We are delighted to introduce this year’s William Westerman Pathfinders, who will travel across North America and Asia this summer, meeting Old Members and undertaking research projects along the way.
The Pathfinders Programme is made possible by the generous support of Matthew Westerman (Balliol 1983), who continues to fund the initiative in honour of his father, William A. Westerman (Balliol 1946). The original programme was established in 1955 by Bill Coolidge (Balliol 1924). Further information about the history of the programme can be found on the William Westerman Pathfinders page.
We are very grateful to the Old Members who have already offered to host Pathfinders. If you would be willing to host a Pathfinder this summer, we would be delighted to hear from you — please complete the online host availability form.
William Westerman Pathfinder Awards to North America
Harvey Garnaut (Balliol 2023, PPE)
Harvey is a PPE finalist. His project aims to explore cultural differences in how ambition and hope are perceived across the Atlantic, and how this relates to the vision of the American Dream.
Maggie Maclellan (Balliol 2022, English and Modern Languages (French))
As a student of English and French, Maggie has found the four years at Balliol to be transformative. Along her travels, she plans to explore the diverse dialects of French spoken across North America, which provide living links between past and present.
Oli New (Balliol 2023, Classical Archaeology and Ancient History)
Oli is a finalist in Classical Archaeology and Ancient History. Having rarely travelled out of Europe, he is excited to meet Old Members along his travels, whilst embarking on a project focused on ideas of belonging and community identity, and how different groups choose to define themselves.
Jack Ovens (Balliol 2021, MChem Chemistry)
Jack’s project retraces locations from The Blues Brothers, using it as a starting point to explore the history and influence of blues music across the US. He is particularly interested in how the film connects to real musical communities and the ways in which blues culture continues to evolve.
Mukund Soni (Balliol 2023, PPE)
Mukund has led an active student life, having played for the cricket and squash teams, and serving as JCR Secretary and President of the Oxford Economics Society. His project will explore American nationalism, in particular, the sources of American national pride, how attitudes vary across different communities, and how they are evolving over time.
Theo Thornett (Balliol 2023, PPE)
Theo has a passion for nature and the outdoors and was a recipient of the A.C. Irvine Travel fund for a trek in the Balkans. Reflecting this interest, his project will investigate experiences of, and responses to, climate disasters in the Pacific Coast region and American West, with particular focus on Indigenous reservations and the application of traditional forestry techniques.
Debi Dass (Balliol 2020, MPhil Classics)
Debi has called Balliol home for the past six years, having read for a BA in Classics and Sanskrit and now an MPhil in Classics. She is a passionate dancer, trained from a young age in the Indian classical form Bharatanatyam. With an interest in the expression of Indian classical arts among the South Asian diaspora in the US, her project explores how communities sustain and adapt their cultural heritage in the current political climate.
Olivia Politopons (Balliol 2022, History and Modern Languages)
A History and French student, Olivia’s has drawn inspiration for her project from Simone de Beauvoir’s Amérique au jour le jour, a work that combines travel diary with philosophical reflections on her journey through US at the end of the Second World War, particularly the cultural differences she observed. Following in this vein, Olivia hopes to explore contemporary patterns of American consumption and identity, and to consider how they have evolved since the post-war era.
William Westerman Pathfinder Awards to Asia
Margaret Ackerly (Balliol 2022, Literae Humaniores)
Margaret takes an active role in the worship and life of the Chapel, and her interest in Christian communities forms the basis of her project. During her travels across Asia, she will explore day-to-day religious practice in East Asia to understand the forms Christian life takes in predominantly non-Christian cultures. She will also observe other traditions of worship and plans to walk some of Japan’s ancient pilgrimage routes, visiting temples and monasteries.
Kitty Fisher (Balliol 2023, English Language and Literature)
During her travels, Kitty hopes to observe the culture of textile craftmanship and ownership in Asia, and in particular, learn about traditions and processes of clothing manufacture, including hand-dyeing, stitching, and weaving. She plans to document how this tangible connection can foster an appreciation for the power and beauty of caring for the clothes we wear.
Phoebe Holmes-Simeon (Balliol 2022, Literae Humaniores)
Phoebe plays an active role in college life, having served as JCR Ethnic Minority Officer and an Outreach Ambassador. A keen jazz musician, her project explores how jazz – an inherently improvisatory form – has been adapted across East Asia, using this as a lens to examine how musical practices within communities contribute to the transmission of cultural memory.