UT Tyler Announces 2025-26 Archer Fellows

June 4, 2025 | Hannah Buchanan

Cohort joins other selected UT System students to learn and study at nation’s capital

Four students at The University of Texas at Tyler will join other selected UT System students as Archer Fellows for the fall 2025 and spring 2026 semesters. Archer Fellows participate in designated internships and attend classes focusing on policy, history and advocacy at the nation’s capital.

Selection is based on a competitive application process, and each cohort is comprised of the best and brightest students from across UT System.

“I am proud to say that all four candidates from UT Tyler were accepted into the program for the upcoming academic year,” said Dr. Paul Streufert, UT Tyler Honors College founding dean and program coordinator for the university. “We are excited about the great work these students will do and the prestige and knowledge they will bring back to UT Tyler.”

UT Tyler 2025-26 Archer Fellows are listed by hometown with major and serving semester.

LINDALE – Kolten Knipp, economics, spring 2026.

PALESTINE – Sara Maldonado, economics, spring 2026.

TYLER – Asa Clark, political science, fall 2025; and Andrea Valdez Torres, political science, fall 2025.

The Archer Fellowship Program was established in 2001 by UT System in conjunction with former U.S. Rep. Bill Archer to bring highly motivated and accomplished students to Washington, D.C. Archer Fellows intern with an organization of their choosing based on their own professional and academic goals and interests. For more information, visit: archercenter.org/. 

With a mission to improve educational and health care outcomes for East Texas and beyond, UT Tyler offers more than 90 undergraduate and graduate programs to more than 10,000 students. Through its alignment with UT Tyler Health Science Center and UT Health East Texas, UT Tyler has unified these entities to serve Texas with quality education, cutting-edge research and excellent patient care. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News & World Report as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.