Press Release

May 25, 2021 | By Cole Hatcher

Ohio Wesleyan awards Baran Fellowships annually to help students pursue their graduate school and career goals. (Photo by Reilly Wright ’20)

2021 Baran Fellowships

Ohio Wesleyan Taps Four Students for Program to Support Education, Career Goals

DELAWARE, Ohio – Four Ohio Wesleyan University students have earned 2021 Baran Fellowships, which include financial awards to support their graduate school and career goals.

The Ohio Wesleyan fellowships are supported by the Jan W. Baran and Kathryn K. Baran Endowed Fund for the Encouragement of Post Graduate Fellowships. All recipients use their financial awards to complete educational programs, internships, or other initiatives to make them more competitive candidates for graduate school admission and prestigious post-graduate fellowships, such as Fulbright Scholarships.

OWU’s 2021 fellowship recipients and their Baran-supported projects are as follows:

  • Haris Ali of Lahore, Pakistan. Ali will subsidize his paid summer internship at LiveIntent Inc., a marketing and advertising firm headquartered in New York City. Ali is a double major in Quantitative Economics and Accounting and, after graduation, expects to pursue a doctoral degree in Economics.
  • Anna Fender of Sullivan, Illinois. Fender will complete an OWU Honors Program research project that involves hosting four intentional conversation dinners, each with a specific social justice focus. Fender is a triple major in Comparative Literature, Women’s and Gender Studies, and Social Justice. After graduation, she plans to pursue a master’s degree in Social Work (Nonprofit Management).
  • Cera Linnell of Delaware, Ohio. Linnell will study Chinese at Indiana University’s Chinese Summer Language Program and, in the fall, through the Chinese Language Institute. At Ohio Wesleyan, Linnell is an East Asian Studies major with a Chinese focus. After graduation, she hopes to pursue a master’s or doctoral degree in East Asian Language (Chinese).
  • Sam Miller of Oakwood, Ohio. Miller will study Persian at Indiana University’s Lugar School of Global and International Studies. An Ohio Wesleyan History and Religion double-major, Miller expects to pursue a master’s or doctoral degree in Near Eastern Languages and Civilization.

The Baran Fellowships were created in 2013 with a gift from Ohio Wesleyan alumnus Jan W. Baran, Class of 1970, and his wife, Kathryn K. Baran, in recognition of the strong mentorship he received as an OWU student.

To be eligible for the fellowships, students must be in the Honors Program or have an excellent academic record (usually a grade-point average of 3.7 or higher) with a high probability of success in a post-graduate fellowship competition. Recipients are able to use the funding to support travel-learning opportunities or individualized research or study connecting theory to practice.

Learn more about Baran Fellowships at owu.edu/baran and more about the university’s Leland F. and Helen Schubert Honors Program at owu.edu/honors.


Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more undergraduate majors than many universities its size and competes in 24 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through its signature program, The OWU Connection, Ohio Wesleyan teaches students to integrate knowledge across disciplines, build a diverse and global perspective, and apply knowledge in real-world settings. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives” and included on the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review “best colleges” lists. Learn more at owu.edu.