When Maria Gershuni ’17 came to Geneseo, she wanted to focus entirely on her major — international politics. What she discovered is that the diverse courses offered in liberal arts allows students to be many things — educators, scientists, actors, philosophers — and they become a new person because they unlocked many facets of themselves during their education.
Gershuni kept her passion for international relations and completed a semester-long internship at the United Nations in New York City.
Recently, she won the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC) David J. Prior Award for an essay in which she shared her perspective of the value of a liberal arts education and how her experience at Geneseo has helped shaped who she is.
"I am very humbled and honored to have received this award for our school, and am very grateful for all the words of support I have gotten from our community," said Gershuni.
The award carries a $500 prize and recognizes seniors whose academic careers and future goals have been shaped by the transformative power of the liberal arts and sciences experience at a COPLAC institution. She is the third Geneseo student to win the award since 2013.
Gershuni was born in Russia but spent most of her childhood in Brooklyn. Her interests focus on peace building, diplomacy, and conflict studies in Eastern Europe and Eurasia. At the U.N., she also served as a director for the National High School Model United Nations Conference and spoke at the opening ceremonies (see photo).
She will attend Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies this fall to being work on earning a master’s degree in international relations.
Photo: Maria Gershuni speaks at the opening ceremonies of the National High School Model United Nations Conference (NHSMUN) held in the United Nations General Assembly Hall in March.