Cambrie Nelson

In her four years at Washington University in St. Louis, Cambrie Nelson has wholeheartedly dedicated herself to improving the university and St. Louis communities. She has advocated for dialogue among people and communities of all backgrounds in the spirit of promoting communication, understanding and social justice.

At WUSTL, she has been the president of the Black Woman/Jewish Women discussion group; associate editor of One World Social Justice magazine; coordinator and founder of the Dialogue Club; co-creator of InterUnity, an interfaith collaboration that brings educational opportunities to campus; and co-founder of Connect4, a group devoted to diversity, dialogue, understanding and change. All of these organizations are committed to interaction and communication among diverse communities at WUSTL. Most recently, Cambrie excelled at an internship with the Diversity Awareness Partnership in St. Louis, organizing forums for the community as well as a weeklong program for St. Louis students to interact with each other and address the complicated issues around diversity. Her passion for social justice has led her to engage in different types of service, ranging from Leadership Through Service (LTS), a pre-orientation program, to a service-learning course that twice took her to Lakota nation in South Dakota.

Cambrie’s energy, sincerity and ability to frame words of encouragement motivate others to join in her quests for justice. She shares her vision for the world through writing and presented an inspirational and lyrical student testimonial at the 2009 Martin Luther King Day Commemoration. She has also been recognized for her passionate poems in a variety of venues.

Beyond all of these activities, Cambrie is a genuine person who serves as a mentor and inspiration to everyone she knows. As her nominators stated, “Cambrie lives her life in the service of justice, understanding and dialogue… and it is clear that all of [her] interests are unified by her passion for diversity.” Cambrie’s awareness, love, passion and vision have already made such an impact in the Washington University and St. Louis community that it is clear she’ll be on the forefront of change in the future wherever she goes.