Awards and Rankings
December 9, 2025
For the third time in school history, a University of Portland student has won a Marshall Scholarship.
Anna Singley ’26, whose talents and dedicated work have earned national recognition in the field of applied mathematics, will pursue her PhD as a Marshall Scholar at the University of Manchester in England beginning next fall.
The Marshall Scholarship, considered one of the highest honors for American undergraduates, is awarded each year to 40 to 50 U.S. students to pursue up to three years of fully funded graduate study in the United Kingdom. It was established by the British Parliament in 1953 to honor former U.S. Secretary of State George C. Marshall, in gratitude for American support for Europe’s postwar recovery. Singley joins Geoff Painter ’00 and Claire Clelland ’05 as UP’s third Marshall Scholar.
Singley is one of 43 Marshall Scholars in the Class of 2026, selected from more than one thousand applicants throughout the United States. Notable Marshall alumni include Supreme Court justices, governors and congressional leaders, Pulitzer Prize winners, and Nobel laureates.
“The Marshall Scholarship exemplifies the special relationship between the U.S. and the United Kingdom, and I am thrilled that Anna will join the other 2026 Marshall Scholars to carry forward this legacy in the year that we celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary,” said Provost David Mengel, PhD, a 1993 Marshall Scholar.
"I am incredibly excited to study at the University of Manchester, where I'll work with leading researchers in mathematical epidemiology to develop models that can better predict and control disease outbreaks,” said Singley. “I am proud to represent UP as a Marshall Scholar—shaped by math faculty who taught me to think rigorously and formed by our university’s commitment to developing the whole person.”
Singley, who earned a STEM-focused 2024 Goldwater Scholarship as a UP sophomore, has conducted extensive research in math, science, and epidemiology. She has interned at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico since her high school years in Illinois.
At UP, she used math modeling to help the Oregon Health Authority examine the health impacts of wildfire smoke. She has co-authored research papers with UP professors Dr. Aaron Wootton, Dr. Hannah Highlander, Dr. Eli Goldwyn, Dr. Ruth Dittrich, and Dr. Jordyn Wolfand, and she collaborated with UP philosophy senior lecturer Dr. Jessica Logue to analyze the brushstrokes of post-impressionist artist Vincent Van Gogh.
“The Marshall Scholarship is among the world’s most prestigious academic honors, and we are thrilled for Anna,” said University President Robert D. Kelly, PhD. “Brilliant, creative, and compassionate, Anna represents the very best of UP. I congratulate her on this tremendous achievement and look forward to seeing all that she will accomplish in the future.”
Dr. Cara Hersh, UP Assistant Provost for Scholarly Engagement & Career Readiness, said Singley’s “striking ability to create connections” will make her a standout ambassador among Marshall Scholars.
“We are exceptionally proud of Anna for earning one of the most prestigious scholarships for U.S. citizens,” Dr. Hersh said. “This is a testament to Anna’s commitment to academic excellence and her leadership skills, and it reflects the transformative power of a UP education.”
“This achievement belongs as much to me as to the many people at the University of Portland who helped me along the way,” Singley concluded. “I am deeply honored to join the Marshall Scholar community. It will be an amazing opportunity.”
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