Alexia Nastasia Awarded the Harold C. Case Scholarship
Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies is proud to announce that Alexia Nastasia (BA ’27) has been awarded the prestigious Harold C. Case Scholarship for the 2026–2027 academic year. Embodying the outstanding scholarly spirit of the Case Scholarship, Nastasia is pursuing a double major in International Relations and Sociocultural Anthropology, with minors in Urban Studies and Philosophy.
Throughout her academic career, Nastasia has focused on issues of democratic participation, community empowerment, environmental sustainability, and public policy. The daughter of Romanian immigrants, she has drawn inspiration from her family’s experiences with totalitarianism in Eastern Europe and a commitment to safeguarding democratic institutions. These interests have guided her involvement in initiatives that promote reliable data, civic engagement, and collaborative problem-solving at the local, national, and global levels.
Before arriving at BU, Nastasia earned an International Baccalaureate diploma and the Seal of Biliteracy in Romanian, French, and Spanish. She also served in numerous youth leadership roles, including with Saint Louis County’s Youth Advisory Council, FEMA’s Youth Preparedness Council, and PBS NewsHour’s Student Reporting Labs Advisory Board. During a gap year in Dakar, Senegal, through the U.S. Department of State’s YES Abroad Program, she engaged in cultural immersion and citizen diplomacy while refining her French and learning Wolof.
Since coming to Boston, Nastasia has continued to build on these experiences through an interdisciplinary academic path focused on how policy shapes communities and how policymaking can address societal challenges. A consistent member of the College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s List, she has published research that began as course projects and translated classroom learning into impactful leadership and community engagement. Her activities include serving as a Student Government Senator, a Kilachand Honors College Ambassador, communications assistant for The Institute of Culture, Religion, and World Affairs (CURA), and intern and ambassador with BU Sustainability. She has also continued her national civic engagement through programs such as the 2026 Up to Us student cohort and the 2025 Civics Innovation Fellowship with Civics Unplugged.
As she enters her senior year, Nastasia plans to complete her Kilachand Honors College keystone project comparing urban resilience and sustainability initiatives in Saint Louis, Missouri, and Bucharest, Romania. She also hopes to publish research from both her study of youth-led climate action initiatives around the world and her keystone project, while preparing for graduate study in public policy.
Reflecting on the significance of the award, Nastasia shared:
“This scholarship means to me a recognition for my hard work and intense activities at BU and in the broader community. The scholarship also means financial support that enables me to participate fully and without stress in the learning and community activities needed for my preparation for achieving my academic, professional, and life goals.”
Nastasia also emphasized her commitment to public service and advocacy:
“My most important long-term goal is to work with and through organizations that allow not only for the fair representation of people and communities that have been historically underserved and underprivileged but also for the empowerment of such individuals and groups to speak for themselves and speak truth to power.”
Among her notable projects, Nastasia led and collaborated on a Campus Climate Lab-funded initiative that developed student-generated solutions for environmental justice, completed a UROP-funded study examining youth-led climate action efforts across countries and continents, and contributed reporting and research through fellowships and internships with organizations including The Boston Globe Spotlight Team, the Roosevelt Institute, and Planet Forward. Through these experiences, she has sought to elevate underrepresented voices and bring greater visibility to communities whose stories are often overlooked.
Nastasia continues a strong tradition of Pardee School students receiving the Case Scholarship in recent years. She and Rida Ali (’27) both being awarded the scholarship in 2026, following Jessica Lee (’26) in 2025, Nathan Duong (’25) and Bontu Ankit Patro (’25) in 2024, and Kevin Clenard (’24), Sydney Householder (’24), and Alexis Pfalzgraf (’24) in 2023. Earlier recipients include Charlotte Greenhill (’23), Daniel Markovic (’23), and Evan Teplensky (’23), who were honored in 2022.
The Harold C. Case Scholarship is awarded annually to exceptional BU juniors to support their senior year and was established in recognition of the achievements of Dr. Case, Boston University’s fifth president.