Seattle woman chosen as Rhodes Scholar for 2007

SEATTLE – A Lakeside School graduate who is pursuing a double bachelor's degree in chemistry and Latin American Studies at Brown University has been selected as a Rhodes Scholar for 2007, the scholarship trust announced.

Keriann Backus, 21, a senior at Brown, said Sunday she was home in Seattle for a Thanksgiving holiday with her family.

She will be pursuing a doctorate of philosophy in the hybrid field of chemical biology at Oxford University.

"It's basic research, but it's using chemical tools to probe biological questions," said the 2003 graduate of Lakeside School, the private school where Microsoft co-founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen got to know each other.

She shares an interest in international health policy with Gates, who is also co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

In addition to science and international affairs, Backus is a runner, hiker, skier and biker and plays the bassoon in the Brown Orchestra.

She said Sunday that she was told Saturday evening she would be a Rhodes Scholar, but "it hasn't set in yet."

Backus said what really strikes her about the honor is how nice and also accomplished the other candidates are.

"Everyone who applied were such amazing people," she said.

The 32 men and women across the United States selected as Rhodes Scholars for 2007 will enter Oxford University in England next October.

The scholars were selected from 896 applicants endorsed by 340 colleges and universities, and will join scholars selected from 13 other jurisdictions around the world. Approximately 85 are selected each year. The scholarships provide two or three years of study, with the total value averaging about $45,000 per year.

Like many of the Rhodes Scholars, Backus already has experienced studying abroad. Last spring, she studied at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador.

She traveled throughout Ecuador and Peru during her time in South America, where she became interested in indigenous rights and movements. Backus is pursuing her thesis on the impact of international oil companies in the rainforest on the Huaorani tribe.