Carnegie Mellon University
February 25, 2011

Mackenzie Evan Smith Wins Henry Luce Foundation Scholarship

Mackenzie Evan Smith Wins Henry Luce Foundation Scholarship

Carnegie Mellon University senior Mackenzie Evan Smith has won a prestigious Henry Luce Foundation Scholarship. Mackenzie, a creative writing major in the Department of English, was one of 18 students and young professionals chosen to participate in the Luce Scholars Program, an initiative that enables students to increase their knowledge of Asia by living and working in an Asian country of their choice. She worked closely with CMU's Fellowships and Scholarships Office (FSO) on all stages of her Luce application.

Prior to college, Mackenzie worked at a Girl Scouting center in Switzerland and aboard a tall ship as a Bosun's Mate in the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas. In 2006, she solo hiked the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine—an experience that became the basis for a creative writing fellowship project, "The Appalachian Trail: Understanding Its Impact and Meaning in Pennsylvania Communities through Creative Nonfiction." Mackenzie is currently combining that work with her experiences traveling in North Africa and the Middle East for her senior honor thesis, a travel essay collection entitled, "The Naked Note Taker."

Read the entire press release here.