Scholar Wins First-Year Prize, Joins URochester Student Government

Posse Scholar Andre Tulloch, a rising sophomore at University of Rochester, has already earned a major acknowledgement from the school: the Andrew Fried Prize. This prize is awarded to a first-year student who shows outstanding qualities of character, superior moral judgment, and interest in serving their fellow students.

Raised in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Andre has long been involved in community-oriented work, having advocated for causes like gun control as a high school student. When he arrived at the University of Rochester as a new Posse Scholar, he knew that joining student government would allow him a direct path to action. After just a few weeks on campus, Andre ran for first-year class president and won.

He also joined student senate, where he has been responsible for sharing major student issues with the university’s administration, raising awareness for matters that were not being heard. Andre has used his position to address financial disparities and systems of inequality on campus.

Andre has used his position to address financial disparities and systems of inequality on campus.

“As a first-generation and low-income student myself, I noticed that there was no formal process for low-income students to have their lab fees waived,” he says. “I was blessed to have scholarships cover these expenses, but many students do not have these resources.”

As a result, Andre is now working with the student senate, administration and financial aid office to create a system of subsidies and fee-waivers. He is proud to use his own personal perspective to create systems that will help others.

“I do this work because I had different experiences than other students,” he says. “A lot of students did not struggle financially growing up and had households that could provide them with many things. As I grew, I wanted to affect the systems that put me in the position that I am in today.”

Andre credits his family and community mentors for his success so far, in college and beyond. He hopes to continue to use his platform in student government and in campus communities to amplify social justice discussions on campus, and to expand a diverse range of programs that serve all students.