Foundation Executive Secretary Frederick Slabach presented MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon and the MSU Board of Trustees with the award of an honors institution at Wednesday’s board meeting.

“MSU has had 15 Truman Scholars selected,” Slabach said. “That is an amazing record, and you should all be proud of it.”

The scholarship, named after President Harry S. Truman, is presented to about 80 outstanding college juniors around the country. International relations and psychology then-junior Monica Mukerjee received the award in March.

Mukerjee credited the faculty and staff at MSU for with her application.

“They helped me put my life in perspective and helped me think about the smaller things I was doing and the passions I had articulated to them in other settings,” she said.

Three other institutions received the honor this year.

“Because of the competitive nature of the scholarship, it is highly unusual for one college or university to have (so many students receive the award),” Slabach said.

Former MSU Honors College Dean Ron Fisher said MSU receiving the award was due to a combination of its mission and its high number of students who have received the honor.

“They’re looking for universities that have made an exceptional effort to encourage and reward people involved in public service,” Fisher said.

According to an MSU press release, recipients must have extensive background in public and community service and outstanding leadership potential and communication skills.

“I believe that the respective missions of the Truman Scholarship Foundation and Michigan State are the same,” Slabach said. “They further President Truman’s vision that free and inquiring minds can be the architects of a peaceful and prosperous world.”