ASU student wins Truman Scholarship to pursue public service career

An Arizona State University student has won the nation’s most prestigious award for undergraduates who are pursuing careers in public service – though he’s been involved in local government for two years already.
Armando Montero, who is pursuing three degrees — political science, economics and math — was elected as the youngest-ever member of the Tempe Union High School District governing board in 2020. Now he's the winner of a Truman Scholarship.
Montero, who is in Barrett, The Honors College and will graduate from ASU in 2023, plans to use the prize money to attend the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law and then work for an education nonprofit.
“One of the main reasons I’m going to law school is to continue working in local politics, which I’ve done since I was a sophomore in high school,” he said.
“I still want to serve on the school board and continue working in the community I grew up in.”
Since the beginning of the Truman Scholar program in 1977, ASU has produced 22 Truman Scholars. The most recent winners are Alexa Scholl in 2018 and Frank Smith in 2015, according to Kyle Mox, associate dean for national scholarship advisement at ASU.
“I cannot emphasize enough what a remarkable achievement this is,” Mox said.
“Given the incredible level of accomplishment among the applicant pool, the Truman Scholarship is among the most difficult national scholarships to win.”
Each university is limited to four nominees, and ASU typically gets 10 to 12 strong applications for those four spots, he said. Students who want the award must show that they already have a deep commitment to service.
When Montero was running for a seat on the school board, the Lorraine W. Frank Office of National Scholarships Advisement reached out to him to begin long-term planning, Mox said.
Montero found out he won the award during a surprise Zoom call on April 14 with ASU President Michael Crow and Provost Nancy Gonzales.
Montero, a graduate of Desert Vista High School in the Tempe Union district, answered some questions from ASU News:

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