By Andi Anderson
University of Michigan student Yumna Dagher has been selected as a 2025 Rhodes Scholar, joining one of the most prestigious academic communities in the world.
She is one of 32 Americans chosen for the honor and becomes the 33rd Rhodes Scholar from the University of Michigan since the awards began in 1902. The scholarship will allow her to continue her studies at Oxford University beginning in October 2026.
Dagher, who recently completed double majors in English and the Environment, said, “I have always wanted to pursue graduate studies, but found myself at a juncture—the possibility of a fully funded graduate education seemed far away.
Now, heading to Oxford, I hope to gain the theoretical grounding and interdisciplinary training necessary to build projects that honor the kinds of relational practices I witnessed on campus and within Detroit environmental spaces, where stewardship becomes a vessel for building collective climate futures.”
The Rhodes Scholarship provides full financial support for outstanding students who aspire to leadership, public service, and global understanding.
Dagher plans to pursue graduate degrees in nature, society and environmental governance as well as visual, material and museum anthropology. She added, “I want to work at the intersection of culture, cooperative economics and sustainable food systems,” while also developing “art and writing practice as a printmaker, cartoonist and poet.”
Dagher has combined academic strength with leadership in sustainability and the arts. She completed a creative writing honors thesis, worked as a Dean’s Fellow supporting campus sustainability efforts, and helped develop a neighborhood cultural hub to expand community arts programming.
Her agricultural experiences began at the U-M Campus Farm in 2024, where she worked with student-farmers, supported fieldwork, and taught in the refugee garden.
The project allowed gardeners to grow culturally familiar crops, reinforcing her belief in land as a foundation for community. She also helped grow produce for dining halls, contributed to the Mobile Farm Stand, and strengthened her understanding of food systems.
A visit to Oakland Avenue Urban Farm deepened her commitment to stewardship, showing her that agriculture is also about creating a viable future. Returning to campus, she led the Sustainable Food Program and helped transform an unused café into a climate resilience space.
Reflecting on her approach, Dagher said, “At the center of UMSFP was our people… We understood the work as the relationships we built.” Looking ahead, she hopes to weave global perspectives with her grounding in community-based environmental work, adding, “Together, we can braid these perspectives… to create cross-border models of resilience.”
Photo Credit: gettyimages-poike
Categories: Michigan, Rural Lifestyle