Coeur d'Alene's Finnian Macaulay Wins Hillsdale George Washington and Winston Churchill Fellowship

Finnian Macaulay of Coeur d'Alene was one of 15 students from across the country who joined the George Washington and Winston Churchill Fellowship program at Hillsdale College in Michigan, the college announced on Feb. 3; the fellowships began this semester and prepare students for careers in public affairs and international relations.

Macaulay grew up in Bellevue, Washington, and graduated from Bellevue Christian High School in Clyde Hill in 2024 before enrolling at Hillsdale College, where he is now a sophomore. The program selection places a student from the Coeur d'Alene area into a nationally competitive cohort that Hillsdale describes as a small national cohort of 15 students.

Hillsdale's description of the George Washington Fellowship notes that it prepares students "for careers in the public square, with an emphasis on America’s founding documents and on leading statesmen and thinkers who have upheld the principles of American constitutionalism." The George Washington Fellowship also includes an additional curriculum focused on American political thought and constitutional history.

The Winston Churchill Fellowship Program at Hillsdale is described as preparing students "for careers in public affairs modeled on the statesmanship and constitutionalism of Anglo‑American civilization." Hillsdale says Winston Churchill fellows examine "the perennial questions of war and peace, and the challenges posed by each in the modern world," and that the fellowship includes additional curriculum focusing on American international politics and military history.

Both fellowships include a scholarship, additional required classes, discussions with visiting scholars, research and writing projects that prepare for civic deliberation, and a semester in Washington, D.C., as part of the Washington-Hillsdale Internship Program. Dorothy Roland, undergraduate programs coordinator for Hillsdale in D.C., said in the college news release, "The application process for this program is highly competitive, and we are excited to welcome this new class of fellows,"

For residents tracking local students on national stages, Macaulay’s selection ties Coeur d'Alene to Hillsdale College's Washington program and to an internship semester in Washington, D.C.; the college announcement on Feb. 3 confirms the timing of the selection and the program's current semester activities.