Felicity Klingele, a recent graduate of UW-Madison, was awarded last month the John and Daria Barry Scholarship, an award that was inaugurated in 2019.
As one of 14 incoming Barry Scholars, Klingele will begin graduate study next fall at the University of Oxford in London, England.
The Barry Scholarship is unlike most awards, giving unparalleled support to its recipients who then attend the university at no cost for a minimum of two years.
There is no maximum amount advertised.
Recipients are allowed a wide academic range with the opportunity to pursue any degree in any discipline.
With this scholarship, Klingele plans to obtain a doctorate at Oxford.
Part of what makes the award unique is that the Barry Scholarship cannot be directly applied for.
Instead of student-submitted applications, candidates are tapped by academic nominators who serve at leading American universities.
Recipients of highest merit are chosen by a panel of academics and are offered a “Barry,” conditional upon their separate application and admission to the University of Oxford.
‘Because of my Catholic faith’
Klingele is the daughter of Brad and Cecelia and was raised in Madison, where they are active parishioners of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Madison.
“I’m very, very blessed,” said Klingele when she found out about her successful nomination.
Klingele described the award as “intended for scholars who are eager to continue in academia and who have shown intellectual promise,” adding that it’s also for “those who stood up for their beliefs and who are intending to pursue the truth.
“I think part of what distinguished my application was because of my Catholic faith,” she continued.
Klingele said that when she was nominated, “I was able to testify to the ways in which I have stood up for my beliefs and the ways that my involvement on [the UW-Madison] campus witnessed to the truth.”
Klingele offered one example, explaining that her authentically Catholic pro-life stance “put me in a tricky, tricky spot” in the classroom and outside of it, given her involvement with Rehumanize Madison, an organization that “focuses on defending life from womb to tomb,” she said.
Apart from campus, Klingele served on the Diocese of Madison Human Life and Dignity Board, which she described as “a really beautiful testament to how the Catholic Church organizes and structures its service and charity”.
The Human Life and Dignity Board focuses on the application of Catholic Social Teaching in the Diocese of Madison while overseeing projects like Walking with Moms in Need, Rachel’s Vineyard Retreats, and rural life ministry, among others.
Klingele said that these experiences built on each other and “increased my interest in ethics and my understanding of Catholic Social Teaching.
“It encouraged me and gave me the resources to then share that with the broader UW-Madison community and get students more involved,” she said.
Two initiatives Klingele started on campus were the Siena Scholars, a women’s philosophy and theology group, and the St. Dymphna Society, a women’s mental health support group. Both serve the Saint Paul’s Catholic Student Center community.
Graduate study
In her graduate studies, Klingele plans to utilize her knowledge of Catholic Social Teaching and virtue ethics.
Klingele said she wants to address how students are educated in the United States, “without worsening polarization [that’s] generally across the political spectrum,” and said she’s interested in artificial intelligence (AI) ethics, too.
Within AI, Klingele intends to investigate “how different communities and professionals might be harmed or benefited by implementation of automated machines that replace human labor and creativity” and how that relates to human flourishing with respect to Catholic Social Teaching.
Klingele gave a “shout out to [UW-Madison] Professor Christine Whelan, who is my mentor,” she said.
“[Professor Whelan] was the one who originally encouraged me to apply and look at [the University of] Oxford and look for scholarship opportunities.
“Without her, I would have never dreamed of being able to attend,” Klingele said.
Klingele also wanted to thank UW-Madison Professor Richard Avramenko, who nominated her for the Barry Scholarship.
Klingele said, “It’s an incredible honor, a great opportunity, to go to the largest philosophy department in the world and learn, grow, and, hopefully, pursue the truth and see where the Lord brings me.”