UCLA Political Science Major, Diego Sarmiento, awarded 2024 Truman Scholarship

The Department of Political Science at UCLA is proud to announce that one of our graduating seniors, Diego Sarmiento, was awarded a 2024 Truman Scholarship. The purpose of the Truman Scholarship is to invest in outstanding leadership potential that can include careers in government or the nonprofit sector, and in academic excellence. A Truman Scholar receives funding for various endeavors related to graduate studies, leadership training, career counseling, and special internship opportunities within the federal government.

Diego was born and raised in Santa Ana and is the proud son of Bolivian and Mexican immigrants. Over the past four years, he has mobilized thousands of his neighbors to engage and vote in local politics through community organizing. Interning at the Orange County Board of Supervisors’ office, Diego helped push forward an unprecedented homelessness prevention program. The pilot program provides $400 a month to 100 single-parent households and senior citizens on the brink of losing their homes. Diego hopes to continue developing programs that give political voice to his community through his “Santanero Voter Initiative,” a program to increase voter turnout among Latino youth. He is committed to a life of public service, believing that politics should be responsive to everybody, not just large corporations, and that every person is entitled to basic needs such as healthcare, housing, and a life of dignity. With this ambition he intends to pursue a JD/MA in economics.

Diego expressed specific gratitude to two of our department members, Dr. Tyson Roberts and PhD candidate Vanessa Pooudomsak, whom he says were crucial in helping him put together his application and prepare him for the interview process. Further to that, Diego is also grateful to Rebecca Blustein, Assistant Director of UCLA’s Scholarship Resource Center, for guiding and supporting him throughout this and other application processes.