Political science student Daniel Shih ’10 last week was named one of 32 American 2010 Rhodes Scholars heading to Oxford University. Shih will begin studying there next fall.

Shih, who was born and raised in Naperville, Ill., is also a 2009 Truman Scholar.

“I’m still figuring out exactly what I’m going to study. I’m interested in a few things, mainly the intersection between grassroots activism and government,” Shih said. “I’m interested in how we can create space for grassroots activists and allow people’s voices to be heard without having to be elected to government.

“I think I might be studying comparative government and political science,” Shih added. “Something in the Department of Politics and International Relations.”

Shih has taken significant time off from Stanford to pursue both field research interests and to work on the campaign trail. He took over a year off school to work for the Obama campaign, eventually working as a field organizer in five states and, during the general election, becoming the regional field director in Albuquerque.

“It’s really important for me to take charge of my own education, to pursue opportunities that will help me grow as an individual, help me grow as an activist and a scholar,” he said. “With that belief in taking some risks and trying new things, graduating in four straight years was not the most important thing to me.”

Shih received a Chappell Lougee grant his freshman year to research the social programs of Hugo Chavez. He continued the research into this quarter, which he took off to conduct field research on the Sino-Venezuelan political and economic relationship.

On campus, Shih is involved with the Stanford Progressive Association and helped launched the Stanford Sweat-Free Campaign to get Stanford to join the Worker Rights Consortium.

As for his future after Oxford, Shih admitted that he’s long flirted with the idea of becoming an academic.

“But I want to consider the social impact that my work as an academic could have as well,” he said. “I’ve always thought about how to make my work relevant to the people that I want to help — the people marginalized by government and by society.”

Shih applied to the Rhodes Scholarship at the encouragement of a colleague that he worked with at the Obama campaign.

“She talked about her experiences in Oxford, and it made a big difference in my deciding to apply for the Rhodes Scholarship,” Shih said. “I wasn’t aware that I even had a legitimate shot in any way.

“You never see yourself as a Rhodes Scholar,” he added. “It’s a little scary.”