WASHINGTON, D.C. – Michael Cheng of the Harvard men's lightweight rowing team is among four Harvard students who earned the Rhodes Scholarship, as announced by Elliot F. Gerson, American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust. Cheng will represent the United States, joining 32 other Americans chosen from 826 nominees and 247 colleges and universities nationwide. 

Established in 1902 by the will of British philanthropist Cecil Rhodes, Rhodes Scholars are given the opportunity to study at the University of Oxford with all expenses covered for two to three years. Winners are chosen based on academic achievement, personal integrity and leadership potential. 

Cheng, a joint history and mathematics concentrator, is also completing a master's degree in computer science. A native of Wynnewood, Pennsylvania,  Cheng was recently elected president of the Undergraduate Council and was a walk-on member of the Harvard varsity men's lightweight crew team. At Oxford, Cheng will work toward a doctorate in engineering science.

Cheng is the 61st Harvard student-athlete to earn it since 1920 and the 379th Harvard student in the fellowship's 119-year history.