club, and membership in the National Honor Society. She was her school's band captain while playing in the marching band, wind ensemble, and jazz band.

Her musical interests led her to teach economically disadvantaged children how to play piano and guitar. At the same time, she tutored students who hadn't passed Florida's standardized test and a girl with a severe hearing impairment.

"I just like too many things to only participate in one," she says. "So I found a way to do almost all of them, while keeping my GPA up." At Duke, she is planning to major in biomedical engineering and is considering a certificate in neuroscience.

Hausburg says she was drawn to Duke largely because of the influence of her father, Jonathan Hausburg '74. "Ever since I can remember, we would stop by Duke each summer, and my father would give me the same tour of the campus: House J, his freshman dormitory; the Sarah P. Duke Gardens, where he proposed to my mother."

At her high school, Hausburg participated in a French-language competitive team and was on the Academic Olympics and speech and debate teams. She served as attorney general at Florida Girls State, a citizenship-training program, and was sent to Girls Nation last summer.

A National Merit Scholarship Finalist, she was also a teen attorney for the local teen court. And, she notes, she is an avid dirt biker. Her senior class voted her "most likely to succeed." She says, "The most prestigious honor that I have received is the opportunity to be a Blue Devil. I'm still stoked!"

Hausburg's plans as a Duke student "change almost daily," she says. Her thinking for now is that she will concentrate in linguistics or Romance languages.

The Undergraduate Alumni Endowed Scholarship is a four-year, full-tuition scholarship for students with demonstrated financial need. The scholarship also pays for a summer academic experience of the scholar's choice, including the opportunity to study abroad. In addition, scholars are invited to participate in special educational, social, and cultural programs on campus during their four years at Duke.