University College London has established a fellowship to honor Ella Keeler, the 20-year-old British exchange student who died at Penn on Oct. 2 after a heart attack eight days earlier.
The UCL History Department created the annual Eleanor Keeler prize, according to CaringBridge.org, where the Keeler family set up a web site to post updates about Ella’s condition before she passed away.
The prize will be awarded to a student who has distinguished him or herself through “enthusiasm, altruism, integrity and participation in the life of the department,” according to the CaringBridge site.
The Staff Student Consultative Committee, members of staff and students will be invited to submit nominations. The prize will be awarded on the recommendation of the Departmental Tutor and Undergraduate Administrator.
Initial funding for the program will come from staff at the university, as well as students.
So far, the Eleanor Keeler Fellowship has topped £3,000, Ella’s parents posted on the CaringBridge site.
The Keelers anticipate meeting with Penn administrators in early 2010, where they will discuss a way to honor Ella’s memory at Penn.
In the meantime, the family is organizing several fundraising events. Ella’s sister, Suzanne MacDonald, for example, is planning a ball in the Keelers’ hometown of York, United Kingdom.
The event is slated to take place in March 2010.
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