Hanan Ibrahim Selected as USF’s First Luce Scholar

When University of South Florida alum and current National Cancer Institute Fellow Hanan Ibrahim first enrolled in the Honors course Sub-Saharan Africa in Historical and Contemporary Perspective, she did not expect it would lead her to study historical and present-day experiences within African diasporic communities in Asia. The class was a broad interdisciplinary introduction to the study of Sub-Saharan Africa – combating negative stereotypes and tropes about Africa’s history, politics, cultures and emphasizing the rich diversity and complex societies across the continent. But when the class began discussing the African diaspora around the world, Ibrahim was surprised with how little she knew about Afro-Asian people. As they dug deeper, Ibrahim knew she wanted to learn more. 

She spent the following summer in Indonesia performing HPV research, engaging with indigenous Afro-Asian people. Coming back to the United States, Ibrahim focused her Africana Studies capstone research — mentored by Dr. Kersuze Simeon-Jones of the USF College of Arts and Sciences — on the Siddi ethnic group in India and Afro-Sri Lankans. She found little literature on these populations and was motivated by their strength, resilience, and connection, leading her to later apply for the Luce Scholars Program. Ibrahim is now the first Luce Scholar in USF history. 
 
Luce Scholars spend a year in Asia being immersed in culture, language, and development. Created by the Henry Luce Foundation, the program’s mission is to provide a platform for deep engagement with Asian communities, strengthening relationships across borders and equipping future leaders with the knowledge and skills to address global challenges.

The program is competitive, with semifinalists being required to complete two virtual interviews and an in-person weekend long interview process. The committee looks for students with the potential to be leaders in their fields and communities. They value initiative, creativity, maturity, humility, sensitivity, and strength of character. Once selected, scholars are placed in a community professional role matching their interests and goals in a country of their choice.  

Beyond the Clinical 

Ibrahim spent the formative years of her life living in Ethiopia and Kenya. Growing up abroad opened her worldview to the different realities people face. She noticed the health disparities that existed in the communities where she grew up, inspiring her to pursue medicine as a career path.

The spring before starting at USF, Ibrahim participated in a virtual internship with Duke University’s Health Profession Recruitment and Exposure Program (HPREP) where she increased awareness of health profession opportunities for underrepresented and minority high school students and completed a case presentation with a group on maternal mortality in Ethiopia.

She began at USF as a traditional pre-medical student with a major in biomedical sciences, however, after taking different courses and being inspired by her professor and former Institute on Black Life director Dr. David Ponton III, Ibrahim added a second major in Africana studies and felt compelled to pursue opportunities intersecting structural inequities with health and disease.

As an undergraduate, she worked as a volunteer researcher in an HIV lab, wrote a book chapter on the Mpox virus, and partnered two other students and Florida Blue to create an independent, systematic review on addressing disparities in maternal health care and physician visitation during pregnancy. Her Judy Genshaft Honors College thesis examined the use of traditional and Western medicine in the treatment of malaria in East Africa. Dr. Fenda Akiwumi, Ibrahim’s professor from her Honors Sub-Saharan Africa course, served as thesis advisor. 
 
“The Honors College helped me become a well-rounded student and researcher,” said Ibrahim. “Through my experiences and taking Honors classes outside from the biomedical sciences major, I discovered a passion for the social sciences and humanities.” 
After graduating in May 2025 with multiple prestigious honors – Magna Cum Laude, the Golden Bull Award, and the Honors College Dean's Circle of Merit award for service – Ibrahim moved into a post-baccalaureate research fellowship at the National Cancer Institute where she now studies HIV assembly and maturation. 

Exploring Health Resilience Worldwide 

Although Ibrahim was settling into her research fellowship, she couldn’t shake the drive she felt after seeing so few studies on the Afro-Asian communities she had done research about in her capstone project. Motivated to learn more and work with these communities, she applied for the Luce Fellowship.

“The Luce Scholars Program was a perfect avenue for me, as it offers the opportunity to expand my Africana studies classroom research into immersive fieldwork and engagement,” said Ibrahim. “Luce gives us a framework, but within that, we really get to define our own path. The year becomes what we make of it,” said Ibrahim. 

Ibrahim’s ultimate goal is to implement effective health care treatment worldwide.

“I want to design interventions that are scientifically sound, but also culturally grounded solutions that account for the diverse and intersecting identities of the people they serve.”

Though her placement for the Luce Scholars Program has yet to be decided, Ibrahim is hoping to be placed in Sri Lanka, to carry on the work she began with her Africana Studies capstone at the University of South Florida. 

"Winning a Luce Scholarship is a tremendous achievement for Hanan, and I'm confident that the work that the award supports will have global impact. As the first USF Luce Scholar, Hanan stands as an inspiring role model for Honors College students who want to bring high quality health care to underserved populations around the world," said Judy Genshaft Honors College Dean Charles Adams.

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Students interested in prestigious fellowship programs like the Luce Scholars Program should reach out to the Office of National Scholars.